[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 128 (Wednesday, July 30, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1617]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




DECRYING THE SHOOTING OF SOUTH KOREAN TOURIST WANG-JA PARK BY COMMUNIST 
                              NORTH KOREA

                                 ______
                                 

                       HON. THADDEUS G. McCOTTER

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, July 30, 2008

  Mr. McCOTTER. Madam Speaker, this week we commemorate the 55th 
anniversary of the armistice which theoretically ended the armed 
hostilities in the Korean War. I say ``theoretically'' because it 
appears communist North Korea periodically forgets it is the party to 
the permanent ceasefire. For instance, in July 2003, soldiers in the 
DMZ exchanged machine-gun fire, with the first shots coming from 
communist North Korea. This particular attack was not timed 
arbitrarily. It occurred on the 55th anniversary of the enactment of 
South Korea's constitution. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Similarly, 
less than a year ago last August, there was an unprovoked gunfire shot 
from a communist North Korean guard post toward a South Korean guard 
post in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) which separates the free Republic 
of Korea from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. Again, 
fortunately, in that incident, nobody was injured.
   Most recently, on July 11, 2008, a South Korean citizen, Mrs. Wang-
Ja Park, was shot dead by a communist North Korean soldier while 
visiting a beach at Mount Keumgang, a resort that is popular with South 
Korean tourists who visit communist North Korea. The killing of Mrs. 
Park is a serious matter that deserves worldwide scrutiny. Even without 
the context of previous exchanges of military gunfire between North and 
South Korea, this event should not be considered in isolation from 
larger policy questions. The unfortunate and regrettable killing of 
Wang-Ja Park offers illumination to my view, which is shared by others, 
that the current administration's decision and notification to Congress 
to remove communist North Korea from the list of state sponsors of 
terrorism was premature and ill-considered. This incident lays bare the 
brutality of the communist North Korean regime and suggests we should 
continue to be vigilant. Madam Speaker, in the wake of Mrs. Park's 
death, we should all be concerned about the lack of cooperation by 
communist North Korean authorities in the investigation of the 
incident. South Korean investigators have been refused access to the 
scene of the crime by communist North Korean authorities, and there are 
serious discrepancies in accounts made by eyewitnesses and by the 
communist North Korean government.
   I strongly urge communist North Korea to cooperate fully with South 
Korea on a joint investigation into this terrible tragedy. The South 
Korean government has rightly suspended tours to Mount Keumgang and the 
suspension should continue until a joint investigation has been 
completed and North Korea's communist government assures this will not 
happen again. To do otherwise would simply whitewash the incident.
   Apart from the very serious foreign policy ramifications of this 
tragic event, I wish to convey my sincere condolences to the family of 
Mrs. Park and to all South Korean citizens who have been shocked and 
dismayed by her death, and I urge my colleagues to do the same.
   The people of South Korea should know Americans are thinking about 
them, about their safety and security, and we remain committed to the 
shared verities of ordered liberty and democracy which make our 
nations--the Republic of Korea and the United States of America--
prosperous, free, and compassionate.

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