Mother of Cheonan Ship Fallen Soldier Pleads with President Moon: "Please Say 'North Korean Act'"

President Moon Jae-in is listening to the questions of bereaved families while paying respects at the West Sea Defense Day ceremony held at the National Daejeon National Cemetery on the 27th. [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Son Sunhee] "Mr. President, please tell us if this was the work of North Korea or someone else. We have never truly done anything that North Korea did. Please ease the pain of this old woman."

On the 27th, during the 5th 'West Sea Defense Day' commemorative ceremony held at the National Daejeon Cemetery, an elderly white-haired grandmother suddenly appeared beside President Moon Jae-in as he was about to pay respects and made this plea. She is Mrs. Yoon Cheong-ja (76), who lost her youngest son 10 years ago in the Cheonan ship attack.

President Moon, attending the West Sea Defense Day ceremony for the first time since his inauguration, walked forward to the Memorial Tower to lay a wreath and pay respects according to the ceremony schedule.

Then, Mrs. Yoon, the mother of the late Sergeant Min Pyeong-gi, who was standing in the back row, called out "Mr. President" and approached him, pleading, "Please ease the bottled-up pain. I ask the President to please reveal who is responsible for this."

Since it was an unexpected situation, President Moon appeared momentarily taken aback but soon comforted Mrs. Yoon by saying, "There is no change at all in the government's official position." The Ministry of National Defense formed a joint military-civilian investigation team after the sinking of the Cheonan on March 26, 2010, and after about seven months of investigation, announced that "the Cheonan sank due to a torpedo attack by a North Korean submarine." President Moon reaffirmed this government stance.

President Moon Jae-in is paying respects at the grave of the late Warrant Officer Han Ju-ho at the National Daejeon National Cemetery on the 27th.
Warrant Officer Han Ju-ho died while conducting search and rescue operations during the Cheonan ship sinking incident in March 2010, and was posthumously awarded the Chungmugong Medal of Military Merit. [Image source=Yonhap News]

West Sea Defense Day is a day to honor the 55 warriors who sacrificed their lives in armed conflicts between the South and North that occurred in the West Sea, including the 'Second Battle of Yeonpyeong,' the 'Cheonan ship attack,' and the 'Yeonpyeong Island shelling provocation.' It was designated as a government commemorative day in 2016.

After the ceremony, President Moon, accompanied by his wife Kim Jung-sook, visited the 'West Sea Defense Special Cemetery' at the National Daejeon Cemetery, where the fallen soldiers from the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong, Yeonpyeong Island shelling provocation, and Cheonan ship attack are buried, to pay respects.

The memorial visit started at the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong cemetery, followed by the Yeonpyeong Island shelling provocation cemetery, and then the Cheonan cemetery, concluding with a visit to the late Lieutenant Han Ju-ho’s grave. President Moon placed chrysanthemum flower baskets, handed to him by the wreath bearers, at each individual memorial stone, gently touching each stone in remembrance. The bereaved families watched as President Moon and his wife bowed their heads and observed a moment of silence.

At the Cheonan attack warriors’ cemetery, the mother of the late Navy Sergeant Park Seong-gyun, who met President Moon there, cried out, "Do you know why all the mothers are not here? Because they are in pain." In front of the tears of the bereaved, President Moon comforted her by patting her shoulder and saying, "Does the pain go away as time passes? Please stay strong."

The last cemetery visited was that of the late Lieutenant Han Jun-ho, who died while trying to rescue missing Cheonan soldiers. After paying respects, President Moon told Lieutenant Han’s wife and daughter, "I sincerely offer my condolences." Especially to Park Jung-wook, Lieutenant Han’s son-in-law who also became a navy officer, he asked, "You are following the path of the navy. You must be proud of Lieutenant Han, right?" and expressed a special sentiment, saying, "Please follow that spirit well."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.