Roh aides reject results of probe into summit records

Aides to former President Roh Moo-hyun on Sunday countered the prosecution’s investigation results that found the 2007 inter-Korean summit transcript was erased deliberately from the presidential data system.

Former security secretary Cho Myung-kyun, who, along with former chief presidential security advisor Baek Jong-chun, was indicted by the prosecution on Friday, held a press conference and claimed the prosecution based its probe on inaccurate testimonies.

“I have no recollection of having received an order from former President Roh Moo-hyun to delete or not transfer the inter-Korean summit transcript from the e-Jiwon system,” Cho said, referring to the electronic data storage system used by Roh’s administration.

“I did make such a statement during the prosecution questioning in January, but clarified in July that the testimony was based on inaccurate memory,” Cho claimed.

Cho and Baek, who were indicted without detention, face charges of playing active roles in destroying the presidential records.

The Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office said it found that Roh gave orders for the transcript to be made into a class 1 secret document and kept at the National Intelligence Service, and that the document be deleted from e-Jiwon.

Earlier, the investigation had located a modified version of the transcript and recovered the draft version which had been deleted from e-Jiwon in Bongha.

The summit transcript controversy has rocked the nation since last year’s presidential election when Saenuri Party Rep. Chung Moon-hun claimed that Roh denied the validity of the Northern Limit Line in the West Sea during his meeting with late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.

The Democratic Party and Roh’s aides rebuked the claim, as the National Intelligence Service disclosed its version of the transcript in June this year, supporting the Saenuri Party’s allegation. Roh’s former chief of staff Rep. Moon Jae-in demanded they look into the original copy kept at the National Archives to clear Roh’s name.

The controversy, however, took a new turn when the joint team of rival lawmakers failed to find the transcript in the archives, leading to a prosecutorial investigation.

By Lee Joo-hee ()