President Roh: “Pro-Dictatorship Groups Unfairly Enjoy Freedom”

“Organizations which have helped dictatorial regimes or which collaborated with them to ignore human rights abuses are now enjoying unfettered democratic rights and human rights,” said President Roh Moo-hyun on October 14. “It comes to mind that history is unfair.”

At a meeting with 18 overseas Korean democratic activists, he said, “As the person responsible for the government, I sometimes wish to restrict their freedom. However, when I asked the public, it said freedom should be allowed to them although they are insolent.”

President Roh’s remarks appear to point to conservative groups which held big rallies against the repeal of the National Security Law.

“Being moderate and accommodating are ways to defend democracy and the principles for human rights supporters,” he said.

Commenting on the historical fact-finding campaign, he said, “Our interest is in shedding light on unjust human rights violations by political power as a result of the former governments’ failure to bring them to light and the deprivation of the victims’ opportunities to receive compensation.” He added, “It is needed to bring historical truths to light as resources for historians if it does not amount to retaliation.”

Jung-Hun Kim jnghn@donga.com