hankyoreh

By Son Joon-hyun, Senior staff writer

A scene that has in recent history become typical took place at a general meeting of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), that took place Monday late into the night.

While discussing whether to directly investigate escalating suspicions that the Office of the Prime Minister conducted illegal investigations of civilians, one conservative commission member said he did not know what the investigation would include as the facts were not well known. When he said this, another commission member said the country has been in an uproar for over a month over the civilian investigations, and asked if the member even watched the news.

This raised doubts over whether he was qualified to be a member of the commission, which should always pay attention to pending human rights issues regardless of political ideology.　

Human rights groups are raising serious doubts as to why the commission exists as they watch recent decisions and actions by the commission. Harsh criticism is also being leveled that halfway through the Lee Myung-bak administration, even the basic functions of the commission have been stopped.　

In fact, NHRCK did not express an opinion about the constitutionality of the ban on nighttime protests, which the Constitutional Court called “not in accordance with the Constitution,” nor did it issue an opinion about the state filling a defamation suit against Beautiful Foundation director Park Won-soon. On Tuesday, it decided not to directly investigate the Office of the Prime Minister’s investigation of civilians, revealed to be a serious violation of human rights. During the meeting, it also failed to issue an opinion regarding a court decision calling the Election Law unconstitutional.

Last weekend, Human Rights Policy Division chief Kim Hyeong-wan, a living witness to the foundation of the commission, finally resigned. Participating on the foundation and planning team formed after the National Human Rights Commission of Korea Law was passed in April 2001, he helped plan the role and direction of the new institution at the time.

Lawyer Kim Chil-joon, who served as secretary-general of the commission, said in regards to the resignation, “The curtain has closed on an age of the commission.”

Within and outside the commission, it is believed that while the head of the Human Rights Policy Division is tasked with monitoring pending human rights issues and monitoring the use of public power, he must have had a difficult time doing so because NHRCK Chairperson Hyun Byung-chul has been constantly slamming on the brakes.

An NHRCK official said, “Watching problems continuously go nowhere after raising the issues to people who do not seriously care about pending human rights issues, Kim must have judged it to be humiliating.”

Human Rights Solidarity for New Society policy planning bureau chief Shin Soo-kyoung, who has continuously monitored the activity of the commission, said, “The NHRCK was established as an independent body so it could monitor structural human rights abuses.”

Shin went on to say, “Since the start of the Lee administration, however, the commission has been continuously shaken and weakened so that the initial goal of its founding has been lost.”

One commissioner warned against the organization becoming conservative, and said, “If the brakes continue to be applied to socially sensitive topics, then sensitive human rights issues and policy-related issues will not be placed before the general committee from the secretariat.”

In fact, the committee secretariat is being reorganized centered on general government employees while excluding special government employees with an expertise in human rights or the ability to communicate with civil society. The current NHRCK commissioner discharged promotion division chairman Lee Myeong-jae, a special government servant, in October of last year, while some staff with civilian backgrounds are leaving to study abroad or taking vacations. The current chairperson, who assumed office in July of last year, has not once held talks with civic organizations.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]