An official with the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs said Tuesday that when the amended law goes into effect on Nov. 5, the government would have to decide whether to strip the two disgraced former leaders of their decorations. Given the aims of the amendment, that cannot be ruled out, the official said.

Decorations have so far been given -- and withdrawn -- at the request of particular bodies. But the new law amended in June gives the power to the home affairs minister independent of any requests, in this case from the Defense Ministry, which awarded them in the first place.

But the interior ministry is being cautious, saying it would “not be too late” to make the decision once a truth commission in the Defense Ministry has completed its reinvestigation of Chun’s Dec. 12, 1979 coup and the May 17, 1980 declaration of martial law. That probe, which goes to the heart of the legitimacy of Chun as well as his handpicked successor and close aide Roh, has just got under way. Moreover, the two presidents have already been punished -- Chun was initially sentenced to death for treason -- so it could be difficult to punish them again by taking away decorations other then those they were given for their role in the bloody crackdown on the May 18, 1980 democratic uprising in Gwangju.

Chun Doo-hwan was given the Order of Military Merit Taegeuk in 1980 as head of Defense Security Command, while Roh Tae-woo was awarded the Order of Military Merit Ulchi in the same year as head of Army Headquarters Security Command.

(englishnews@chosun.com )