Future Committee to Launch Fact-Finding Investigation into Kim Hakui Emergency Departure Ban Case

The Prosecution Human Rights and Future Committee (referred to as the "Future Committee"), which was launched to investigate allegations of prosecutorial abuse of authority, has decided to initiate a fact-finding investigation into suspected human rights violations and abuse of power during the probe into the emergency departure ban case involving former Vice Minister of Justice Kim Hak-ui.

Cha Gyugeun, a member of the Organizational Innovation Party, is speaking at the National Assembly Rotunda. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

According to the legal community on July 30, the Future Committee recently notified Assemblyman Cha Gyugeun of the Organizational Innovation Party that it has determined the investigation into the emergency departure ban against Kim Hak-ui requires further fact-finding, and that the committee will recommend a formal investigation next month.

Previously, Assemblyman Cha's legal representatives submitted a proposal to the Future Committee, requesting that this case be included in the scope of their fact-finding efforts. The aim was to have the committee examine whether any human rights violations or abuse of authority occurred during the prosecution and indictment of Assemblyman Cha and others.

The prosecution indicted Assemblyman Cha, who at the time served as Director-General of the Ministry of Justice’s Immigration and Foreign Policy Bureau, on charges of involvement in issuing the emergency departure ban against former Vice Minister Kim. In June of last year, Assemblyman Cha was acquitted by the Supreme Court. Following the acquittal, Assemblyman Cha filed formal complaints with the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO), claiming that then-prosecutors on the case had written and submitted false investigative reports to the court and leaked case details to external parties, accusing them of charges including falsifying official documents and violating official secrecy.

The Future Committee was established last month to investigate the facts of cases where allegations of human rights violations or abuse of prosecutorial authority have been raised and to make recommendations for recurrence prevention. As its first group of investigations, the committee has selected seven cases, including the Ssangbangwool remittance to North Korea case, the Daejangdong land development scandal, and the shooting of a public official in the Yellow Sea.

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