"Chun Doo-hwan Is Not Worth Considering" Lee Cheol-hee on the Debate over a State Funeral for Roh Tae-woo

[경향신문]

Senior Secretary for Political Affairs Lee Cheol-hee answers questions during the parliamentary inspection of the Office of the President, the Office of National Security, and the Presidential Security Service by the House Steering Committee at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the afternoon of October 26. Yonhap News

On October 28, Senior Cheongwadae Secretary for Political Affairs Lee Cheol-hee spoke on the controversial decision to hold a state funeral for former President Roh Tae-woo, who died on October 26, and said, “In the case of former president Chun Doo-hwan, a state funeral or a burial in the national cemetery is not worth considering.”

This day, Lee appeared for an interview on the CBS radio show, Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show and said, “There are some people who mention former President Chun, but we think it (former President Roh) is a completely different case.”

Lee explained, “He (Roh) left his last words seeking forgiveness and his bereaved family also visited the May 18 cemetery and apologized in the past.” He further said, “The decision to hold a state funeral does not mean that we believe the evaluation of him by history and the people is over.”

According to Lee, since President Moon Jae-in had engaged in pro-democracy movements and worked as a human rights lawyer, he could have thought that his action as president could contribute to national integration, harmony and engagement. Lee added, “I don’t think it was an action taken with the presidential election in mind.”

Lee said that he fully empathized with the public’s opposition to a state funeral for Roh and said, “We fully accept the opinions of the people who have suffered from the May 18 uprising and are aware that for people who had worked so hard participating in pro-democracy movements it is not easy to accept the latest decision.”

As for the opposition party’s attack that the meeting between President Moon Jae-in and the Democratic Party of Korea’s presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung on October 26 was intended to give “instructions on the Daejang-dong investigation,” Lee drew the line. He said, “One of the things that this government is proud of is that it does not give instructions or intervene in investigations.” He further said, “It (the meeting) has absolutely no influence on the investigation. I don’t think the prosecutors would care either.”

Lee said, “I wish they would not trigger a debate by dragging the president into these election issues,” mentioning that the president had a lot to do and that it was better to leave him alone so he could concentrate on state affairs. As for the opposition party’s request for a special prosecutor to investigate the Daejang-dong scandal, Lee said, “It’s not an issue on which we can tell people what to do. If the ruling and opposition parties agree (to a special prosecutor), then we will have to accept it.”

Lee continued and said, “When the opposition party elects a (presidential) candidate and requests a meeting with the president to discuss some issues, we will willingly review it.” He added, “But if Yoon Seok-youl becomes the People Power Party’s candidate, I don’t think he will make such a request. After all, he did call it a wrongful encounter.”

Lee stressed that an inter-Korean summit with next year’s presidential election in mind would not happen during President Moon Jae-in’s term in office. Lee said, “Of course, we should hold a summit if it helps North and South relations, but we will never promote a summit as an event for the election.” He repeated, “We will not promote an inter-Korean summit for a one-time event.” He said, “The people would criticize actions that clearly show other intentions, so we will not attempt such actions.”