Are the Japanese a Beloved People? (1)
'The credibility of the prosecution. That’s certainly a convincing reason.'
By changing the foundation of the Criminal Act from the principle of aggravation to the principle of concurrent sentencing, the high-ranking officials of the prosecution were all swept away, regardless of the underlying reasons. Of course, it was true that they had attempted to raid the home of the current Prosecutor General, Han Bon-chan, and had committed other crimes, but to the public, it could also appear that the government was responding excessively to the prosecution. It looked as if they were destroying the prosecution simply because they "opposed" the change from aggravation to concurrent sentencing.
But what if, in this situation, the criminal facts of the former Prosecutor General, Kim Young-woon, were revealed? And what if it were uncovered that the prosecution had covered up those crimes? Furthermore, if the custom of "post-retirement favors" within the prosecution were exposed to the public? The actions the prosecution had attempted would lose all their persuasive power.
And, strictly speaking, this was a necessary step to preemptively block Japan's nonsense, rather than just a method to persuade the public.
[South Korean government arbitrarily changes Criminal Act for hasty trials]
[South Korea changes laws to punish innocent Japanese]
[South Korea's righteous prosecutors sacrificed to change the law]
These were the types of articles Yoon-gi had predicted Japan would churn out. In fact, Shin Ho-jun agreed with Yoon-gi's line of thinking. 'If we show the naked face of the prosecution, the possibility of the world being swayed by the Japanese government's media play will certainly decrease.'
Media warfare between nations includes not only the citizens of one's own country and the opposing country, but naturally, the global media as well. In that sense, it was clearly the right choice for Yoon-gi not to go all-in on the trial involving Himura, but to invest time here for a moment.
"Which traitor would you prefer? I think the story that your grandfather and Lee Wan-yong were close friends would be quite good."
Because Shin Ho-jun spoke with such constant, calm detachment, the Deputy Prosecutor General felt like he was going insane. 'In this day and age, my family becoming traitors?' The Deputy Prosecutor General was well aware of the current public sentiment. If his family were branded as traitors now, they would never survive. Shin Ho-jun's declaration that he would "make them a traitor family" didn't just mean changing records; it meant using it for media play. Thus, the Deputy Prosecutor General's eyes darkened with despair.
"I have acknowledged your loyalty. I shall respect your opinion."
Finally, Shin Ho-jun stood up. The Deputy Prosecutor General jumped to his feet and shouted desperately.
"I, I'll tell you! I'll tell you everything, so please..., please......"
The moment he said this, he would become an accomplice in the involuntary manslaughter case. But if he didn't, his family would become traitors, and his status in the manslaughter case would shift from accomplice to principal offender. Thus, the Deputy Prosecutor General had no choice but to submit to Shin Ho-jun.
"Then, please speak."
Even though he had extracted the correct answer, Shin Ho-jun remained indifferent.
[Were the high-ranking prosecutors' claims about the 'roots of justice' all lies?]
[High-ranking prosecutors who spoke of the foundation of justice found to have systematically participated in evidence tampering]
[The hollow words of high-ranking prosecutors with no sincerity]
[Will concurrent sentencing lead to the reform of the prosecution?]
At the same time, a crowd had gathered in front of the main gate of the Jongno Police Station.
"Why didn't you report it to the police?!"
"Why did you try to conceal the incident?!"
"Do you not regret your choice back then?!"
Reporters swarmed toward Kim Young-woon, who was being moved to the detention center in handcuffs, thrusting microphones at him like madmen. But Kim Young-woon remained silent, disappearing into the transport vehicle with the police without a word.
"Tsk tsk, a single wrong choice led to this state of affairs."
YS clicked his tongue while watching the live broadcast of former Prosecutor General Kim Young-woon's transfer on TV.
"Perhaps, at that time, he felt he had no other choice."
Hearing N's response, YS looked at him.
"Eh? Do you know something?"
"Yes."
N sighed once and continued, "At that time, Prosecutor General Kim Young-woon wanted to join the ruling party. In such a situation, it would have been difficult for him to endure being exposed in the media in a negative light."
"But didn't Prosecutor General Kim Young-woon fail to join the ruling party? Ah..."
YS nodded as if he understood.
"Yes. In the end, the admission fell through."
"Tsk tsk... If he had just reported it to the police on the spot and undergone an investigation, it would have ended as involuntary manslaughter and wouldn't have become a problem like this. Now, he's got everything from evidence concealment to all sorts of charges pinned on him. His life is completely over."
At YS's words, Yoon-gi, who was with them, nodded inwardly.
'Certainly... if he had reported it then, it would have ended as involuntary manslaughter.'
Killing someone doesn't automatically result in a murder charge. Murder requires "intent to kill." If murder charges were applied to every instance of killing, there would be too many tragic cases. Suppose I'm driving and suddenly hit someone who jumped out from the center line. If that person dies, should I become a murderer? This is why the application of murder charges is strict.
Of course, Kim Young-woon was not an innocent victim. If he had reported it on the spot, he might have been. But Kim Young-woon concealed the crime and shifted his guilt onto others.
'In the first place, the victim, Park Dong-hoon, wasn't exactly an innocent victim either.'
According to the investigation led by Shin Ho-jun, the victim, Park Dong-hoon, had been in an accident while stealing ginseng from a ginseng field in the mountains that had an owner. Logically speaking, why would an ordinary person be crossing a mountain road at 2:00 AM?
