Ten days have passed since a 1,200-ton Navy corvette sank in the West Sea near the border with North Korea. The military has managed to neither rescue any of the 46 missing crewmen, nor apparently come any closer to the exact cause of the tragic, mysterious accident, and instead only lose a veteran Navy diver during that time. That's bad enough.
Even more unbearable for the grief-stricken families and the sympathetic public than the initial shock and deepening sense of loss, however, is the seemingly excessive secrecy the military ― and even the government ― have maintained since the outbreak of the incident.
It might also explain in part why these families have decided to ask for the cessation of the rescue operation and shift to the salvage of the shipwreck instead. The decision, coming after the first discovery of a missing sailor, must have been a hard but reasonable move, considering the additional sacrifices likely to be made in prolonged rescue efforts. Besides the death of the top Navy frogman, two fishermen drowned with seven others missing on their way back from joining the rescue mission.
No doubt it would be difficult for the Navy to rescue missing crew members and find the cause of the unprecedented accident in its 60-year-long history, especially given the unseasonable weather and rapid, choppy waters. But that should be precisely the reason to not camouflage exactly what happened on the night of March 26 but come clean on what caused the patroller to pass there and break in two.
Above all, Defense Minister Kim Tae-young's frequently changing reports, even on the exact timing of the accident, have deepened, rather than erasing, suspicions. So much so that even Cheong Wa Dae and the governing Grand National Party are worried about the possibility that the military is hiding something. This means the general public feels three layers of secrecy ― or even four if the Navy is not telling everything to even the defense chief ― surrounding this puzzling accident.
President Lee Myung-bak was right in this regard when he cautioned against making any hasty conclusions about North Korea's involvement without hard evidence, none of which has yet to be found.
As the Navy and/or defense ministry should have fewer concerns about the political repercussion of this accident than the governing camp does, there are only two reasons they are hiding something, presuming they are doing so: first, they want to avoid or lessen their responsibility; second, they have some secrets concerning national security.
Even if the second scenario is true, the decision for publicity should not be up to the defense minister, much less the Navy commander, but the commander-in-chief. So the only way to prevent this most unfortunate mishap from intensifying the already serious mutual distrust between this administration and the people is for the Navy to report all they have and know immediately to President Lee. Anything less could result in more serious consequences than the damage already inflicted on the nation.
Politicians and some media outlets, hawks and doves, should refrain from ``processing'' half-baked information to tailor their tastes and for their own interests, which may likely end up keeping the accident shrouded in questions and leaving behind only empty politicking. The lives of 47 soldiers and nine civilians are too precious for that.