Ahead of the first trial judgment on the perjury teacher on the 25th (Monday)
Good judiciary VS bad prosecution
“Different judgments for each judge”… expectations of superiority
Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the first expanded executive meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd. 2024.11.22 /Yonhap News
Lee Jae-myeong, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, left a remark ahead of his sentencing trial for perjury on the 25th, saying, “I trust the judiciary of the Republic of Korea that has protected democracy and human rights in accordance with the Constitution.”
Representative Lee also separated and contrasted the judiciary with the prosecution, describing the prosecution as ‘absurd’ and ‘rude’, and expressing the judiciary in value-laden language such as ‘private return’, ‘bastion of human rights and democracy’, and ‘gratitude and respect’. I ordered it.
In a situation where there are predictions that the political fate of Representative Lee Jae-myeong, who was sentenced to ‘unexpectedly severe punishment’, may change due to the court ruling handed down over the weekend, Representative Lee appears to have personally set out to ‘appease the judiciary’.
Representative Lee Jae-myung said at the expanded executive meeting on the 22nd, the last official meeting before the sentencing hearing, “Among the separation of powers, the independence of the judiciary is the most fundamental of democracy and the rule of law. “Even if political forces within the executive and legislative branches fight, the independence of the judiciary must be thoroughly guaranteed,” he said. “I believe in the judiciary of the Republic of Korea, which has protected democracy and human rights in accordance with the Constitution.”
He mentioned the ‘dark history’ such as the Cho Bong-am verdict, the Human Revolutionary Party incident, and Kim Dae-jung’s rebellion plot, but said, “After democratization, there were retrial rulings by the judiciary for all of these cases. He praised the judiciary in the language of trust, saying, “Even if we went wrong at one point, we have always found our way, and I am confident that the independence, conscience, and pursuit of justice of the judiciary have led this country’s democracy to this point.”
Representative Lee clearly opposed the prosecution as evil and the judiciary as good.
Representative Lee said, “Even under the Moon Jae-in administration, the ruthless prosecutors indicted me for four absurd cases,” adding that it was the judiciary that ruled not guilty in cases such as forced hospitalization of my brother in a mental hospital, exaggeration of profits from Daejang-dong development, and impersonation of prosecutors. recalled.
Regarding the sentence of one year in prison and two years of probation for violating the Public Official Election Act on the 15th, “Different judges may make different judgments. So there is a three-trial system. “That is why we have the High Court and the Supreme Court,” he said, hoping that the higher court would rule differently.
Regarding the voices criticizing the judiciary from the leadership and some of Representative Lee’s supporters, he also asked them to refrain, saying, “You can criticize the ruling, but it is not desirable to criticize the entire judiciary.”
Representative Lee said, “I would like to express my gratitude and respect to the majority of judges and the judiciary who, even at this moment, are doing their best to discover justice as the last bastion of human rights and democracy and to protect human rights and democracy according to the substantive truth. He ended his remarks by saying, “I am telling you this.”
Meanwhile, Representative Lee also commented on the fact that the prosecution’s request for an arrest warrant for Representative Lee was passed at the 21st National Assembly last year.
He expressed his critical perception of the judgment of the non-government group at the time, saying, “(The prosecution) requested an arrest warrant absurdly, and the Democratic Party of Korea itself lost its battle line, and the National Assembly passed the motion for arrest.”
This appears to be the first time that he has clearly expressed his position regarding the passage of the arrest warrant request.
/Reporter Kwon Soon-jeong sj@kyeongin.com
