Brother of North Korea Shooting Victim to Attend 'National Audit'... "Will Ask Questions the Public Needs to Know"

"(Regarding the North Korean Shooting Death of a Public Official) What Actions Were Taken After Receiving the Written Report?" Demanded
"Aren't You Ashamed of the Heartfelt Cry of Your Nephew, a High School Junior?"
"The Navy Had the Duty to Protect the Lives of the People, So What Did They Do?"
Lee Rae-jin to Participate in 'National Audit' at 2 PM on the 18th

Lee Rae-jin, the brother of the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries official who went missing and was shot dead by North Korean soldiers in the northern West Sea near Soyeonpyeongdo, held a press conference in front of the Coast Guard headquarters in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon on the afternoon of the 14th. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hana Na] Lee Rae-jin (55), the older brother of the government official who died after being shot by North Korean forces, will attend the "National Audit Hearing on the Truth of the West Sea Shooting Incident (National Audit)" hosted by the People Power Party at the National Assembly at 2 p.m. on the 18th. He appealed, "Please restore the honor of my younger brother and our family."

On the day, Lee said, "It is necessary to punish those responsible and conduct a clear investigation as President Moon Jae-in has stated."

He raised questions about the contents the public should know and the mistakes of the military and police, directing his inquiries to the Ministry of National Defense, Navy, Coast Guard, and the Blue House.

He demanded the Blue House answer, "After receiving a written report around 6:30 p.m. on the 22nd of last month that my younger brother was found in North Korean waters, what response was taken? Did you receive a report from the Ministry of National Defense about contact between North Korea and the Navy?"

He raised his voice, saying, "Isn't the desperate cry of my nephew, a high school sophomore, shameful? Whether it takes 10 years or 20 years to find (my brother's body), please return my younger brother in his original form."

He urged the Ministry of National Defense to "present precise evidence of where and how my younger brother drifted, clarify whose floating object (which he was said to have been on) it was, and where it was obtained." He also repeatedly questioned the reason for concluding his brother defected to the North based on fragmentary intelligence rather than real-time wiretapping. Previously, military authorities stated they identified Lee’s direct intention to defect to the North through various intelligence means and evidence.

He criticized the Navy, saying, "While searching for the missing person, there was a duty to protect the lives of the people through prompt intelligence and information gathering, but I am curious about what was done." He also questioned, "What measures were taken regarding distress and rescue using communication facilities that even ordinary fishing boats possess?"

To the Coast Guard, which was in charge of the investigation, he urged, "Despite conducting the most investigations, explain why you hastily submitted an interim report simply based on military intelligence information." He also criticized, "What measures were taken regarding distress and rescue using communication facilities that even ordinary fishing boats possess?" Lee argued that to conclude defection to the North, multiple experiments under the same conditions must be conducted to accurately understand actual survival movements.

Lee will attend the "National Audit," a meeting-style session different from the general audit hosted by the People Power Party at 2 p.m. on the same day, where witnesses are called independently.

Meanwhile, Lee had previously expressed his intention to appear as a witness at the National Defense Committee and Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee audits but was unable to attend due to disagreements between the ruling and opposition parties and opposition from the ruling party.

Meanwhile, Shin Jung-geun, head of the Yeonpyeongdo fishing village association, and others will also attend the "National Audit" to testify about the possibility of the deceased government official Lee defecting to the North.

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