By Kang Hyun-kyung
Staff Reporter
Opposition parties are planning to join together to take action against the governing Grand National Party (GNP) as well as President Lee Myung-bak after the funeral of former President Roh Moo-hyun, political observers said Friday.
Hundreds of thousands mourners participated in the funeral, which took place in Seoul, Friday.
Chung Sye-kyun, chairman of the opposition Democratic Party (DP), told reporters Thursday that his party would ensure that those who were ``responsible for the death of Roh" will take due responsibility after the funeral.
Party insiders said the DP was considering several options, including President Lee's public apology for the death of Roh, who was under investigation for allegedly taking more than $6 million from a businessman.
Shortly before leaving his home Saturday, the former President left his family a brief suicide note, in which he described the burden and agony he went through and the helpless situation facing him.
The DP is also considering demanding that Lee dismiss Justice Minister Kim Kyung-han and Prosecutor General Lim Chae-jin to take responsibility for the grim tragedy because they were in charge of the investigation.
Following Roh's death, parties refrained from attacking each other or trying to assign blame.
They were afraid that locking horns during the memorial week for the late president would trigger a public backlash.
But the temporary ceasefire in the political arena will end soon as the DP and other opposition parties made it clear that they would bring the tragedy to the parliament session after the funeral.
The Democratic Labor Party (DLP) pledged to fight against what it called the repressive regime because it was largely responsible for Roh's tragic choice.
Political observers said there was a possibility that the DP and the DLP may take joint action against the ruling camp in the National Assembly session in June because they share the same cause.
Recent polls have said there has been shift in public support for the ruling GNP and the main opposition DP.
The latest public opinion survey of 700 people conducted by the Korea Society Opinion Institute found the support rates for the GNP (21.5 percent) and the DP (20.8 percent) were within a margin of error.
The figure for the GNP dropped by 9.9 percent, compared with that of the previous month, while the support for the DP rose by 7.8 percent during the same period.
Pollsters said the DP's rising popularity will help its leader Chung have greater say in the upcoming Assembly session.
hkang@koreatimes.co.kr
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