This article was originally published on Chosun Ilbo and translated by OKN Correspondent.
A high-ranking official of the ruling party, well aware of the “forced repatriation case of the North Korean fishermen who defected” in November 2019, said that the Moon Jae-in administration carried out the repatriation in order to realize the visit of Chairman Kim Jong-un to South Korea.
“I know that Suh Hoon, then chief of the National Intelligence Service received an order from the Blue House to repatriate the defector fishermen in order to have Kim Jong-un visit Busan,” the official said on the 8th, meaning that the forced repatriation was to show “sincerity” to North Korea.
It is the first time that a high-ranking official has confirmed the fact amid numerous allegations raised by the media.
The official added, “although the fishermen expressed their intention to defect, the military’s SI (special intelligence) that they “murdered” just became the excuse to cover up the case. It looks like a decision by the administration.”
On November 2, 2019, the Moon Jae-in administration caught a North Korean fishing boat that crossed the Northern Limit Line (NLL). On November 5, three days after the government’s joint investigation, the government notified the North Koreans that they “expelled the fishermen and wanted to hand over the ship.”
North Korea responded the next day (on the 6th), and the forced repatriation of defected fishermen happened on the 7th, the very next day. Although this process was top-secret, the truth was revealed when a media camera caught the text message from the commander of the JSA Battalion to Kim Yoo-geun, the first deputy director of the National Security Office, on the day of the repatriation.
At that time, the Moon administration was making every effort, such as sending numerous personal letters, to invite Kim Jong-un to the ASEAN-Republic of Korea Commemorative Summit in Busan on November 27, 2019. On November 5, when the South Korean government notified the North of the forced repatriation, it also sent a personal letter inviting Kim Jong-un to Busan. That being said, the South Korean government enclosed the “notice of fishermen’s repatriation” to the “invitation for Kim Jong-un.”
Such facts came to light about two weeks later, on November 21, when North Korea unilaterally disclosed the under-the-table process of inter-Korean contact. North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that “South Korean President Moon Jae-in respectfully sent a personal letter on November 5 inviting Chairman (Kim Jong-un) of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea to attend the special summit.” A government source said, “the forced repatriation case would have fallen into a labyrinth if there had been no report in North Korea.”
The Moon Jae-in administration continued pushing for Kim Jong-un’s visit to South Korea after the inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang in September 2018. Busan, where the ASEAN-Republic of Korea Commemorative Summit was planned to take place, was one of the candidates for Kim’s visit, along with Seoul and Jeju. The KCNA’s report confirms how much effort the Moon administration put into inviting Kim Jong-un to Busan.
“South Korea sent an earnest request several times to send the special envoy if Kim Jong-un cannot come. We know that South Korea eagerly looks forward to (Kim Jong-un’s) visit by preparing the escort and protocol at the highest level,” KCNA reported.
However, North Korea officially rejected the invitation, saying, “what can North and South do together, and what importance would such a meeting have?” The official of the ruling party said, “although the Moon administration pleaded with North Korea by repatriating the fishermen, they kicked the Moon administration hard despite the begging.”
Various agencies, such as the National Intelligence Service, the military, and the police, acted according to the instructions of the Blue House for the forced repatriation case. An intelligence agency official said, “Suh Hoon, the former chief of the NIS, forcibly terminated the joint investigation according to the Blue House’s instruction, and the forced repatriation happened exceptionally fast. Following the instructions of the Blue House, various related agencies moved in perfect order.”
A military official said, “we prepared information material for countermeasure after the media caught the text message of the then-deputy director of the National Security Office, Kim Yoo-geun, containing facts related to the forced repatriation. However, the military did not immediately disclose the information. All messages came out after the National Security Office changed every detail.”
“At the time, there was no detailed explanation as to why the forced repatriation was proceeding so quickly. Many people did not even think that it was for inviting Kim Jong-un (to visit South Korea).”
The National Intelligence Service (NIS) also filed a complaint against an NIS employee dispatched to the Blue House at the time, along with former chiefs of the agency Suh Hoon and Park Ji-won. The dispatched employee from the NIS to the Blue House usually serves as a liaison between the Blue House and the National Intelligence Serve. It can be seen as an inappropriate instruction from the Blue House (to the NIS) that would require a judicial judge.
