Monthly Chosun: “Ruling Uri Party Covers Up Report on Rep. Kim’s Father”

The Monthly Chosun’s June issue that went on sale on May 18 reported that although the ruling Uri Party received a report through a Chinese source whom it requested to track down lawmaker Kim Hee-sun’s father’s performance record on November 2004 that her father had acted as a special duty police officer who clamped down on Korean army personnel for national independence, it covered up this report.

According the Monthly Chosun, Mr. Yang (46), who was requested by the Uri Party leadership to trace Kim’s father’s past doings in exchange for five million won, tracked down the past performance of Kim’s father, Kim Il-ryeon, from the end of October in 2004 to early November in Liu He, China.

The Monthly Chosun reported that Mr. Yang found some witness from six persons who knew Kim Il-ryeon well there, and they said, “Unlike ordinary police, Mr. Kim was a special duty police officer from police affairs, and his main duty was to arrest the Korean army personnel for national independence,” and added, “Mr. Kim was a special duty police officer. In other words, he was our notorious enemy.”

It was known that in obtaining this information from them, Mr. Yang heard that Mr. Kim even tortured a captured Korean army member for national independence, and held six tapes that recorded their testimonies. According to the Monthly Chosun, even though Mr. Yang notified this information to the Uri Party after returning to Korea, this information was ignored.

Mr. Yang reportedly sent his investigation results to an official of the Uri Party and Kim’s aides, but he did not meet Kim, who wanted to confirm his information in person at that time.

Regarding whether Mr. Kim’s past doings was traced, an official of the Uri Party disclosed more information, saying, “On the controversy of Rep. Kim’s father, we sent along a person who knows Mr. Kim’s circumstances well to China in order to ascertain whether the Monthly Chosun’s report is true and grasp the truth of this issue.”

Concerning this matter, Rep. Kim explained on May 18, saying, “It is not true that the Uri Party asked Mr. Yang to investigate her father’s past doings, and when an official of the Uri Party introduced Mr. Yang to me, saying that he would help privately, I merely requested him to ‘investigate this matter’ without any special meaning.”

Rep. Kim denied this by saying, “Regarding the Monthly Chosun’s report as just a spiteful, exaggerated report, I did not received any information or a face-to face report from Mr. Yang, and because the man who introduced Mr. Yang to me said that “there was nothing special,” I believed so.” She added, “The fact that I covered up this information after confirming it is not true.”

Young-Chan Yoon yyc11@donga.com