Prosecutors Seek 5-Year Term for Former PM Han; Special Counsel Launches All-Out Judicial Battle
Legislation and trials that will determine the fate of judicial power are simultaneously shaking up the political landscape. Movements to overhaul the entire national judicial system are accelerating, such as the insurrection special counsel team seeking a heavy sentence for former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo and the introduction of a personnel hearing bill to check police investigative powers. In a final trial held at the Seoul Central District Court on August 28, 2026, Special Prosecutor Cho Eun-seok’s team requested the court sentence former Prime Minister Han, who was indicted on suspicions of failing to appoint Constitutional Court justices and making hasty nominations, to five years in prison. The special counsel team defined the case as a major crime that distorted the people's choice and paralyzed the function of a constitutional institution, emphasizing that the charges of abuse of power and obstruction of the exercise of rights must be strictly dealt with.
Special Counsel’s Offensive and Trial Politics Aimed at Re-establishing Judicial Order
The request for a five-year prison term for former Prime Minister Han Duck-soo is merely the prologue to the ongoing large-scale judicial processing. According to legal circles on the same day, the trials of 26 key figures, including former Prosecutor General Shim Woo-jung and former NIS First Deputy Director Hong Jang-won, who were indicted on charges of participating in insurrection, are getting into full swing at the Seoul Central District Court’s dedicated insurrection tribunal, the Criminal Division 38-3. As this deals with allegations that top officials of state power institutions disrupted the constitutional order—going beyond simple personal deviations—the evidence revealed during future public trials is expected to have a significant impact on the political landscape. The second comprehensive special counsel team, led by Special Prosecutor Kwon Chang-young, is also focusing on proving the charges of key military figures, including former Commander of the Capital Defense Command's 1st Security Group Cho Song-hyun, causing judicial accountability involving the military, prosecution, and NIS to spread in all directions.
Such judicial accountability movements are also leading to the legislature's push for special counsels. Democratic Party lawmakers on the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee have officially moved to pursue the so-called "Fabricated Indictment Special Counsel Bill" regarding the indictment of President Lee Jae-myung, coordinating the timing with the party leadership. The purpose is to uncover suspicions of evidence fabrication and targeted investigations that may have occurred during the investigation process. In contrast, the People Power Party has defined this as an act of destroying the rule of law and fired back by unveiling 133 legislative tasks ahead of the regular session of the National Assembly. Leader Jang Dong-hyuk and Floor Leader Jeong Jin-sok emphasized the ruling party's unity through a seminar and clarified their will to do their utmost in the legislative struggle to support the government's policy direction.
Legislative Issues Surrounding Checks on Expanded Investigative Power and the Livelihood Economy
As the police authority has become formidable following the adjustment of investigative powers between the prosecution and police, attempts to control it democratically are also becoming concrete. The three bills recently proposed regarding personnel hearings mandate that a National Assembly personnel hearing must be held when appointing the Head of the National Investigation Office, who oversees police investigations. This is interpreted as a minimal check mechanism to secure the independence and fairness of police investigations, which have expanded due to the revision of the Criminal Procedure Act. It is intended to preemptively block abuses that could occur if the head of an investigative agency fails to maintain political neutrality. People Power Party lawmaker Lee Sang-hwi has gone further by proposing a revision to the Criminal Procedure Act to prevent prosecutors from arbitrarily dismissing charges in cases where high-ranking public officials and their families are defendants, aiming to fill gaps in judicial justice.
Differences in views between the ruling and opposition parties are also stark in the livelihood economy sector. The revision of the Industrial Safety and Health Act proposed by Democratic Party lawmaker Park Hong-bae centers on strictly limiting night work to 12 times a month and 48 hours a week. While intended to protect workers' health rights, the People Power Party strongly opposes it, calling it a "law that deprives people of their livelihood." Critics argue it disregards the reality of manufacturing sites or logistics industries where 24-hour operation is essential. Legislation for regional economic revitalization also stands out. The revision of the Special Act on the Establishment of the South Jeolla-Gwangju Integrated Special City, proposed by lawmaker Yang Bu-nam, includes provisions for capitalizing 20 trillion won in support funds for integration costs, promising to be a major watershed in responding to regional extinction crises and forming a wide-area economic bloc.
Strengthening Support for Future Generations through Education Separation and Care Policies
Despite political conflicts, policy proposals for future generations continue. Rebuilding Korea Party lawmaker Jung Jae-young emphasized the principle of separation of politics and education, arguing that political influence should be excluded from the education policy decision-making process. This is interpreted as a reconfirmation of the constitutional value that guarantees the autonomy and expertise of education. Rep. Jung stressed the need for "Future Generation Hope Care Policies," including expansion of child allowances and improvement of parental leave systems, as well as prosecutorial reform and special counsel control, presenting concrete alternatives to solve low birthrate and aging population issues.
People Power Party lawmaker Park Jin-sun is also focusing on resolving educational gaps. The enactment of the Underachieving Child Support Act, which aims to strengthen support for underachieving students and reduce per-capita education expenditure, targets the qualitative improvement of public education. Democratic Party lawmaker Kang Byung-deok argued for resolving intergenerational gaps and expanding public care services, stating that the structure where care gaps lead to social inequality must be blocked. Thus, as education and care legislation closely related to real life is pursued separate from the grand discourse of judicial system reform, the National Assembly has taken on the task of simultaneously catching two rabbits: reforming power institutions and stabilizing livelihoods.
Political Gridlock and Legislative Prospects Amid Continued Judicial Risks
The future political landscape is expected to fluctuate depending on the special counsel's investigation results and the court's decisions. The sentencing result for former Prime Minister Han could be a fatal blow to the morality of the current administration's state affairs, while the ongoing trials of suspects charged with insurrection are heightening tension throughout the public service sector. As Special Prosecutor Lee Tae-han recommended 10 candidates for special counsel prosecutors to the President to investigate the June 3 local election ballot shortage scandal, judicial judgments surrounding election fairness are expected to materialize soon. As lawmaker Lee Bong-soo pointed out the need for fundamental reform to restore trust in the judicial system, the current confusion can be understood as a process revealing the limitations of the existing system.
The legislative war between the ruling and opposition parties is expected to intensify during the regular National Assembly session. The opposition parties plan to continue a wave of offensive by spearheading the Fabricated Indictment Special Counsel Bill and the Kim Geon-hee Special Counsel Bill, while the ruling party will seek to secure national governance momentum by pushing through its 133 legislative tasks. In particular, the bill to introduce personnel hearings for the Head of the National Investigation Office is likely to become a key issue in reshaping the power landscape following the adjustment of investigative powers. As Howard Florey noted that the adjustment and cooperation of technical methods are the keys to success, if delicate coordination between the ruling and opposition parties is lacking in the legislative process, it is difficult to rule out the possibility that livelihood bills will be caught in a political whirlwind and drift aimlessly. The current situation, where judicial accountability and legislative supplements are interlocked, appears to be a major testbed verifying whether the principles of checks and balances in Korean democracy are functioning properly.
