DISPUTE OVER OFFICIAL'S DEATH

[Anchor Lead]

Rival parties are continuing to stage a dispute over the death of a South Korean fisheries official in 2020. The People Power Party urged the then ruling Democratic Party to disclose the official documents sent to government agencies from the top office, saying that such papers are not part of presidential archives. The DP decided to set up its own fact-finding panel and get to the bottom of the incident, blaming the PPP for politically distorting facts.

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The PPP launched a task force to find the truth behind the death of a South Korean fisheries official in the West Sea. Task force chief Ha Tae-keung targeted the the top office at the time. He asked the defense ministry and Coast Guard to submit the documents they received from Cheong Wa Dae regarding the 2020 incident. He noted the interior ministry's decision that such documents don’t belong to presidential archives.

[Soundbite] Ha Tae-keung(Task Force Head, PPP (June 24)) : "The defense ministry confirmed that key directions on handling the death of the fisheries official had been sent by the secretariat of the NSC."

The DP decided to set up its own fact-finding task force and actively refute the PPP’s claim. The DP believes that the PPP is politically taking advantage of the incident rather than working to find the truth.

[Soundbite] Woo Sang-ho(DP Emergency Committee Chair) : "It seems that the PPP is distorting facts excessively with a politically driven move. We have decided to raise our own voices regarding this issue."

Headed by general-turned-lawmaker Kim Byeong-ju, the task force’s members include Youn Kun-young who served as a state affairs secretary for President Moon Jae-in. In response to the DP’s move, the PPP proposed that the two sides agree to launch a joint special committee looking into the incident. As the DP appeared negative about the proposal, calling it a political offensive, the ruling camp held a press conference and made an official proposal to establish a special parliamentary committee on the issue. Meanwhile, the DP’s interim leader Woo Sang-ho met with the bereaved family of the deceased official. The rival parties are likely to continue to clash over the issue this week.