Ex-veterans affairs minister faces investigation

By Jun Ji-hye

The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs said Tuesday that it formally requested the prosecution to investigate former Minister Park Sung-choon over alleged illegal or inappropriate activities committed under his leadership.

Park Sung-choon

The decision came after the ministry carried out an internal audit into the several controversial programs conducted while Park was in office, including the ministry’s security education that was criticized for being far-right.

Park is also suspected of having ignored the corruption at veterans’ groups subject to the ministry’s oversight.

“We asked the persecution to investigate Park for his apparent negligence of duty,” the ministry said in a release.

“Regrettably, it has been revealed that Park overlooked various unlawful activities conducted under his leadership even though he was aware of them. He downsized various suspicions or did not take any measures,” it said.

Separately, several ministry officials will be disciplined for their involvement in the controversial projects, the ministry noted.

The ministry also asked prosecutors to investigate two veterans’ groups over their alleged corruptions and improper political activities.

Appointed to the post in February of 2011, by former President Lee Myung-bak, Park, a retired Army lieutenant general, was in office for more than six years, becoming one of the longest serving heads of a ministry.

Park quit the post on May 11, soon after President Moon Jae-in was elected president.

While in office, Park was consistently accused by liberal parties of having masterminded ideologically biased education.

The former minister also became a subject of public criticism in June 2014 for his comment disparaging the bereaved families of the victims killed in the sinking of the ferry Sewol disaster that occurred in April of that year.

At the time, he said, “The people in this country criticize the government and the President whenever big accidents occur,” referring to the families of the victims who called on the Park Geun-hye government to thoroughly unearth the truth surrounding the tragic incident.

The ministry’s decision to demand the prosecution investigation against the former minister is in line with the Moon Jae-in government’s ongoing efforts to root out past wrongdoings conducted under the former conservative governments.

Under the Moon’s anti-corruption drive, incumbent minister Pi Woo-jin has campaigned for the reform of the ministry for the last six months, having announced a set of measures to come clean on the ministry’s past wrongdoings.