Kwon Young-se, on Moon's Refusal of Written Investigation: "All Citizens Are Equal Before the Law"

"If there is something to be investigated, undergo it; if there is something to be punished, accept it"

On the 24th, at the comprehensive audit of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Unification held by the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin (right) and Minister of Unification Kwon Young-se (center) are having a conversation. On the left is Seok Dong-hyun, Secretary General of the National Unification Advisory Council.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jang Hee-jun] Regarding former President Moon Jae-in's recent refusal to accept a written investigation notice from the Board of Audit and Inspection concerning the West Sea public official shooting incident, Minister Kwon Young-se expressed the view that "all citizens are equal before the law."

On the 24th, during the Ministry of Unification's comprehensive government audit by the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, Minister Kwon responded to a related question from Kim Seok-ki of the People Power Party by saying, "If there is a need to be investigated, everyone should be investigated together, and if there is a need for punishment, everyone should be punished together," adding that he would answer with this general principle.

Former President Moon reportedly expressed displeasure, calling the investigation notice from the Board of Audit and Inspection at the end of last month "a very rude act," as revealed by Yoon Gun-young, a Democratic Party lawmaker, at a National Assembly press conference on the 3rd. Yoon is a former head of the Blue House's National Situation Room.

Minister Kwon emphasized regarding this incident, "From the hearing onward, whenever there was an opportunity, I have stated that it was wrong for our government to neglect its duty to protect our citizens and subsequently to accuse them of defecting to the North without accurate evidence."

In response to Kim's question about the fact that the then Minister of National Defense and the head of the Coast Guard were detained and whether the highest person responsible for the accusation of defection should be identified, Minister Kwon replied, "Since this is an extremely important case where a citizen lost their life, and the process leading to the loss of life cannot be taken lightly, I believe the responsibility must be clearly identified."

Furthermore, regarding Kim's criticism that "former President Moon did not take any rescue measures for more than three hours after receiving the report of the capture and until the body was incinerated," Minister Kwon acknowledged, "I admit that the initial response was somewhat insufficient." He also stressed the need to prevent similar incidents from recurring, stating, "The Ministry of Unification will cooperate to ensure that the truth is accurately uncovered throughout the investigation process."

Meanwhile, in response to People Power Party lawmaker Ha Tae-kyung's criticism that the Ministry of Unification was aware of the incident while public official Lee Dae-jun was still alive, the Ministry explained, "There was practical communication, but the extent of awareness at that time is a matter to be clarified through investigation."

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