ED Revealing the truth

Probes gain momentum over 'defection' case

Prosecutors sought arrest warrants Tuesday for former Defense Minister Suh Wook and former Coast Guard Commissioner General Kim Hong-hee over the previous administration's alleged mishandling of the killing of a South Korean fisheries official by North Korean soldiers in September 2020. Suh and Kim face diverse charges, such as abuse of power, dereliction of duty and fabrication of official documents apparently to extract a false conclusion that the official, Lee Dae-jun, was shot to death in the West Sea while attempting to defect to the North.

The Moon Jae-in government has taken flak for having covered up the case to curry favor with North Korea. Suh is suspected of instructing ministry officials to delete military intelligence from the Military Information Management System (MIMS) suggesting that Lee had no intention to defect. Kim is suspected of ordering the Coast Guard to release a false report that Lee attempted to defect due to a huge gambling debt.

The prosecution's move is in line with the Board of Audit and Inspection's (BAI) recent report that the Moon government systematically distorted the case to make it appear as if Lee had chosen to defect. Both Suh and Kim turned down the report. Yet, they cannot avoid criticism for having neglected their duty as top officials in charge of protecting the people's lives and safety.

In making such a decision, they might have talked with then senior presidential officials. What is dumfounding is Kim's statement after he was briefed that Lee had been wearing a life jacket with Chinese letters at the time when he was discovered. “I would rather pretend not to see it,” Kim said, according to the BAI report.

Rep. Choe Jae-hyeong of the ruling People Power Party, who served as BAI chief from 2018 to 2021, cited the need to investigate former President Moon in connection with the case in a comment in his Facebook account. In a related move Wednesday, prosecutors also called in former presidential chief of staff Noh Young-min to investigate his alleged role in repatriating two North Korean fishermen against their will in November 2019.

As Noh is the top-level official of the Moon government being probed in connection with North Korea-related cases, the prosecution's investigation will eventually target Moon soon. Although belated, thorough investigations should be conducted to find out who instructed the fabrication of the “defection” case. It is natural for prosecutors to question former National Security Office Director Suh Hoon and Park Jie-won, who served as chief of the National Intelligence Service from 2020 to 2022.

Priorities should be placed on revealing the truth behind the case in a fair and objective manner. The probes should not be swayed by any political influence. Moon and other former officials should come in for investigations and tell nothing but the truth. They should not try to frame them as a political revenge. They must ask themselves whether they had done everything they could to protect people's lives and properties ― the raison d'etre of a state.