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| In this Feb. 1, 2021, file photo, then National Security Adviser Suh Hoon attends a meeting at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul. Suh has been accused of having played a role in pressuring the Ministry of Defense to change its official position on the killing of a South Korean official by the North Korean military in North Korean waters two years ago. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-suk |
Family of official killed by North Korea demands disclosure of classified documents, threatens legal action against Moon
By Jung Min-ho
Suh Hoon, the former chief of the National Security Office (NSO) accused of having pressured the Ministry of Defense to obfuscate the facts behind the killing of a fisheries official in North Korea's waters two years ago, said Monday that he will cooperate with investigators if necessary.
In a statement he sent to Yonhap News Agency, Suh said that he had no intention of avoiding an investigation to find out the truth behind the case, claiming he had followed government principles in handling it.
"At the time of the incident, I did everything to take necessary measures in accordance with the principles… I hope that the facts will be revealed clearly," he wrote.
His remarks come amid allegations from Rep. Ha Tae-keung of the ruling People Power Party that he had hurriedly gone to the United States on a tourist visa to avoid investigation. Suh denied the claim, saying that he went there upon the previously arranged invitation of a U.S. think tank.
Ha, the head of the party's special committee on the issue, called Suh Hoon, who served as director of the NSO and was an official on the National Security Council (NSC) during the previous administration, "a key person" behind the Defense Ministry's abrupt shift in its position on the death.
According to the ministry's documents disclosed Saturday, the ministry changed its position from "(North Korea's) brutality of burning the body confirmed," to, "a joint probe needed for what is speculated as the burning of the body," after the NSC's request to review the material on Sept. 27, 2020. It was seen as a significant turn of events in the description of the incident, which the ministry had said just three days before was committed by North Korean soldiers.
"I believe Suh and former NSC Deputy Director Suh Choo-suk are the key people behind it," Ha said during an MBC radio interview.
The lawmaker argued that it was strange that Suh went to the U.S. on a tourist visa instead of on a J-1 visa ― which is issued to visitors of foreign nationality for participation in exchange visitor programs ― given that it is the type of visa former high-ranking government officials often obtain. Ha said Suh might have been in a hurry.
Ha urged Suh Hoon to explain what really happened during the incident on Sept. 22, 2020, and in the days that followed, including why the ministry accepted North Korea's unilateral claims despite what it found via surveillance equipment and if there was any pressure from a higher authority such as the NSC.
"There was no evidence provided by the North … Yet, its words were accepted and the ministry was told to change its position," he said. "It was a serious disturbance of national discipline."
Meanwhile, Lee Rae-jin, the elder brother of the late fisheries official, Dae-joon, and his lawyer met Rep. Woo Sang-ho, the interim leader of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on Monday.
During the meeting, Lee demanded that Woo cooperate with the disclosure of the sealed documents that have information about the death of his brother. Lee urged the DPK leader to cooperate with the ruling party to pass the motion to disclose the information, specifically about the details of the NSC meeting held on Sept. 23, 2020, a day after his brother was killed, while giving specific deadlines for the parliamentary action. First, Lee said that the DPK must adopt the motion by July 4 and then it must work with other parties to pass it no later than July 13.
If these deadlines are not met, Lee said he would take legal action against former President Moon Jae-in. In the closed-door meeting between Lee and DPK leaders, the two sides are known to have failed to reach an agreement.
