Deputy PM’s Background Raises Flags

At hearings before the Education Committee of the National Assembly for the appointment of Kim Byong-joon, deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education & Human Resources Development designate, a few “mysteries” regarding the minister-designate came to the surface. Signs of errors on military register records, issues regarding the minister-designate’s two daughters’ entrances into foreign language high schools, and his capabilities as deputy prime minister were the focal points.

Elder Daughter’s Tourist Visa for Studying in Japan-

Grand National Party (GNP) lawmaker Jeong Mun-heon claimed that Mr. Kim’s elder daughter (22) departed for Japan in 1999 on a tourist’s visa and went to an international school to fulfill the requirements for entry to a foreign language high school, which required at least six months of living abroad.

According to the emigration and immigration records unveiled by Jeong, Mr. Kim’s elder daughter lived in Japan for four and five months in 1999 and 2000, respectively. She entered Seoul’s Daewon Foreign Language High School as a freshman on its foreign residents’ entrance procedure in June 2000, and later enrolled in Ewha Womans University’s Department of Social Sciences, not the Department of Language and Literature.

Mr. Kim responded, “In 1999, the school’s offer of an interview came on short notice, and that is why a tourist’s visa was required. I was with her as an exchange professor to Japan’s Geio University, and going together with parents is a hundred percent legal.”

GNP lawmaker Kim Young-sook questioned the minister-designate’s decision to enroll both of his daughters at foreign language high schools, to which entries are competitive, a move that seems to contradict the government’s stronghold on the equalization policy for high school admission. On whether this meant he wanted them to go to schools with “competitive power,” Kim replied, “although partly true, I wanted them to be in an environment where they could meet fellow students with similar experience, after watching their hardships during two stays abroad.”

Military Records State Final Education: “Middle School”-

GNP lawmaker Chu Ho-young revealed a copy of Mr. Kim’s military register records and claimed, “On the records, the minister-designate’s final stage of education is stated as middle school, and the records of physical examination, such as height, weight, and eyesight are missing.” He pointed out that additional mysteries exist, such as missing dates and photos regarding the military records, and the seal on the record by the Gyeongbuk district’s Chief of Military Manpower Administration (MMA), not the head of his local domicile.

The MMA’s records show that Mr. Kim was enlisted for active service, grade three reservist duty, but joined the army defense corps in 1976 while in college and stayed in service for one year and one month with the 50th Infantry Division. Mr. Kim denied any allegations, saying, “I have never seen my records, nor have I intruded in them. I had lost two fingers at the age of five, and I have surgery marks on my leg.” Uri Party lawmakers including Yoo Gi-hong supported Mr. Kim’s remarks, claiming, “There are a lot of faults in the military records thirty years ago, and back then, even those relevant for active duty were often enlisted in the defense corps. Mr. Kim was not at a position to perform any kind of military lobbying action.”

Debate Over Appointments of Cabinet Members Based on Code-

During the hearings, GNP lawmakers accused the appointment of minister-designate Kim a “typical faulty ‘code’ appointment” in contrast to the Uri Party lawmakers who called it “well and appropriate,” stirring heated debate.

Lawmaker Lee Ju-ho of the GNP said, “Although Mr. Kim emphasized the importance of autonomy in education in his 1996 thesis, he now goes against his own beliefs, adhering to the government policy of opposing the expansion of “self-reliant” private high schools. This proves to be circumstantial evidence for an appointment based on “codes.” However, Jeong Bong-ju of the Uri Party backed the minister-designate, claiming that he was appointed on behalf of his excellent moderation skills, task-adhering abilities, traits essential for a Minister of Education, and rightly shown during his reign as the president’s top policy planner.

Kang-Myoung Chang Dong-Yong Min tesomiom@donga.com mindy@donga.com