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Beheading Stirs Debate in South Korea
The stunned nation awoke Wednesday to television images of a blindfolded Kim Sun-il kneeling in an orange jumpsuit before his masked captors and news that he was later decapitated. President Roh Moo-hyun denounced the killing and stood by his governmentâs plan to send 3,000 additional troops to Iraq beginning in August. But the slaying underlined divisions on the domestic front. "This incident was shocking and tragic, but it mustnât shake our decision and principle to send troops to Iraq," the countryâs biggest newspaper, Chosun Ilbo, said in an editorial. "In times like this, the president and the government must focus and not allow the deployment issue to once again divide the public." But civic groups called for a cancellation of the deployment, and students hung black-and-white mourning banners and built funeral altars on campuses while pledging to step up their campaigns against the troop dispatch.About 2,000 protesters rallied at a candlelight vigil Wednesday night to mourn Kim and oppose the troop dispatch. Many held placards reading "Bush and Roh killed Kim Sun-il" or "We donât want to die. Korean troops get out." A group of 50 lawmakers, many from Rohâs ruling Uri Party, submitted a resolution to parliament Wednesday urging the government to reconsider the deployment. "The government was irresponsible," said Park Bong-ju, a 28-year-old office worker. "This tragedy happened because of the governmentâs plan to send troops. We must cancel a dispatch plan and withdraw soldiers who are already in Iraq." For others, the killing seemed to strengthen the backing for the military mission. "I donât think the government should cancel its troop deployment," said Cho Hang-duk, a 42-year-old office worker. "This is time for the nation to tighten its unity and show to the world we stand together in a difficult time." Posted by: Paul Moloney 2004-06-24 |
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