Former President Roh Tae-woo. Hankook Ilbo file photo
The government has decided to hold the funeral of the late former President Roh Tae-woo for five days starting on the 26th. However, President Moon Jae-in did not directly pay tribute to the funeral of former President Roh. It seems to have found a compromise between the criticism of the progressive camp for historical mistakes, while respecting the merits of the deceased, such as the introduction of the direct presidential system.
President Moon said on the 27th, “Ex-President Roh has made many mistakes in history, such as the forced suppression of the May 18 pro-democracy movement and the December 12 military coup, but there were also achievements such as the successful hosting of the 1988 Olympic Games, the promotion of the Northern Policy, and the adoption of the Inter-Korean Basic Agreement.” “I pray for the well-being of the deceased and express my condolences to the bereaved family,” he said. He took the ‘gesture of inclusion’ as a national leader, referring to former President Roh’s achievements.
靑, decided as ‘head of the country’ after an internal meeting while watching public opinion
Prior to this, the government decided to hold the funeral of former President Roh as a national funeral. The current law stipulates that funerals for former and incumbent presidents can be held with a national funeral. However, as in the case of former President Roh, there is no clear regulation on whether a former president who has been deprived of courtesy for serious crimes (eg, rebellion) is the head of state. Prior to the government’s decision, President Moon is known to have decided on the head of state after an internal meeting with the Blue House.
It seems that the decision was made with the decision to accelerate democratization by accommodating the demand for constitutional amendment to the direct presidential election that erupted through the June protests in 1987. The fact that he was the main culprit of the rebellion, but his family apologized several times for his mistakes, also took into account the view that he should be evaluated differently from former President Chun Doo-hwan, who does not even show any signs of remorse. It is read with the intention of creating an atmosphere of national unity ahead of the presidential election in March next year.
The reason that the Blue House and the government only released a message of condolences and condolences the day after the news of Roh’s passing was made because they were conscious of public opinion in a situation where opinions about Roh were divided.
Yoo Young-min, chief of staff of the Blue House, speaks with the bereaved family after paying tribute to the funeral of the late former President Roh Tae-woo at the funeral hall of Seoul National University Hospital in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 27th. news
Passports, victims’ groups protest against… President Moon does not pay condolences
In actual passports, voices against the head of state erupted. In a statement on the same day, all seven members of the Democratic Party of Korea’s Gwangju lawmakers criticized, “It is not convincing to treat the head of state as a head of state just because he is a former president in a situation where the historical condemnation is not over.” Democratic Party lawmaker Woo Sang-ho, who was president of Yonsei University’s student body at the time of the June Uprising in 1987, also expressed his opposition, saying, “Historical evaluations should be cool.”
President Moon’s decision not to visit the burial place of former President Roh in person seems to be a decision considering some of his passports and opposition from groups related to the May 18th. The superficial reasons stated by the Blue House were to attend an ASEAN video conference on the afternoon of the 27th and to depart for Europe on the 28th.
It is the first time that an incumbent president has not visited the grave of a former president. Former President Park Geun-hye visited the burial place of former President Kim Young-sam, and former President Lee Myung-bak visited or attended the funeral of former Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun. On that day, President Roh’s burial place was visited by President Yoo Young-min, chief of staff of the president, and Lee Cheol-hee, senior presidential secretary for political affairs, instead of President Moon.
Respecting the wishes of the bereaved family, they are likely to be buried in the Paju Unification Garden
The burial site of former President Roh is expected to become the Paju Unification Garden, not the National Cemetery. Former President Roh cannot be buried in a national cemetery under the current law, as his sentence has been finalized on charges of rebellion. If there is a government decision, it is possible to be buried in the national cemetery, but we have decided to respect the wishes of the bereaved families, “I want to be enshrined in the Paju Unification Garden, which was built during the presidency of Roh.”
The national head, named ‘Former President Roh Tae-woo’s head of state,’ concludes with a funeral and burial ceremony on the 30th. Prime Minister Kim Bu-gyeom, who chaired the funeral, said, “The government will make this funeral the national head of state to commemorate the deceased’s achievements together with the people and do everything in their power to treat them with respect.”
for stop reporter cdragon25@hankookilbo.com
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