On the 25th of last month, Choo Mi-ae, Minister of Justice, attended the plenary meeting of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee held at the National Assembly, checking documents with a serious expression. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] Amid the ongoing prosecution investigation into the allegations of 'failure to return from leave' involving Chu Mi-ae, Minister of Justice, and her son Seo Mo (27), suspicions have been raised that in 2017, when Seo served as a KATUSA soldier, there was external pressure from the Ministry of National Defense Minister's Office and others to select Seo as an interpreter for the Pyeongchang Olympics.
On the 6th, TV Chosun raised these suspicions by revealing parts of a phone conversation between retired Colonel A, who was the highest-ranking officer of the unit where Seo served, and the office of Shin Won-sik, a member of the People Power Party, in reports titled <“Unit Commander of Chu’s Son: ‘Pressure to Select Interpreter for Pyeongchang Olympics’”> and <“Unit Commander of Chu’s Son: ‘Requests for Interpreter Selection from Minister’s Office, etc.’”>.
Seo served as a KATUSA soldier in the US 8th Army Korea Support Group, 2nd Infantry Division Area Detachment, in 2017 when Minister Chu was the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea.
On the same day, the Chosun Ilbo published the full transcript of a recording between Colonel A, who was the commander of the US 8th Army Korea Support Group, and an aide from Shin’s office.
In these reports, Colonel A stated that in November 2017, the KATUSA unit where Seo served recruited interpreters to be sent to the Winter Olympics to be held in Pyeongchang the following year, and that pressure was applied to the unit to select Seo as an interpreter.
Colonel A identified the source of this external pressure as the Ministry of National Defense Minister’s Office under then-Minister Song Young-moo and the National Assembly liaison group, where party officials or policy aides were dispatched.
He recalled that, anticipating potential problems, he changed the interpreter selection method to a lottery system and thereby excluded Seo.
Former Minister Song is reported to have stated that he did not receive any requests related to interpreter selection from Minister Chu’s side at that time.
Meanwhile, on the same day, Seo’s legal team issued a separate statement actively refuting media reports claiming that Minister Chu’s aides made solicitations regarding Seo’s unit assignment or job placement.
The legal team explained, “KATUSA soldiers undergo five weeks of initial training in Nonsan and three weeks of follow-up training in Uijeongbu. Families visit during the follow-up training graduation ceremony, and unit assignments and job placements are determined by a computer random number draw in the presence of the families.”
They added, “Therefore, the individual cannot know about unit or job assignments until before graduation, and any external intervention is fundamentally impossible. Ultimately, claims of solicitations regarding unit assignments are hard to believe.”
Earlier that afternoon, the legal team also announced, “Despite the statement, there remain questions about the ‘basis for the sick leave,’ so we are additionally disclosing Seo’s medical records, including diagnosis certificates.” They released three types of medical records related to Seo’s knee surgery issued by Samsung Seoul Hospital, including surgical records and diagnosis certificates.
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