South Korean prosecutors raided the country’s main spy agency Wednesday as part of investigations into two past North Korea-related incidents that drew criticism that the previous liberal government ignored basic principles of human rights to improve ties with Pyongyang.
New conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol, who took office in May, has accused his liberal predecessor Moon Jae-in of being “submissive” to North Korea and has moved to resolve persistent suspicions about the handling of the two cases. His push has triggered a backlash from the liberals who accuse him of political revenge against his rivals.
Wednesday’s raid came days after the National Intelligence Service, now part of Yoon’s government, filed charges against two of its former directors who had served under Moon. It accused them of abusing power, damaging public records and falsifying documents.
Prosecutors and other investigators searched the NIS main headquarters near Seoul, including documents, computer files and other materials related to the two cases, the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said without elaborating.
The cases include North Korea’s fatal shooting of a South Korean fisheries official near the Koreas' western sea boundary in 2020, and South Korea’s deportation of two North Korean fishermen despite their wishes to resettle in South Korea in 2019.
The Moon's government had said the slain official was saddled with gambling debts and had family troubles when he swam to North Korea. But others disputed such claims.
Conservative critics say the official version was meant to lessen possible public sympathy toward him and prevent anti-North Korea sentiments in South Korea. Last month, Yoon’s government said there was no evidence that the official attempted to flee to North Korea, overturning the Moon government's assessment.
The other case was the Moon government’s expelling of two North Korean fishermen only days after they were captured on their ship off South Korea’s east coast.
Citing classified intelligence, the Moon administration called them “heinous criminals” who killed 16 fellow crew members and didn’t deserve to be recognized as refugees. But conservatives and human rights advocates suspected the Moon government had likely hurriedly expelled the fishermen after learning North Korean authorities were chasing them. They said the former government should have sent the fishermen through the South Korean judicial system, rather than repatriating them to a country where they would face torture or execution.
By law, South Korea views North Korea as part of its territory and has a policy of accepting North Koreans wishing to resettle in the South. The 2019 deportation was the first of its kind since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.
Earlier this week, Yoon’s government released photos of the repatriation that showed the fishermen, both blindfolded, apparently resisting being dragged and handed over to North Korea at the land border crossing. Presidential spokesperson Kang In-sun said Wednesday that the Yoon government would get to the bottom of the repatriation. She said a forced deportation would be a “crime against humanity” that violates both international and domestic laws.
Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch, also criticized the previous government.
“What’s clear is the Moon Jae-in government was so desperate to please North Korean supreme leader Kim Jong Un that they shamefully disregarded basic principles of human rights and humanity,” Robertson said. “The two men’s desperate resistance to being forced back that is so apparent in those photos show that they understood they were fighting for their lives.”
During his five-year rule, Moon's appeasement policy invited both praises and criticism. His supporters credited him with achieving the now-stalled cooperation with North Korea and avoiding major armed clashes, but opponents say he was a naive North Korea sympathizer who ended up helping the North buy time to boost its nuclear program in the face of international sanctions and pressure.
His main opposition liberal Democratic Party slammed the Yoon government for allegedly using the two cases as a tool to launch political offensive against Moon and his allies at a time when Yoon should focus on the economy.
“The president is leading the political warfare though public livelihoods are bad,” Democratic Party lawmaker Yun Kun-young wrote on Facebook Thursday. “I’d like to ask President Yoon Suk Yeol about this. Do you only see the human rights of the deported men? Can’t you see the human rights of the 16 others killed by them?”
Underscoring the political divide in South Korea, recent surveys showed about 48% of respondents viewed the Yoon government’s investigations of former administration officials as political retaliation while about 44%-45% called them fair and legitimate.
