“Park Chung-hee will soon fail, let’s be confident”… Reminiscing and paying tribute to the deceased Jeong Dae-cheol
President Lee sent early… Major politicians from the ruling and opposition parties are in harmony
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Park Soo-yoon and Choi Joo-seong = Political figures, regardless of the ruling and opposition parties, continued to visit the funeral hall of Samsung Seoul Hospital, where the funeral home of the late Choi Hyeong-woo, former Minister of the Interior, who was a political comrade of former President Kim Young-sam (YS), was set up, until the evening of the 24th.
Kim Dae-jung Foundation Chairman Kwon Noh-gap, the moderator of the Donggyo-dong faction, Kim Deok-ryong, the Sangdo-dong faction's alter ego, and Kim Young-sam Democratic Center Chairman Kim Young-sam, and the Democratic Party's elder brother Jeong Dae-cheol, chaired the funeral committee and commemorated the deceased's journey.
On this day, the funeral was lined with flags sent by President Lee Jae-myung, as well as flags sent by elders such as former National Assembly Speaker Chung Eui-hwa, former National Assembly Vice-Speaker Lee Seok-hyun, former Saenuri Party leader Kim Moo-sung and former Democratic Party leader Sohn Hak-gyu, the head of the Democratic Promotion Council.
Active politicians, including Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, Planning and Budget Minister Park Hong-geun, People Power Party floor leader Jeong Jeong-sik and lawmaker Na Kyung-won, also sent artificial flowers to comfort the bereaved families.
Choi Je-wan, the son of the deceased, met with a reporter from Yonhap News and recalled, "When my father came home after drinking, he was a warm person who sang the song 'Dad's Youth' and danced funny and made the children laugh. As a politician, he raised us very strictly."
Regarding the hardships the deceased experienced during the turbulent Park Chung-hee and Chun Doo-hwan regimes, he said, "He was probably the person who suffered the most from torture among those who participated in the democratization movement of the opposition party in Korea. When he suffered a stroke in 1997, he was examined in Germany and found that his aorta was torn. It was then that I learned that it was due to the aftereffects of torture."
He continued, "During the Chun Doo-hwan administration, my father was placed under house arrest. Since he couldn't leave the house, my mother made a living by running a soup restaurant in Gwanghwamun. Detectives came into the house to keep watch, and even though our household expenses were tight, I remember being warmly treated by the detectives and asking them to eat."
Regarding the anecdote with YS, he said, "Even though YS couldn't even stand on his own (due to a stroke), he never missed a year until he passed away and went to New Year's Eve on January 1st." He also said, "If someone said something disparaging about YS, he would say, 'I'm not criticizing you behind his back,' and he lived with loyalty to YS in his heart until the end."
Chung Dae-cheol, chairman of the Constitutional Council, also told a reporter from Yonhap News, "In 1978, Choi Hyung-woo contacted me to ask me to go see Cardinal Kim Soo-hwan, and the three of us went with Cho Yun-hyeong (former National Assembly Vice-President). He immediately asked, 'Park Chung-hee is going to fall soon, isn't that right?'" He added, "How will the Cardinal answer? (Instead) I remember the Cardinal praying for democratization. “There is,” he said.
He lamented, "He was a truly humane person who bravely said everything he wanted to say to YS when he thought it was wrong," and added, "Even under the Park Chung-hee regime, he was someone who said, 'Park Chung-hee will soon fail, so let's do it with confidence.'"
Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon, who has pledged to carry on the spirit of YS, also visited the funeral home and paid tribute to the deceased.
One lawmaker met with reporters and said, "The deceased was a great figure in the Republic of Korea. He spared no effort in protecting democracy in truly harsh times. If senior Choi Hyung-woo had not been there, democracy in the Republic of Korea would have been delayed further."
He added, “I will work hard to learn how to not put myself first and not consider profits or losses when taking the path I believe is necessary for the country.”
Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, and Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the People Power Party, who served as joint funeral committee chairs, are said to visit the funeral home on the 25th and be with the bereaved family.
Former Minister Choi's funeral will be held for three days and the funeral is scheduled for the 27th. The deceased is laid to rest at the National 419 Democratic Cemetery.
