South Koreans are most concerned about inadequate response to serious crimes and delayed case processing as the government pushes ahead with prosecutorial reform, a new survey shows.
The Prosecutorial Reform Task Force released the findings on Monday. The survey was conducted from December 17 last year to January 25 this year, polling 4,000 members of the general public and 193 experts and government officials.
Public trust in criminal justice institutions remains broadly low. Distrust rates by institution were: prosecution (64.9%), Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (64.2%), police (60.1%), and courts (50.2%). Negative assessments of current criminal justice services reached 62.9%, far exceeding the 27.2% positive rating.
Regarding the reform direction of separating investigative and indictment functions, respondents cited weakened capacity to respond to serious crimes (28.9%) and delayed case processing (27.1%) as their top concerns.
In-depth interviews with experts and government officials revealed mixed views. Some agreed that separating investigation and indictment powers is necessary to prevent concentration of authority. Others expressed concern about reduced crime-fighting capacity and investigation delays from rapid separation.
On supplementary investigations, 45.4% of the public held positive views, supporting either maintaining current direct supplementary investigation rights or allowing them with restrictions. Meanwhile, 34.2% held negative views, favoring either prohibiting direct supplementary investigations or banning even requests for them.
Expert and official interviews showed majority support for maintaining prosecutors' supplementary investigation authority, though some called for abolition in line with the separation principle. Among supporters, opinions varied on scope—some favored maintaining current practices while others preferred limited permissions such as restricting investigations to related cases within the same factual circumstances.
The task force said it plans to thoroughly review expert and public opinions from the survey and reflect them in future legislation, ensuring prosecutorial reform proceeds without setbacks.