[Editorial] Eavesdropping Case Must Not Be Politicized

One sensed that former National Intelligence Service (NIS) directors Lim Dong Won and Shin Kun had long been lying when denying they were involved in illegal eavesdropping during the government of Kim Dae Jung, but their activities as revealed in the prosecution's investigation were more than what was expected. According to former NIS official Kim Eun Seong's court testimony, the two men used information obtained through illegal bugging to manipulate domestic politics, and when allegations surfaced they ordered cover-ups. A court has issued arrest warrants precisely because it found that both men participated or approved of the activity. They are committing a crime against the country all over again for trying so hard to avoid criminal prosecution and avoid responsibility.

It is also very disappointing to see former president Kim's people indignant about the arrest warrants, saying that the situation is "cruel and impossible to understand." This is not the time for Kim to be getting angry. He should bow before the people and engage in self-reflection and apologize. Cheong Wa Dae, for its part, is making its intentions all too apparent when it issues an "internal opinion" saying the prosecution "went too far" in applying for warrants. It is unpleasant to have everyone in national politics look like they are approaching the case in politically calculating ways, such as trying to court positive opinion in the Honam region. We call on them to remind themselves that when a state agency secretly listens in on the people's private lives it is a matter of major importance in relation to the people's basic rights, regardless of that one's political interests are.

The prosecution now has the responsibility to produce balanced results from its investigation into the whole case, results that would be appropriate for its effort to convict two former directors of an intelligence agency. It is the prosecution's duty to reveal what role Agency for National Security Planning officials and powerful government insiders had in illegal surveillance by the "Mirim Team" during the government of Kim Young Sam, regardless of questions about the statute of limitations. One hopes to see it be just as dignified in its investigation into the contents of the eavesdropping tapes, about issues such as alleged "illegal lobbying" by Samsung, as it has been in the NIS investigation.

The Hankyoreh, 16 November 2005.

[Translations by Seoul Selection]