Controversy over Prof. Hwang`s remarks

A Seoul professor sparked a public outcry by claiming that North Korean leader Kim Jong-Il was not responsible for ``past history`` issues between South and North Korea like the 1950-53 Korean War and the 1987 bombing of a Korean Air jet.

Prof. Hwang Tae-Yon, 46, of Dongguk University made the controversial remarks amid an intensifying debate over past history issues ahead of Kim`s proposed visit to Seoul this spring. Conservatives in the South, led by former president Kim Young-Sam, are going all out to disrupt or prevent the North Korean National Defense Commission chairman`s visit.

Against this backdrop, the pro-government university professor said Kim Jong-Il bore no responsibility for the Korean War and that his role in various acts of terrorism could not be proved. A prominent ideologue in the ruling camp, Hwang is also deputy director of the Institute of State Governing Strategy, a think tank run by the ruling Millennium Democratic Party (MDP).

Speculation was raised that Hwang made the remarks based on a consensus among core members of the ruling camp. Cheong Wa Dae and MDP officials flatly dismissed such allegations. One of them said, ``The controversial remarks are those of a single individual.`` However, with Chairman Kim`s visit seemingly imminent, both the government and the ruling party are in no position to admit to such feelings.

Thus, it is no wonder that suspicions were raised over whether his remarks were a sign of the ruling camp`s determination to avoid any disruptions in the realization of Kim`s Seoul trip.

The government and the ruling party apparently want to avoid raising the past history issue during Kim`s Seoul visit. But this is not a problem that the ruling camp can simply lay aside.

Some ruling camp members say that responsibility for war crimes and the issue of an apology for past events should be handled in the future. Another important consideration is the apparent public consensus that Hwang`s remarks were ill-timed, illogical and failed to reflect national sentiment. Notwithstanding Hwang`s views, the issue of accountability for the Korean War is not a simple one. Depending on who is regarded as being responsible, the perceived character of the war changes and the very legitimacy of the South and North Korean regimes could be denied.

Few would accept Hwang`s claims that Kim Jong-Il is not responsible because he was an eight-year-old child when the war broke out and that an investigation is impossible because there is no evidence. Although Kim Jong-Il was just a boy at that time, the North Korean people believe that their deceased leader Kim Il-Sung led the March 1 Independence Movement against Japanese colonial rule in 1919, when he was just seven years old. In the same way, they think the ``great general`` Kim Jong-Il played an important role in the Korean War, which was a war of liberation in their view.

Many ruling camp officials were also disturbed by Hwang`s remarks. A ranking member deplored, ``How can such a statement be helpful at the moment?`` Others also expressed deep concerns over the possibility that his remarks might heat up the atmosphere of confrontation between conservatives and progressives ahead of Kim`s Seoul visit.

Prof. Hwang`s remarks are a prime example of the kind of public confusion that can result when public figures make statements on inter-Korean relations that don`t accurately reflect public sentiment. His remarks also deepened suspicions about the desired speed and the best way of promoting President Kim Dae-Jung`s North Korea policy and the policy`s relevance to those in the domestic political sphere.

Yun Seung-Mo ysmo@donga.com