Foreign Minister Kang makes misdirected apology

Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha speaks at the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, Aug. 25. Korea Times photo by Oh Dae-geun

By Do Je-hae

Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha came under fire this week for her remarks during a National Assembly session regarding a highly publicized sexual harassment case involving a ministry official who formerly served at the Korean Embassy in New Zealand.

The Korean diplomat, who was relieved of his duties at another diplomatic mission recently and ordered to return to Korea for further investigation on Aug. 3, has faced allegations that he sexually harassed a local male employee during his service at the embassy in 2017.

The Korean foreign minister took questions regarding the case at a session of the Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, Tuesday. She raised controversy by refusing to apologize to the government or people of New Zealand. Instead, she offered an apology to President Moon Jae-in.

“Regardless of the circumstances, I feel sorry that the case has left the President in an uncomfortable position,” Kang said, referring to a phone conversation between Moon and New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in July when the latter brought up the issue without prior coordination with the Korean side.

Regarding the allegations against the diplomat, Kang said she could not apologize at that moment because “there needs to be further fact-checking.”

“It is not an easy decision to apologize to the other country because an apology is a matter of national dignity,” she said.

What surprised many Koreans about her apologetic words to President Moon is how she sounded more like a mere presidential aide rather than the face of Korea's diplomacy.

At this point, the most important aspect that she and her ministry ought to be focusing on is a clear and thorough probe into the allegations. At the same time, she also needs to take into careful consideration the impact her remarks could have on relations with New Zealand as the nation's top diplomat. President Moon being in an “uncomfortable position” should not be her primary concern at this point in the conflict with New Zealand, a country that has enjoyed friendly relations in various areas with Korea.

Coming on the heels of a series of sexual abuse scandals involving Korean diplomats, the case captured additional media attention after the July 28 phone conversation between the heads of the two nations. After their 30-minute talks, the presidential office said in a statement that the two leaders “discussed” the case, without elaborating. It is considered unprecedented for such a case to be included as a topic for discussion in a phone call between two heads of state, resulting in a sense of embarrassment for many Koreans.

A day before Kang's refusal to apologize to the victim and New Zealand, she apologized to the Korean public through a press release, saying the case “not only acted as a diplomatic burden on the government but also caused concerns to the people.” This apology came after Cheong Wa Dae conducted a review of the case and the ministry's initial investigation into the allegations and “rebuked” the ministry for its poor response, from the start of the case to the phone talks between the leaders. The diplomat was given a light punishment of a one-month pay cut.

The ministry added it would take appropriate measures soon based on the inspection results, but many Koreans have lost trust in the ministry's ability to handle such cases, given the repeated occurrences of similar cases.

Kang's remarks at the Assembly session have caused an angry reaction from the victim, according to media reports. Opposition parties here have also criticized Kang for refusing to apologize to New Zealand as foreign minister. Such a rigid position is feared to hamper the close cooperation with New Zealand needed for a full and fair investigation.