Refusal to inter convicted veteran in national cemetery ruled constitutional

Korea's Constitutional Court has ruled in favor of the government's recent refusal to inter the body of a convicted Vietnam War veteran in a national cemetery, the court said on Monday.

The court said it recently ruled unanimously that the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs' decision on the Korean veteran was constitutional.

A son of the Vietnam War veteran, surnamed Park, had filed a complaint with the court, saying an obscure clause of national cemetery law under which his father was refused burial in the national cemetery in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul, contradicted the Constitution which guarantees rights to equality.

The law prohibits burials in national cemeteries of those who can undermine the glory and honor upheld in the cemeteries.

The agency cited the veteran's history of convictions for violence, gambling and fraud as reasons for the rejection.

"(Upholding) Glory means not only the sacrifice and contributions one has made but also an intactness of that accomplishment, which is not spoiled by crimes or other misdeeds," the court records stated. (Yonhap)