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Choo pushes for hearing on Jo, criticizes King Sejong reference

Published: 24 Sep. 2025, 15:52

Liberal Democratic Party (DP) Rep. Choo Mi-ae leaves the Legislation and Judiciary Committee meeting room on Sept. 16. [YONHAP]

Liberal Democratic Party (DP) Rep. Choo Mi-ae, who chairs the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, criticized Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de on Wednesday and his statement that “King Sejong did not use the law to strengthen royal authority.”

“The chief justice has embarrassed himself with inappropriate remarks, failing to distinguish when to speak and when not to,” Choo wrote in a Facebook post with that quote as its title.

She further wrote that Chief Justice Jo “remained silent when the traitor Yoon Suk Yeol, who sought to permanently seize power while still bound by the Constitution, mobilized the military to attack the National Assembly and issued emergency decrees that violated the basic rights of the people.”

“Yoon even claimed before the constitutional Court that the president could exercise supreme emergency powers and that only the president could judge such situations and necessity,” said Choo. “Back then, Jo should have denounced Yoon for using the law to reinforce presidential authority.”

“Jo’s reference to King Sejong is absurd and self-serving, a desperate attempt to cover up his own wrongdoing,” she said, and alleged that “Jo Hee-de’s ‘nine-day operation’ to eliminate Lee Jae Myung, whom Yoon targeted after his failed coup attempt, must be investigated.”

“It is Jo, not the National Assembly, who violated the separation of powers and stepped into the political arena,” Choo said. “He is obligated to appear before the legislature.”

Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de speaks during the opening address at the 2025 Sejong International Judicial Conference, held at the Shilla Hotel in Jung District, central Seoul, on Sept. 22. [YONHAP]

Choo added a motion on Monday to hold an emergency hearing on “suspicions of election interference by Chief Justice Jo Hee-de” during a legislative session on prosecutorial reform. With support from the DP and minor liberal Rebuilding Korea Party lawmakers, the motion passed. Conservative People Power Party lawmakers protested the motion’s introduction, claiming it violated the separation of powers, and walked out.

The hearing is scheduled for Sept. 30.

Chief Justice Jo made the remarks that drew criticism earlier Wednesday, during his opening speech at the “2025 Sejong International Judicial Conference,” hosted by the Supreme Court at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul.

“King Sejong did not use the law as a means of strengthening royal authority,” Jo said. “He used it as a normative foundation to improve the quality of life for the people and to guarantee their rights.”

His comments were seen as a defense of judicial independence amid growing pressure from the ruling bloc, which is calling for his resignation and pushing to establish a special tribunal to try alleged sedition cases — a move critics say is unconstitutional.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY CHO MUN-GYU [[email protected]]