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| Kim Young-oh, who lost his daughter Yu-min in the Sewol ferry disaster, lies in bed at the Seoul Metropolitan Dongbu Hospital, Monday. He has been on a hunger strike for 45 days, and is calling for the National Assembly to pass a special bill to investigate the tragedy. / Korea Times |
By Jung Min-ho
Kim Young-oh, who lost his 16-year-old daughter when the Sewol ferry sank on April 16, is at the center of an escalating political controversy as his 45-day-long hunger strike continues to attract scorn and concern.
The father of the late Kim Yu-min, one of the Danwon High School students who died during the ferry tragedy, says he has only ingested salt and water since July 14, and is calling on the National Assembly to pass a special bill to fully investigate the tragedy. He has since lost more than 10 kilograms and his health has deteriorated. He was taken to a hospital on Friday, but still refuses to eat.
He is demanding that the Assembly form an independent fact-finding committee with full investigative rights and the authority to indict people if they are suspected of involvement in direct or associated causes of the sinking.
While some people ardently support Kim, others have questioned his intentions.
Kim Young-ho's hunger strike
His former brother-in-law posted on the Internet last week that Kim did not take care of his family after divorcing his wife 10 years go.
Kim refuted this accusation and posted captured images of KakaoTalk messages sent between him and his daughter before she died, in order to prove that he maintains a good relationship with her.
His second daughter, Kim Yu-na also defended him, saying that "he has always been friendly and tried his best to take care of my sister and me."
Another rumor circulating is that Kim enjoys a "lavish" hobby, Korean archery, and what he is most interested in is financial compensation for the loss of his daughter to support his participation in the sport.
However, it reportedly only costs 30,000 won ($29.50) per month to enjoy this hobby.
In response to these allegations, the committee representing relatives of victims made public copies of Kim's bank records that showed he sent money to pay for insurance and mobile phone bills to his family over the years.
Some celebrities have also been drawn into the increasingly intense political strife surrounding Kim.
Actor Lee San accused him of exploiting the tragedy for political theater and suggested that the bereaved father commit suicide.
"It's the only way you can prove that your fasting had nothing to do with political propaganda and that most of all that you love your daughter," Lee wrote on his Facebook page.
Lee also criticized singer Kim Jang-hoon and actor Moon Seong-geun, who have openly supported the hunger-striker.
Actor Jeong Dae-yong, who appeared in the film "Sea Fog," said he would retire after a post criticizing Kim that he put on Facebook drew a torrent of complaints.
There are suspicions that the National Intelligence Service (NIS) is behind the spread of negative rumors and personal attacks on Kim.
According to the committee of Sewol victims' relatives, NIS officials are collecting information about Kim through his doctor and his neighbors in Jeongeup, North Jeolla Province. The families earlier claimed that NIS agents and plain-clothed police officers have conducted illegal surveillance on the families.
The NIS has denied these claims.
A number of opposition lawmakers and civic activists have joined the hunger strike in support of Kim. They include Rep. Moon Jae-in, who lost to Park Geun-hye in the presidential election in 2012.
Yet there are no immediate signs of an end to their strike because the negotiations on the Sewol bill have ground to a halt.
Earlier this month, the ruling and opposition parties twice reached deals on the bill's content in order to get it passed in the National Assembly, but these were rejected by the families who said the proposed content did not address their concerns.
