[Opinion] Pastor In Myung-jin

The Roman goddess of justice is portrayed as evenly balancing a scale in her left hand and a sword in her right hand to symbolize judicial fairness and exactness. A close look will find her wearing a blindfold. Her portrayal seems to convey the idea that justice should be done in a fair and transparent way. Or, anything less than that is nothing but an elaborate display of smoke and mirrors. In October 2006 when the Grand National Party entrusted Pastor In Myung-jin with the party’s ethics committee, someone brought about the topic of the goddess of justice. Then, GNP Chairman Kang Jae-sup, did not spare praise for him, referring to him as “the incarnation of justice.”

Pastor In Myung-jin, who has served Galilee Church in Guro, Seoul, since 1986, has committed his life to advancing the rights of workers and poor people. He also served as the spokesman of People’s Democratic Movement Coalition, which pioneered the democratic movement in June 1987. Although most of the ministers who participated in politics after the democratic struggles for a democratic constitution were in support of Kim Dae-jung, Pastor In is rather known to have backed Kim Young-sam.

Pastor In kept declining to accept the offer of the position as chief of the ethics committee, and when he finally came to assume the post, he said, “Those who believe in Jesus should go among the sinners.” What he probably meant was that the GNP is a sinner who has never given hope to the nation. After taking office, he busied himself, purifying the party, including placing orders of social volunteerism to trouble-making or corrupt lawmakers. During the recent GNP nomination process, he strived to put a brake on the nomination committee’s candidate selections, complaining about the party image full of political opportunists. In a recent interview with the Shin Dong-A magazine, he laid bare his thought about taking disciplinary measures against lawmakers Lee Bang-ho, Kang Chang-hui, and Jeong Jong-bok who were on the selection board.

However, he felt he was talking to a brick wall when he consulted the issue with the party leadership. He couldn’t hide despondency, saying, “The leadership showed utter indifference to my suggestion. It seemed like I was pouring water into a sieve.” He added, “I have never felt the urge not to vote until the general elections.” Yesterday, he called for resignations of some chief presidential secretaries who came under fire for suspicious real estate deals. If he is considered as just a “well-assorted stock” in the declaration of conscience for the ruling party, the self-purification of the conservative force seems still remote. Nevertheless, the nation desperately needs more figures like In who can raise their voice against what they believe indiscreet injustice.

Editorial Writer Kim Chang-hyeok (chang@donga)