Out of Grievance

Arsonist Suspected of Destroying National Treasure

An old Korean saying goes that 10 people cannot capture a thief. This adage can be applied to the loss of the Namdaemun gate, a 610-year-old landmark in Seoul. It is a pity that police, firefighters, cultural property managers and citizens could not prevent an alleged arsonist from sneaking into the wooden structure and setting fire to it. No matter how tightly the nation's top national treasure was guarded, it might have been difficult to keep the gate off-limits to potential perpetrators dabbling in vandalism.

People have expressed shock and anger at the Sunday destruction of the symbolic icon of the nation. Many of them said their hearts were burning when watching TV footage showing the invaluable cultural asset burning down. They were surprised to learn how negligent cultural property administrators, city officials, police and firefighters were in preserving and protecting the structure. How could police ignore a pedestrian's report that a stranger climbed up the gate? How could firefighters fail to take quick and proper action to bring the blaze under control?

The case demonstrates that South Korea has a long way to go to join the ranks of advanced countries in preserving their cultural assets and heritages. We are ashamed of losing the National Treasure No. 1 which had survived foreign invasions, the 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule and the 1950-53 Korean War. The gate, originally called Sungnyemun, is the incarnation of national pride. But it seems that this pride has been burned away with the charred structure.

Police said Tuesday they arrested a 70-year-old man on suspicion of arson. Investigators said the suspect, identified by his surname Chae, confessed to the arson, adding that he committed the crime out of grievance because he was not paid in full for land he sold to be developed. According to the initial police investigation, the arson was a premeditated and carefully planned crime. He reportedly made advance visits to several historic relics, eventually choosing the gate as his target.

Chae also committed arson in April 2006, destroying part of a Joseon Kingdom palace in downtown Seoul that was listed as a World Heritage. A local court sentenced him to a suspended jail term for causing about 4 million won ($4,250) in property damage. It is also disturbing to learn that Chae had allegedly thought of committing a terrorist attack on trains to vent his dissatisfaction over the compensation money estimated at 96 million won ($120,000), far short of his expectation of 400 million won. However, it was quite difficult to detect the suspect's criminal schemes in advance.

But what really matters is how to respond to such arson when it occurs. The fire took place around 8:50 p.m. Firefighters rushed to the scene but they failed to take immediate and appropriate action to extinguish the blaze. It was obvious that they did not know how to put out the fire. In short, lack of fire-prevention measures led to the destruction of the national treasure. It is imperative to take radical steps to protect the country's cultural properties from vandalism.