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Government axes ex-President Kim Dae-jung’s eulogy
May 29, 2009
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The ancient palace of Gyeongbok - whose name conveys heavenly blessings for a peaceful reign on the king, his descendants and his people - will today be the site of the third funeral service for a president of the Republic of Korea. The people’s funeral service for the late President Roh Moo-hyun, who fell to his death from a mountain’s cliff last Saturday, will start at 11 a.m. inside the palace in central Seoul with up to 3,000 in attendance. Only two years and seven months ago, Roh was one of the mourners at the same venue for the funeral of the country’s 11th president, Choi Kyu-hah. Before that, Park Chung Hee’s state funeral took place at Gyeongbok in 1979. Those attending will include President Lee Myung-bak and former presidents, as well as key government officials, political and religious leaders, diplomatic delegations and funeral committee members. For those who cannot be inside the palace, the ceremony will be shown live on big screens across central Seoul. Former president Kim Dae-jung, Roh’s immediate predecessor, had accepted the invitation by Roh’s aides to give the eulogy, but the idea was vetoed by the incumbent administration, said Cheon Ho-seon, former presidential spokesman for Roh. The Lee government said letting Kim give the speech in the presence of other former presidents will raise a “fairness issue.” After visiting the mourning altar in front of Seoul Station yesterday morning, Kim harshly criticized the Lee government. Kim said he was “thinking of the humiliation, despair and sorrow that Roh must have felt, I would have the same determination.” “The prosecution has conducted probes of the children and relatives of Roh but none of the corruption allegations has been confirmed by the day of his death,” Kim continued. “Does it make sense that the prosecution has failed to come up with any evidence 20 days after questioning the former president?” The 2000 Nobel Peace Prize awardee also added that the Lee administration’s moves to block the entrance to Seoul Plaza downtown and prohibit his speech signal “an enormous digression from democracy.” The government said yesterday it will open Seoul Plaza to the public from 7 a.m. today. Since Roh’s death last Saturday, the government has barricaded the plaza with police buses for fear that the space could become a venue for a massive anti-government demonstration as tens of thousands of mourners per day visited the makeshift mourning altar just across the street. Until Wednesday, the government turned down several civic groups’ requests for approval to use the plaza, saying that “details of the funeral service schedule haven’t been confirmed yet.” Seoul Plaza will remain open to the public “as long as no chaotic situation occurs,” according to the government. The altars installed by the government nationwide will shut down at 5 p.m. As of yesterday, mourners who visited more than 100 altars for Roh have topped three million, according to police. Throughout today, police will have 200 companies of riot policemen totaling around 20,000 standing by in central Seoul to maintain security. Some 360 traffic policemen will man major intersections in the vicinity. Bongha Village and the Gyeonggi area will also have a massive police presence. Police will block Gwanghwamun from noon until 2 p.m. and have advised citizens to take public transportation. By Seo Ji-eun [spring@joongang.co.kr] |
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