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🇰🇷 South Korea /Elections & Politics

Ruling Party Attacks Justice Minister Nominee Kim Seung-won Over COVID-19 Drug Lobbying Allegations: “A Deferred Prosecution Means There Was Guilt”

From Hankyoreh · () Korean

Translated from Korean and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

News Named sources In the courts
  • The People Power Party revived allegations that Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won sought preferential approval for clinical trials of a company’s COVID-19 treatment.
  • Prosecutors issued Kim a deferred-prosecution decision in December 2024 over suspected bribery after investigators found evidence that the company tried to send about 5 million won to his political fundraising account.
  • Opposition lawmakers said the allegations should not be dismissed as political conflict and called for public disclosure of the prosecution’s decision.

The People Power Party has reopened questions about Justice Minister nominee Kim Seung-won’s role in a company’s effort to secure clinical-trial approval for a COVID-19 treatment.

The issue resurfaced after a camera caught Kim sending a text message to National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee Chair Seo Young-kyo during a parliamentary session. The message addressed the allegations and included an apology. Kim’s apparent explanation has since become part of the political dispute.

The core of the case is the suspected lobbying of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety.

— Na Kyung-wonNa identified the alleged lobbying as the central issue in the controversy.

People Power Party lawmaker Na Kyung-won said the central issue was suspected lobbying of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. She argued that a deferred prosecution differs from a finding of no suspicion. In her description, prosecutors concluded that an offense existed but chose not to indict because it was considered less serious.

A finding of no suspicion means there was no crime at all, while a deferred prosecution means there was a crime but prosecutors did not indict because it was considered minor.

— Na Kyung-wonNa contrasted Kim’s deferred-prosecution decision with a finding of no suspicion.

Na said Kim had asked the food and drug safety minister to speed up clinical-trial approval for a COVID-19 treatment at the company’s request. Investigators also found indications that roughly 5 million won was about to be deposited into Kim’s political fundraising account. The Seoul Western District Prosecutors’ Office issued the deferred-prosecution decision in December 2024 over suspected bribery.

Kim is reportedly preparing a constitutional complaint to cancel the decision, arguing that it was unjust. Na called that move highly inappropriate. Fellow People Power Party lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun said the issue should not be reduced to political maneuvering. If Kim believes he was treated unfairly, Yoon said, the public should be able to examine the prosecution document and see which allegations Kim acknowledged and why prosecutors issued their decision.

This is not something that should be dismissed as political bickering.

— Yoon Sang-hyunYoon said the allegations required public examination rather than political treatment.
About this summary

Originally published by Hankyoreh in Korean. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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