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In the course of the modern and contemporary history of Korea, some military and political leaders have made remarkable contributions to our society.
There is tremendous public respect for General Chae Myeong-shin (1926-2013), who is considered one of Korea's genuine military leaders. Having graduated from the Korea Military Academy in 1949, he joined the Korean War and led a special unit in 1950 as a second lieutenant.
While serving as the first Korean commanding general who commanded Korean troops in the Vietnam War from 1965 to 1969, General Chae gained a reputation for his shrewd guerrilla tactics. Consequently, he has been described as a war hero for his excellent achievements in battle.
Returning to Korea, he served as commander of Korea's Second Army in Daegu until 1972. In particular, General Chae joined the May 16, 1961, military coup as commander of the 5th Division led by then Major General Park Chung-hee. Later, Park asked Chae to cooperate with his political endeavors to set up a dictatorial regime. However, Chae flatly opposed Park's plan to prolong the regime in 1972. As a result, he was forced to retire as lieutenant general that year. After being discharged, he served as Korean ambassador to Sweden, Greece and Brazil.
In early 1973, I had the honor of meeting General Chae at a reception commemorating his appointment as Korean ambassador to Sweden. The event was organized by the Korean-Swedish Association that was held at the Scandinavian Club at the National Medical Center in Seoul. Despite being in my early 20s, even before serving in the military, General Chae treated me with kindness and modesty. Although half a century has passed since my encounter with General Chae, and I still have fond memories of him.
General Chae is well known to us as a genuine soldier of integrity who did not make much of useless protocol. He did not demand any special treatment whenever he visited official organizations for business and lectures as a retired general. According to his cherished will, he was buried alongside enlisted (rank-and-file) soldiers who had lost their lives in the Vietnam War at Seoul National Cemetery in 2013. For the first time in the history of the Korean armed forces, a general was laid to rest next to enlisted soldiers. This demonstrated a leader's affection for his subordinates and esprit de corps both before and after death.
Notably, he requested to be in a 3.3-square-meter tomb, which is the smallest grave option. Typically 26.4 square meters are set aside for a general, which is eight times larger than what he chose. The tombs of former Korean presidents are 10 times larger than those of generals, each of which is 260 square meters, similar to a royal tomb. The higher the rank, the more room the tomb takes up.
Before his own death, whenever the opportunity presented itself, General Chae would visit the cemetery to pay respects to the tombs of men who had sacrificed their lives during the Vietnam War.
The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs of Korea strongly opposed his wish to be buried alongside the enlisted men, emphasizing that it would be disrespectful to generals and that there had been no precedent. However, the government of Korea finally honored his wish.
General Chae Myeong-shin's rare spirit of righteousness and noblesse oblige has had a profound impact on my mind.
Choe Chong-dae (choecd@naver.com) is a guest columnist of The Korea Times. He is president of Dae-kwang International Co., and director of the Korean-Swedish Association.
