Investigation Goes on Whether Professor Song Du-Yul is a Senior Member of North Korea`s Workers` Party

Much attention is being paid on the reason behind the 3-day through investigation on Song Du-yul, the professor at Muenster University in Germany over his alleged pro-North Korean activities.

The National Intelligence Service has kept silence on the result of the investigation. But sources surrounding the NIS and the prosecution are forecasting that the NIS`s investigation is highly likely to have seen progress based on the existing evidence to prove his allegation.

The NIS ordered Wednesday that Mr. Song is not allowed to depart from this nation. This can indicate that the NIS is more close to proving the professor`s allegation rather than his innocence. Asked whether the investigation would end on Thursday, an official at the Seoul District Prosecutors` Office said that the investigation is likely to last long.

An official at the Justice Ministry also said that as the NIS forbid the professor to depart from the nation for 10 days, the investigation would last long. The official also said that the areas to be investigated are enormous as they include the professors activities of last several decades.

The National Intelligence Service began the investigation on the professor from Tuesday whether he is the same person as Kim Chel-su, a senior member of North Korea`s ruling Workers` Party and whether he encouraged O Kil-nam, his friend in Germany, to go to North Korea. The NIS is also investigating whether his several visits to North Korea after 1991 constitutes the violation of South Korea`s security law. The NIS was said to focus its investigation on whether he is the same person as Kim Chel-su, a senior member of North Korea`s ruling Workers` Party, based on testimony from Hwang Jang-yeon, the highest-ranking North Korean defector.

This has made some think that the NIS already confirmed that the professor is actually Kim Cheol-su and the prosecution is reviewing legal matters based on this. But the NIS and the prosecution are denying this. Meanwhile, before entering the NIS for investigation, professor Song said that he believes everything will be all right after this investigation and he explained all the allegations on him, showing different attitude compared with the NIS.

No one knows for sure how the investigation on professor Song Du-yul would unfold. It is not certain when the investigation on the professor would end. At first, there was talk about not indicting him. But as the NIS is known to have secured enough evidence to prove his violation of the national security law, he is more likely to be indicted without detention. Some in the prosecution predict that if the prosecution proves that Mr.Song is the same one as Kim Cheol-su, the professor would be arrested and investigated.

Tae-Hoon Lee jefflee@donga.com