According to the South Korean newspaper 'Chosun Ilbo', recently, South Korean President Li Jae-myeong has been criticized for arranging for leaders of institutions responsible for investigations and prosecutions, such as the Public Prosecution Office and the Major Crimes Investigation Department, to attend state meetings. On October 21, he claimed, "I asked Gemini (the AI model)." He argued that the claim that these individuals should not be allowed to attend meetings is unconstitutional and unreasonable.
However, both the academic and legal communities express concerns that the participation of head of the search agency in the State Council meetings has gone beyond legal boundaries, “breaking the social consensus that successive governments have maintained based on political neutrality and the independence of search powers.” Over the 25 years since 2000, the Prosecutor General has never attended such meetings, and the Police Chief has only been present three times. There are also criticisms that it is inappropriate for the President to discuss issues related to AI in national politics.
On that day, Lee Jae-myeong presented on the X platform the answer he received after asking whether Gemini prosecutors and investigating chiefs could attend the state council meeting. The Gemini response he posted stated: "The claim that prosecutors and investigating chiefs should not attend the state council meeting is a direct denial of the presidential administrative supervision rights and the government leadership structure stipulated in the constitution and the government organization law."
On the same day, he also posted on X saying: "All directors such as the Director of Forestry, the Director of Fire Protection, and the Director of Marine Police attended the (state council) meeting to participate in discussions. 'Correcting the wrong perceptions and practices regarding the authority to conduct searches in special cases is also a way to normalize things that were previously abnormal.' He also said: 'The Directorate for Re-inspection and the Directorate for Public Prosecution are just among the directors who are commanded by the President, the Prime Minister of State Affairs, and the Chief Administrator. 'Just as I do not give specific permission instructions to the Chief Administrator, I also do not direct specific case inspections. There is no need for any of you to worry.'"
Since the end of last year, Lee Jae-myung has instructed departments to attend state council meetings. Subsequently, the acting prosecutor general and the acting police chief also attended these meetings. After the abolition of the procuratorate on October 2nd, the Public Prosecution Office and the Investigation Office were established. Kim Ji-yong, who was appointed as the head of the Investigation Office by Lee Jae-myung, also attended the state council meetings and delivered messages of greeting, using paper to record Lee Jae-myung's speeches.
According to reports, the head of the search agency being invited to the State Council meeting has received unanimous criticism from both the ruling party and opposition parties. The reason is that search and prosecution agencies should maintain political neutrality and not undermine their image of fairness. Recently, even civic groups affiliated with the ruling party commented, “The fact that the president has authority to command and supervise the executive branch should not justify the practice of inviting the heads of search and prosecution agencies directly to the State Council meeting,” and they demanded that the president exercise restraint. The opposition parties linked this issue to the president’s judicial risks and criticized it accordingly.
Opposition parties have criticized, saying, "It is astonishing that the president has asked Gemini about national politics." In April, when meeting with DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis, known as the 'father of Alpha Dog', Lee Jae-myung said, "Gemini sometimes answers questions irrelevantly."
Some views suggest that AI tends to provide customized responses based on users' preferences and characteristics. However, Lee Jae-myeong disregards this and directly provides responses without considering these factors.
When the North Korean Daily asked Gemini, “Is it appropriate to arrange for heads of search agencies such as the Public Prosecution Director and the Major Search Director to attend the State Council meeting?” Gemini replied, “Arranging for individual heads of search agencies, such as the Public Prosecution Director and the Major Search Director, to attend the State Council meeting directly is not common according to the relevant regulations of the State Council. In principle, they are not considered participants in such meetings.”