At Choi Deok-bae's words, Yoon-gi gave a bitter smile.
"By the way, what happened to Assemblyman Kim Ki-sang?"
"He was booked along with the others for evidence concealment. He told me that, in a way, he felt relieved. Well, it's true that he didn't do anything right, but..."
In reality, Kim Ki-sang had killed a roe deer. However, Kim Ki-sang had participated in the cover-up thinking he had killed a person. Even if he had been in a state of panic, he had still participated. Therefore, as former Prosecutor General Kim Young-woon was caught, Kim Ki-sang was also booked.
"If this incident has a major impact on his image, Assemblyman Kim Ki-sang will likely lose in next year's general election or won't even be able to run?"
At YS's words, N nodded.
"Well, it can't be helped."
Yoon-gi agreed with N's answer. After all, Yoon-gi hadn't intervened in this matter because Assemblyman Kim Ki-sang was a good person or because he wanted to use him as a talent.
'Just by shattering the prosecution's credibility, I feel it was worth investing time in this matter.'
At Choi Deok-bae's words, Yoon-gi nodded inwardly. 'Well, I suppose I can't always be rewarded by vengeful spirits.'
However, Choi Deok-bae continued. 'Oh, a reward?'
When Yoon-gi asked with interest, Choi Deok-bae replied, 'No, isn't that field owned by someone?'
'Ah, I'm going crazy. Pfft!'
Yoon-gi had to struggle to hold back his laughter. Choi Deok-bae was also chuckling incessantly. Yoon-gi learned that just as there are various types of people in the world, there are various types of vengeful spirits as well.
"I sentence you to 50 years in prison."
"So, sonna! Bakana!"
Unable to hide his bewilderment in the courtroom, Himura was completely stunned by the 50-year prison sentence. Fifty years. In Japan, one doesn't get 50 years for bribery. No, if Himura had been sent back to Japan and tried there, he wouldn't have even received a prison sentence. At the very least, if he had been tried in Korea two years ago, a fine would have covered it. But the first-instance verdict for Himura, delivered in mid-July 1988, was a whopping 50 years.
[[[[[Wooooooah!]]]]]
[[[[[Serves you right!!]]]]]
The spectators all stood up, cheering and clapping. A Japanese guy who tried to throw Korean society into chaos sentenced to 50 years in prison. Furthermore, it became the first case that clearly demonstrated why the law was changed from the principle of aggravation to the principle of concurrent sentencing.
Choi Deok-bae cheered sincerely, floating around Yoon-gi. 'Concurrent sentencing is certainly refreshing in times like this. It's the same when I look at the other professors.'
Because Himura had bribed so many people, each instance was calculated as a separate case, resulting in the 50-year sentence. And because the professors' instances of receiving bribes from Himura were applied separately, they were sentenced to prison terms ranging from 3 to 10 years. It wasn't even attached with a suspended sentence. It was prison, no questions asked. Because of this, the Japanese Prime Minister and his ministers' strategy toward Korea faced a major setback.
The Prime Minister and his ministers hadn't just been sitting around idly after Himura was caught. Naturally, they had sent a replacement to Korea and had sent letters or communications to the Korean government several times, demanding that Himura be sent to Japan. Of course, the Korean government firmly rejected Japan's requests. As a result, the Prime Minister and his ministers were absolutely seething with venom.
"Those damn Joseonjing! How dare they! When their former master tells them to send him, they should just send him!"
The Prime Minister, who had shown a calm demeanor until now, was finally exploding with rage.
"Indeed. Fifty years! Does that even make sense? This is Korea daring to warn us. How dare a Joseonjing warn us!"
The Foreign Minister also exploded with rage, staring at the newspaper headlines on the conference room table.
[South Korea sentences Japanese national to 50 years in prison]
[South Korea's discrimination against Japanese, is it the inferiority complex of Joseonjing?]
[Righteous prosecutors wiped out just to harass Japanese. Is South Korea a normal country?]
These were the headlines Yoon-gi had expected, or perhaps even worse. However, foreign media did not show the reaction the Prime Minister and his ministers had hoped for.
[South Korea switches to concurrent sentencing, the excellence of Anglo-American law]
[The vested interests of aggravation, the prosecution's small rebellion]
[South Korea's concurrent sentencing, the first target gets 50 years]
If one read the content, Himura was mentioned, but there were no articles dealing with current Korea-Japan relations. They only covered South Korea's shift to concurrent sentencing. Therefore, the Prime Minister and his ministers were not at all pleased with the foreign media.
"We cannot just sit still like this."
At the Justice Minister's words, the Foreign Minister chided him slightly.
"It's not like we've been sitting around. We've been sending personnel to Korea all this time. But what can we do when there's no one responding?"
As the Foreign Minister said, currently in South Korea, traitors who dared to praise Japan could not operate. If they made a wrong move, they would be sentenced to prison without mercy, so how could they operate? Of course, existing pro-Japanese collaborators weren't being hunted down, but they were holding their breath and watching the eyes of the South Korean people.
"Chiksho! After receiving so many benefits from us, to turn their backs at a time like this. As expected, the Joseonjing are a people who don't know gratitude."
The Justice Minister was truly furious. Hearing this, the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology responded to the Justice Minister's words and shouted aggressively.
"Since it has come to this, how about we, Japan, declare that we will boycott the 88 Seoul Olympics?!"