Seoul: Regarding some ruling party lawmakers’ demand for Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de’s resignation, the presidential office said Monday that the reasons for making such a demand should be considered and that elected officials (like the legislature) should be given top priority. This is understood to mean that if the National Assembly demands Jo resign, he should consider the background of that demand.

According to Yonhap News Agency, a day earlier, Choo Mi-ae, chair of the National Assembly judiciary committee, said on social media: “The court emboldened insurrection forces by canceling the arrest of insurrection suspects. Chief Justice Jo has responsibility for this. He must step down for judicial independence.” Jung Chung-rae, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, also put pressure on Jo to resign in a party meeting on the same day.

These responses from the president and the ruling party come amid demands by chief presiding judges for the guarantee of judicial independence and the judiciary’s participation in discussion of judicial reforms. Chief presiding judges of major courts across the nation have expressed concern about the judicial reform plans of the ruling party and voiced numerous opinions opposing the plan during their special meeting on Friday.

Particularly, the plan to set up “a special tribunal for the crime of insurrection” was criticized by judges who argued that it could infringe upon judicial independence. After the meeting, chief judges emphasized that judicial independence must be guaranteed to protect the rule of law. They voiced their opposition to the party’s unilateral push for change in the South Korean judicial system, shortly after President Lee Jae Myung justified the plan for a special insurrection tribunal.

The party is pursuing a judicial overhaul, excluding the court from the process and not collecting public opinion. Among the five reform plans are proposals to increase the number of Supreme Court justices and form a new committee to evaluate judges. Additionally, the party is advancing a bill to set up a special insurrection court, with plans to expand the Supreme Court from 14 to 26 justices.

This expansion could result in President Lee appointing 22 justices before his term ends, raising concerns about the influence on future rulings involving Lee. Public confidence in the judiciary could be severely impacted if a large number of justices are appointed under a particular government. The plan to create a judge evaluation committee, partly consisting of figures recommended by the National Assembly, also poses risks of pressuring judges whose decisions do not align with the ruling party.

The establishment of a special tribunal on insurrection raises constitutional concerns, as the Constitution grants the judiciary the exclusive right to set up courts. The party’s bill allows the Assembly to recommend some of the special tribunal judges, further complicating the issue.

In a press conference marking 100 days since his inauguration, President Lee defended the special insurrection tribunal and emphasized a hierarchical power structure in South Korea, where elected officials are above judges. This view threatens the separation of powers among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches.

Judicial reform, a critical issue affecting the nation, should not be processed unilaterally. The ruling party is urged to involve the judiciary and consider public opinions in their reform plans.