Some Citizens Mention Former President Roh's 'Kim Sun-il Killed in Iraq'
"President Moon Should Also Explain in Detail Through a Statement"
Kim Jong-in: "President Moon Should Directly State His Position"
On June 23, 2004, the late former President Roh Moo-hyun is greeting after delivering a national address related to Kim Sun-il, who was kidnapped and killed by an armed group in Iraq. Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] Regarding the incident of the killing of our public official by North Korea, some citizens are continuing to call for President Moon Jae-in to deliver a national address. They refer to the late former President Roh Moo-hyun’s national address on the day Kim Sun-il was killed in Iraq in 2004, expressing the view that President Moon should personally communicate with the public.
The opposition party is also urging President Moon to appear in the media and clarify his position. Currently, the Blue House is continuing its response, including requesting a joint investigation with North Korea.
On the 27th, the Blue House held an emergency security ministers’ meeting chaired by President Moon and decided to request a joint investigation with the North for a prompt fact-finding regarding the incident in which our public official was shot and killed in North Korean waters.
Seo Joo-seok, Secretary General of the National Security Council (NSC) and First Deputy Director of the National Security Office, stated at a briefing at the Chuncheon Press Center that afternoon, "Since there are differences in the circumstances and facts of the incident as understood by the South and the North, we are requesting a joint investigation for a swift fact-finding." Attending the emergency security ministers’ meeting chaired by the president were Defense Minister Seo Wook, National Intelligence Service Director Park Jie-won, Blue House Chief of Staff Noh Young-min, National Security Office Director Suh Hoon, and NSC First Deputy Director Seo Joo-seok.
However, not only the Blue House’s response but also the opinion that the president should personally come forward and express his views on the incident in some form is emerging among citizens.
There are many references to the past when former President Roh Moo-hyun delivered a national address on June 23, 2004, regarding the killing of Kim Sun-il in Iraq.
At that time, former President Roh held a national address concerning the Kim Sun-il killing incident and stated, "I am very sorry and regretful to deliver such unfortunate news. Acts that harm innocent civilians cannot be tolerated for any reason."
Lee, a man in his 40s working at a company in Seoul, said, "It seems the government is responding sensitively because North Korea is involved in this incident, but in the end, our citizen was shot and killed and the body was burned and desecrated." He added, "I remember former President Roh communicating with the public by delivering a national address on the Kim Sun-il killing incident. I hope President Moon shows such a stance as well."
Another office worker in his 30s, Kim, said, "I hope the president personally comes out and explains." He added, "The bereaved families are crying, and the political circles are fighting over this incident every day. It may be a simple opinion, but I hope the fact that 'our citizen was shot and killed by North Korea' is prioritized in the response."
On the afternoon of July 27, President Moon Jae-in is presiding over a senior secretaries and aides meeting at the Blue House. [Yonhap News archive photo]
The opposition party is voicing that President Moon should immediately appear in the media and explain this incident.
Kim Jong-in, Emergency Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, said at the emergency committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the morning of the 28th, "I formally request the president to come out in the media and clearly state his position on the entire situation."
He criticized, "The president, who has repeatedly said that he has the responsibility to protect the lives of the people, is unusually silent this time."
He continued, "Watching the process, I cannot shake the suspicion whether our government truly exists. Even though the government recognized the facts during the long elapsed time after the incident occurred, it seems no measures were taken. I guess the background is that the president’s UN speech was upcoming, and perhaps there was concern that this incident might interfere with the UN speech."
Kim also criticized, "I cannot understand why this government takes such a lenient stance toward North Korea. When the inter-Korean liaison office was blown up last time, the government took an ambiguous attitude, and the government is showing the same attitude in this incident."
North Korean State Affairs Commission Chairman Kim Jong-un officially apologized to our side regarding the incident in which a public official who went missing at sea near Soyeonpyeongdo in the West Sea was shot and killed by North Korea. Two days later, on the 27th, Chinese fishing boats were catching blue crabs in the northern waters near Yeonpyeongdo. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Meanwhile, according to a recent public opinion poll, President Moon Jae-in’s approval rating for state affairs (positive evaluation) dropped to 44.7%, while disapproval ratings exceeded 50% for three consecutive weeks. The support rates for both the Democratic Party and the People Power Party also declined simultaneously. This is interpreted as being related to the incident in which North Korea shot and killed our citizen in the West Sea.
Polling agency Realmeter announced on the 28th that, based on a survey commissioned by YTN conducted from the 21st to the 25th targeting adult men and women nationwide, President Moon’s approval rating for state affairs fell by 1.7 percentage points from the previous week to 44.7% (23.7% very good, 21% somewhat good).
The disapproval rating of "poorly performing state affairs" rose by 1.4 percentage points to 51.5% (36.3% very poor, 15.2% somewhat poor). The "don’t know/no response" rate increased by 0.2 percentage points to 3.8%.
The approval rating dropped by 4.7 percentage points to 31.2% in Daegu and Gyeongbuk (TK). It also declined among those in their 70s (-4.8 percentage points), 40s (-4.2 percentage points), and 60s (-3.5 percentage points).
Support also fell among the politically neutral group (-5.4 percentage points) and the so-called moderate group classified as "don’t know" in ideological tendency (-3.4 percentage points). It also declined among housewives (-4.2 percentage points) and labor workers (-3.6 percentage points).
Realmeter stated that the issues influencing this survey include △ ongoing controversy over Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae’s son’s military service △ agreement between ruling and opposition parties on selective communication fee payment and 150,000 KRW support for middle school care △ People Power Party lawmaker Park Deok-heum’s withdrawal amid controversy over family company construction contracts △ North Korea shooting and killing our citizen in the West Sea △ delivery of an apology statement from Chairman Kim Jong-un.
In particular, President Moon’s daily approval rating dropped to 42.6% on the 24th, when news of North Korea shooting our citizen was reported, while disapproval rose to 53.9%.
Party support ratings showed the Democratic Party at 34.1%, down 1.1 percentage points from the previous week, and the People Power Party at 28.9%, down 0.4 percentage points. The Democratic Party maintained a lead over the People Power Party by 5.2 percentage points, remaining outside the margin of error for two consecutive weeks. This weekly survey was conducted from the 21st to the 25th, attempting to contact 53,354 voters aged 18 and older nationwide, with a final response rate of 4.7% from 2,511 respondents.
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