Inauguration Ceremony Hosted by Commander Kim Gye-hwan
Former Marine Corps Investigation Unit Chief Park Jeong-hoon Absent
The Marine Corps celebrated its 75th anniversary on the 15th.
On the morning of the same day, the Marine Corps held a founding ceremony at the Marine Corps Headquarters in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province, attended by about 250 active-duty Marines and reservists, presided over by Commander Kim Gye-hwan.
Im Seong-geun, former commander of the Marine Corps 1st Division and the commanding officer during the Private Chae incident, and Park Jeong-hoon, former head of the Marine Corps Investigation Unit who was indicted for insubordination related to the investigation, did not attend. President Yoon Seok-yeol encouraged the Marines in a written congratulatory message and urged, "Please continue to strive to develop into a national strategic mobile force supporting peace through strength, centered on Commander Kim Gye-hwan."
Commander Kim is currently under investigation by the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials (CIO) along with former Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop regarding allegations of interference in the investigation of the Private Chae death case. In his commemorative speech, Commander Kim said, "The red badge engraved on your chest is a pride and honor incomparable to anything else," and encouraged, "Like the phrase that the sea does not get wet in the rain, let us overcome the rough waves once again toward the Marine Corps and move forward vigorously together."
He had posted a command letter on the Marine Corps internal network the day after the April 10 general election mentioning the Private Chae case, lamenting, "These days, the reality is so harsh that it is hard even to look up at the sky, and it is difficult just to breathe day by day," but he did not mention it on this day. Currently, the Gyeongbuk Provincial Police Agency is investigating the death of Private Chae, and the CIO is investigating the allegations of interference, but both investigations remain stalled.
Some Marine Corps reservists held a press conference on the 14th in front of the Presidential Office in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, urging the government and ruling party to accept the special prosecutor law on the Private Chae death case interference allegations before the end of the 21st National Assembly session. The Private Chae special prosecutor law was designated as a fast-track bill in the National Assembly plenary session last October and was automatically submitted to the plenary session on the 3rd of this month. The Democratic Party plans to handle it in the plenary session after the general election.
Meanwhile, at the event, among the Marine Corps core value awards, the 'Loyalty' category awardees included the late Sergeant Park Young-cheol, who died in the 2007 sentry murder and weapon theft incident in Ganghwa, Incheon. Additionally, a special merit award was given to retired Lieutenant General Lee Gap-jin and retired Colonel Kim Gil-do, who contributed to relocating the headquarters from Seoul to its current location in Hwaseong in 1994. In the afternoon, the opening ceremony of the Marine Corps hotel 'Militopia by Marine' located in Wirye, Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, is also scheduled to be held.
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