hankyoreh

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, during his visit to the memorial for the Air Force master sergeant who died by suicide after being sexually assaulted by a fellow service member, consoles the victim’s family members on Sunday. (Yonhap News)

Identified by her surname Lee, the Air Force master sergeant was found dead on May 22 — three months after she reported being sexually assaulted.

“There are no words to describe just how wronged and bitter I feel. How could I ever imagine that photograph of my sweet and beautiful daughter would end up being used as her funeral portrait? To see her there, surrounded by chrysanthemums...”

The father trailed off as he imagined his late daughter.

Her family could not bear to let her go. To right the wrong they suffered, they demanded an investigation and punishment of those responsible.

Rather than holding a formal wake, they set up a temporary memorial, which only went up on Friday. It showed photographs of Lee while she was still alive, with a stuffed cat standing in for her beloved pet.

The Hankyoreh met her father Sunday at the funeral home of the Korean Armed Forces Capital Hospital in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, where the memorial had been put in place.

Neither of the parents had yet said goodbye to their daughter. They plan to observe the investigation first, only holding the funeral once the wrong done to their daughter has been addressed.

“It hasn’t been resolved yet. We just want it to be resolved quickly so that our daughter can rest in peace. Maybe she will find her rest in Heaven once we have ensured that her death was not in vain,” Lee’s father said.

“My daughter hated my beard. I think I’ll be able to shave it off clearly the day we hold the funeral.” A bushy gray beard was growing over his chin.

Lee’s father always took pride in his daughter.

“She dreamed of being a soldier ever since she was a little girl. She went to an Air Force high school so she could be a soldier. After she graduated, she was appointed as a non-commissioned officer. I was so proud of her — I never felt like I had anything to worry about with her. She was kind and considerate, with a lot of things she hoped to do.”

Recently, Lee’s family submitted accusations against a warrant officer and senior master sergeant, both identified by the surname No. They were the senior officers to whom Lee first reported her sexual assault in March; the family accused them of dereliction of duty and attempted extortion.

They also lodged an accusation against an officer with another unit, who is suspected of sexually assaulting Lee a year ago.

“From the things [Lee] had said to her mother and the texts she had sent to her boyfriend on KakaoTalk, I learned [after her suicide] that there had been an additional sexual assault,” the father said.

“When our daughter was first named to that unit, Warrant Officer No and Senior Master Sergeant No told us not to worry. They said they would protect our child like they were her uncles, like she was their own niece. So how could something like this have happened?” he asked.

“They abetted this sexual assault, justifying it as part of a ‘group dinner’ or ‘joint retreat.’”

Lee’s father also said it was “unfortunate” that the military and government are only taking action now, after doing nothing in the immediate wake of the incident.

“We’ve been complaining so many times to the investigative organization, to the commanding officers, to those responsible, and they wouldn’t listen to us,” he said.

“Since the time the assault occurred, her family members have been out there writing petitions. There was also a situation where we had to call up the squadron commander and ask for help after we learned she wasn’t receiving proper assistance from an attorney.”

The father shared his anger toward those who only came to see the family after the incident was reported in the media.

“A lot of people have found out about it now because it’s been in the media and there have been citizen petitions. So now we have the Air Force Chief of Staff, the Minister of National Defense and the politicians all coming and talking about how hard they’re going to work,” he said.

“It’s really unfortunate. I find myself wondering how things might have been if there had been this kind of help before my daughter chose to take her own life.”

He added that he was pinning his last hopes on the investigation to come.

“They’re talking about setting up a military prosecutor review board with civilian participation, so we’re holding out hope for the first committee we’ve had,” he said.

“We also had the pledges that the president gave us when he came to offer condolences today. We want to trust in that,” he added.

“I think we’ll be able to have the funeral once the perpetrators and the secondary perpetrators have been punished, and dignity has been restored for our wronged daughter.”

By Kim Yoon-ju, staff reporter

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