hankyoreh

It has finally emerged that civilians were indeed killed in North Korea’s artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island. Yesterday afternoon, a joint investigative team conducting recovery efforts at the scene discovered the bodies of two people who perished at a construction site during the shelling. Workers there had fled the scene after a shell fired by the North Korean forces landed on the site, but two of them ultimately lost their lives. It is truly a tragic development.
North Korea’s attack is unacceptable, for the obvious reason that it is the first attack on South Korean soil since the armistice that ended the Korean War, but even more so because artillery was fired indiscriminately on civilian residential areas. This is a truly inhumane and barbaric outrage that cannot be justified on any grounds. And it ultimately produced the worst-case scenario of civilian fatalities.
In spite of this, North Korea seems not to understand the gravity of the situation. Yesterday, the United Nations Command proposed a general-level meeting with the North Korean military to investigate the incident, but it has not yet received a response. Judging from its current attitude, Pyongyang does not appear likely to agree to talks readily. Observers had already predicted this type of attitude.
In a report the evening before last, the Korean People’s Army Supreme Command said, “Beginning at 13:00 on Tuesday, the South Choson puppets carried out the military provocation of artillery fire on our territorial waters in the area around Yeonpyeong Island in the West Sea, in spite of our repeated warnings.”
This is the typical false accusation and refusal to take responsibility. This brazen attitude from North Korea is nearly as infuriating to South Korea’s citizens as the unexpected military provocation itself.
If Pyongyang really wishes to pass responsibility on to Seoul, it should provide irrefutable evidence of the so-called military provocation. According to the Defense Ministry, the South Korean military’s artillery firing exercises were directed toward the southwest, away from North Korea. If North Korea is confident of its claims, it should appear at general-level talks and present evidence to back them up. It is cowardly to reiterate charges about a military provocation by South Korea without presenting any clear evidence to support them.
Beyond everything else, North Korea should at least make its position clear regarding firing artillery at civilians. It needs to clarify whether civilian residential areas were always a target, whether the target deviated, or whether this was the result of willful negligence regarding the possibility of civilian casualties. Attacks on civilians constitute a serious crime that is prohibited by international law. When civilian fatalities occur, even during war, the proper response is to apologize to the other nation and the international community and promise that such an incident will not happen again. Feigning ignorance after dropping bombs on civilian residential areas in broad daylight and killing people is something that simply cannot be passed over in silence.
It is difficult to even imagine what North Korea must have been thinking in perpetrating such an extreme act. There is no way of knowing whether it stemmed from an internal political need to solidify the Kim Jong-un succession system, the rogue actions of hardliners, or a high-intensity strategy to bring the United States to the table for bilateral negotiations. Whatever the intent was, however, what is clear is that such a provocative action in no way benefits North Korea. With the international community moving even farther away from the country, Pyongyang can no longer expect any of its help in sustaining its regime or resolving economic issues.
The problem that remains now is how to resolve the situation wisely in a way that does not escalate matters and further threaten security. This will require efforts from both North Korea and South Korea, but the greater responsibility lies with North Korea. It needs to show a readiness to fix the problem it created now that attack it initiated has led to civilian deaths. If necessary, it may be wise to resume the suspended inter-Korean general-level military talks. Now it is necessary to find a way to ensure that such an unfortunate incident does not happen again.
The ultimate responsibility for this incident lies on the shoulders of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. Questions of whether he authorized the attack directly or failed to control the hardliners in the military are of no importance. He must assume full responsibility for a tragedy that took the lives of South Korean civilians and take active measures to resolve the situation. Feigning innocence amid such circumstances is not the attitude of a leader responsible for one half of the Korean Peninsula. We urge him to show resolution.
　　
Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]