‘President mentioned certain forces manipulated Itaewon tragedy,’ former National Assembly Speaker says

In a recently published memoir by former National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo, President Yoon Suk-yeol said of the Itaewon crowd crush, "We cannot rule out the possibility that it was induced and manipulated by certain forces. Yoon raised a kind of "conspiracy theory" as a reason for drawing a line on the responsibility of the Minister of Public Administration and Security Lee Sang-min, which is expected to cause a stir. The presidential office protested on June 27, calling it a "distortion."

According to Kim's memoir titled, "What Has Korea Accumulated?" Kim spoke with Yoon on December 5, 2022 about Lee's resignation following the Itaewon tragedy. The two reportedly spoke privately at a National prayer breakfast meeting.

At the meeting, Kim raised the issue of Lee's future, saying, "It is right for Minister Lee to take political responsibility and express his resignation earlier." Kim wrote, "However, Yoon told me that he had strong doubts about the Itaewon tragedy so he couldn't make a decision." "When I asked him what that was, he said that he couldn't rule out the possibility that the incident was induced and manipulated by certain forces," Kim continued, " Yoon said that in such a case it would be unfair to remove Lee."

Kim said he was "surprised" by Yoon's comments. "I found it hard to believe that conspiracy theories from a far-right YouTuber's broadcast would come out of the president's mouth," he wrote. "I don't know how genuine his doubts were, but it was a very dangerous reaction." He added, "I was very tempted to say, 'Don't watch such a broadcast,' but I held my tongue.”

Six days after their conversation, the National Assembly passed an opposition-led bill to dismiss Lee, but Yoon refused to accept it. Since the tragedy, Yoon has been drawing a line on the demand for Lee's resignation, saying, "It is unacceptable in modern society to call for someone to take responsibility for everything, not for those who are really responsible." (November 7, 2022)

The controversy over Lee's resignation eventually led to the National Assembly's passage of the first impeachment motion against a member of the State Council in February last year. The Constitutional Court dismissed the motion in July of that year, but the controversy over the Yoon Suk Yeol government's attitude toward dealing with responsibility after the disaster did not fade.

In a statement, the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) said, "Yoon's perception of the Itaewon tragedy is jaw-droppingly shocking," and asked, "Is this the kind of thing a president who is obligated to protect the lives and safety of the people would say?" It also added, "Was Yoon obsessed to the claims of far-right YouTubers and refuse to attend the first anniversary memorial service of the Itaewon tragedy and veto the Itaewon Tragedy Special Law? We ask Yoon to clarify the truth of his remarks."

The presidential office responded, "It is deplorable that the former speaker of the National Assembly, who requested a private meeting with the president, distorted the story and let the world know." It added, "The president ordered to investigate all of the various suspicions raised by the media at the time. He also ordered to disclose all 119 reports at the time of the accident, and recently, he boldly accepted the Itaewon Special Act." Regarding the controversy, Kim said, "I think it would be better not to comment on the controversy other than what is described in the book.”

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.