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Prosecution launches probe into left-wing Catholic priest

By Cho Chung-un

The prosecution said Tuesday it has begun an investigation into Park Chang-shin, a senior priest of the Jeonju diocese who made controversial remarks that defended North Korea’s deadly 2010 attack on a South Korean island.

Officials at the Gunsan branch of the Jeonju District Prosecutors’ Office said a complaint had been filed by a conservative group against the priest, accusing him of violating the National Security Law that prohibits pro-North Korean activities.

The announcement of the probe came a day after President Park Geun-hye slammed the senior priest and others who made pro-North remarks, saying she would not tolerate such an act that causes social confrontation.

“The case has been sent to a prosecutor in charge of public security,” an official said.

“We are communicating with the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office to discuss who should take a lead in the investigation because other conservative groups have filed complaints there as well,” he added.

Another senior priest lashed out against Park Chang-shin, saying he has made direct political remarks that divided the Church and threw the nation into disorder. Kim Kye-choon, a senior priest, said he is considering reporting Park and other progressive priests to the Vatican.

Park Chang-shin has been at the center of debate since last Friday after he, during a Mass, defended North Korea’s shelling of Yeonpyeongdo Island in the West Sea that killed two civilians and two marines. He suggested that the attack may have been in defense of the joint military exercise by South Korea and the U.S. going on at the time. He also denied the government’s finding that the North was responsible for sinking a South Korean warship in the same year.

The priest’s remarks have not only stirred controversy in the political arena but also intensified the ideological divide between conservatives and progressives across the country.

A coalition of 10 conservative groups in North Jeolla Province said on Tuesday that Park Chang-shin has abandoned his duty as a priest and aggravated an already deepening social divide. They also called out members of the Catholic Priests’ Association for Justice who said President Park Geun-hye should resign over the alleged electioneering by state agencies in last year’s presidential election.

“The priests have ridiculed the public by making pro-North and absurd remarks,” the group said. “(Authorities) should disband (the priests’ group) and immediately arrest those who are involved in making ludicrous remarks.”

Meanwhile, progressive groups slammed conservatives for unilaterally accusing the priests as if they have made comments sympathizing with the North. People’s Solidarity for Participation and Autonomy in North Jeolla Province said in a statement that Park Chang-shin’s comment was intended to urge authorities to suspend military drills on the Northern Limit Line and also that there shouldn’t be another outbreak of war on the Korean Peninsula.

(christory@heraldcorp.com)