hankyoreh

Gyeonggi Province

By Park Kyung-man, Gyeonggi Correspondent and Kwon Tae-ho, Washington Correspondent　

A female student in her teens was allegedly sexually assaulted by a drunk U.S. soldier in the middle of the night at her residence in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province. The same town was the site of a physical assault and attempted sexual assault on an old couple in February, also by a U.S. soldier.

The incident is expected to have a major impact, as it was reported that although the soldier responsible for the latest assault made a complete confession to police, he returned to the base without being placed under arrest due to the terms of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA).

Blaming the inequality of the SOFA’s terms for the inability to arrest a U.S. soldier who committed a serious crime, civic organizations and political parties, including the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) and minor opposition Democratic Labor Party (DLP), urged the swift establishment of measures to prevent additional crimes by U.S. forces, including a full amendment of the SOFA and enactment of legislation to prohibit nighttime travel by U.S. forces.

The Dongducheon Police Station reported Thursday that “K,” a 21-year-old private with the U.S. 2nd Infantry Division, was questioned on charges of entering a Dongducheon gositel apartment while intoxicated at around 4 a.m. on Sept. 24 and threatening and repeatedly sexually assaulting 18-year-old “G,” who had been watching television at the time. Following the questioning, the private was handed over to U.S. military police, the police station reported.

G sustained an approximately 2cm laceration to the palm of her hand while attempting to fend off the attacker, and received hospital treatment.

After receiving G’s report at around 8:50 a.m. on Sept. 24, police verified K‘s identity through closed circuit camera footage from near the apartment and the U.S. base entrance. After reporting this to the U.S. forces, the police had K report for questioning on Sept. 26.

At the police station, K admitted the crime, saying that he did not remember clearly because he had been drunk, but that he thought he had gone into an apartment and committed a crime.

U.S. 2nd Infantry Division Commander Edward C. Cardon immediately issued a statement expressing profound dismay and his apologies to the victim’s family members and the South Korean people.

Unable even to request an arrest warrant for K because of the SOFA, police forwarded the case to prosecutors Wednesday. According to the police manual for SOFA cases, they are empowered only to incarcerate and investigate soldiers who are caught in the act perpetrating heinous crimes such as rape, without transferring the suspect to U.S. military authorities.

Dongducheon Police State investigation chief Hwang Ui-min explained the reason for K’s release without arrest, saying, said, “For U.S. forces crimes, the SOFA permits us to have detentions and investigations in cases where [the suspect] is caught in the act or before he has returned to base, but once he has returned to base we have to submit a separate transfer request to the U.S. military.”

An official with the Uijeongbu District Prosecutors’ Office said, “Our plan is to decide on the handling of the suspect, including the possibility of arrest, after additional investigation.”

The official that no schedule had yet been set for an indictment.

Civic organizations and political parties issued strong criticisms of the passive behavior by investigation authorities, noting that K has been at the base for over five days even after he was identified as the culprit and confessed during questioning.

During a parliamentary audit of the Gyeonggi Provincial Police Agency on Thursday, DP Lawmaker Jang Se-hwan said, “After concealing the incident, the Dongducheon Police Station chief carried out a biased investigation of a U.S. soldier. We need to relieve the Dongducheon Police Station chief of his post and hold him accountable.”

In a statement, the DLP urged the government to amend the SOFA to remove toxic provisions and establish measures to eradicate crimes by U.S. forces. “As long as the SOFA exists to give USFK extraterritoriality, the crimes by U.S. forces will not stop,” the statement said.

North Gyeonggi-area civic groups are planning to hold a press conference Friday morning in front of Camp Casey in Dongducheon to call for K’s immediate arrest and investigation, an official apology from the U.S. President, and the full amendment of SOFA.

The U.S. State Department expressed its profound regrets Wednesday (local time) and said it would cooperate with the South Korean government for a thorough investigation. Deputy Secretary of State Bill Burns and Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Kurt Campbell called South Korean Ambassador to the United States Han Duck-soo on Thursday to express their dismay over the incident, telling Han that the U.S. government would cooperate closely with the South Korean government to ensure a thorough investigation of the incident, the South Korean Embassy in Washington reported.

It is unusual for senior U.S. State Department authorities to express their regrets so quickly, less than one day after the United States Forces Korea (USFK) sexual assault case came to light. Observers attributed this to the U.S. having learned the lesson that incidents involving the U.S. and USFK in particular, such as the 2002 death of two female middle school students from being crushed by a U.S. armored vehicle, could lead to an uncontrollable situation of spreading anti-American sentiment.

Additionally, the fact that the U.S. State Department took direct diplomatic action separately from a USFK apology indicates that it is watching public opinion on the incident within South Korea that closely. Observers said this may also have shown concern about possible negative effects on the South Korea-U.S. summit mood ahead of President Lee Myung-bak’s November visit to the United States as a state guest, and about the South Korean political calendar, including the possibility of the incident becoming a major issue during the Seoul mayoral by-election.

The U.S. executive also responded swiftly in May when allegations surfaced about the burial of defoliant at a U.S. military base in Waegwan, North Gyeongsang.

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