Gag order? Prosecutors demoted after protesting Daejang-dong appeal withdrawal.

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Gag order? Prosecutors demoted after protesting Daejang-dong appeal withdrawal.

Published: 15 Dec. 2025, 00:00

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho answers questions related to the decision to drop an appeal in the Daejang-dong case during a plenary meeting of the National Assembly’s Special Committee on Budget and Accounts on Nov. 12. [YONHAP]

Senior prosecutors who objected to the decision to abandon an appeal in the first trial of the Daejang-dong development corruption case have been pushed aside in what critics call retaliatory personnel moves by the Justice Ministry.

In a reshuffle that took effect on Dec. 15, the ministry reassigned three prosecutor general-level officials — Park Hyuk-soo of the Daegu District Prosecutors’ Office, Kim Chang-jin of the Busan District Prosecutors’ Office and Park Hyun-cheol of the Gwangju District Prosecutors’ Office — to research posts at the Judicial Research and Training Institute. Jung Yu-mi, also a prosecutors general serving as a research fellow there, was effectively demoted to a line prosecutor position at the Daejeon High Prosecutors’ Office.

Within prosecutorial circles, the moves were seen as highly unusual and punitive. All of the affected prosecutors had previously voiced strong objections to the leadership’s decision last month to forgo an appeal and demanded a clear explanation from then-acting Prosecutor General Noh Man-seok.

The Justice Ministry said the reshuffle was intended to prevent misunderstandings about the prosecution’s political neutrality and fairness. It is true that the appeal withdrawal intensified controversy over those issues. The question, however, is who bears responsibility for creating that controversy.

Justice Minister Jung Sung-ho had called for a cautious review after being briefed on the appeal plan, and Noh ultimately decided to drop the appeal. Noh later stepped down, while Jung has insisted there was no external pressure or directive, an explanation that has failed to persuade critics. If accountability is to be assigned, they argue, it should rest with those who ordered and approved the appeal withdrawal rather than with prosecutors who challenged it.

The fallout is unlikely to fade quickly. On Dec. 12, prosecutor Jung Yu-mi filed a lawsuit seeking to nullify the personnel order, calling it a de facto severe disciplinary action disguised as routine management. Park Hyun-cheol and Kim Chang-jin posted messages on the internal prosecution network stating that prosecutors must never yield to or be used by improper pressure before submitting their resignations.

The timing has raised further questions. The government is pursuing legal revisions that would abolish the duty of obedience for civil servants and explicitly allow officials to refuse unlawful orders. The latest reshuffle appears to run counter to that stated direction, fueling concern that the real message being sent is one of silence and unconditional compliance.

If the government expects the backlash to fade, it may be mistaken. The appeal withdrawal has already damaged public trust and deepened suspicion about the decision.

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.