It is of great concern when the alleged violence between three US servicemen and Suh Kyung-won is becoming source of friction between Korean and US authorities. The claims of Suh and the three US soldiers differ when it comes to who started their fight, and this is something that will have to be ascertained in the course of the investigation.

The weak response shown by our police in case is a problem, however. They stood by and watched while one of the servicemen was dragged around by demonstrators for three to four hours, and this individual was, according to the US military’s claims, taken to a memorial ceremony for the middle school girls killed last year when a US army armorerd vehicle hit them in June, and forced to apologize. This is something that should have been stopped before it happened. It is clear what needs to happen at this point to solve the questions here. To begin with, the US side needs to have more consideration and understanding for the factors that contributed to the day’s incident. Instead of thinking primarily of how its men were pulled away by demonstrators, it needs to consider the feelings of the country where its forces are stationed over the death of the two middle school girls.

The Korean authorities need to get to the bottom of what is central to the case. By American standards, being held or taken anywhere by a group of demonstrators can appear to have been a momentary kidnapping of its soldiers, and forcing someone to apologize for a past event with which the individual in question had no involvement is illegal and violent activity. It is about this in particular that the US embassy and the United States Forces Korea are so strongly protesting with the Korean government.

The government, therefore, should stop standing there with its arms folded and watching from a distance, and actively investigate not only the death of the two middle schoolers but this case with the US soldiers as well. It should provide explanations about anything that needs to be explained and take action where action is needed. It urgently needs to settle the friction between the two governments.

September 17, 2002