Mother of a fallen hero in Yeonpyeong chairs the merit reward judging committee

The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPVA) has appointed Kim Oh-bok, the mother of Sergeant Seo Jeong-woo, who was sacrificed in 2010 by North Korea’s army shelling of Yeonpyeongdo, as the chairwoman of the merit reward judging committee with a three-year term. She became the first bereaved family member of MPVA-registered patriots to chair the committee.

Kim, former principal of Daesung Girls' High School in Gwangju, has built an understanding of veteran affairs by serving as a civil committee member of the National Veterans Affairs Commission and a policy advisor to the MPVA since her retirement from school, said the ministry.

The merit reward judging committee is a consensual deliberative body under the MPVA to deliberate eligibility and criteria concerning people of national merit and independence and their families and rate their disabilities, if any.

“I know too well the value of sacrifice and dedication to the country. I will review veteran affairs thoroughly at the public eye level,” Chairperson Kim said. “I will do my best to build a reliable deliberation system for veteran applicants based on the principles of transparency, fairness, and equity. Late Sergeant Seo was killed on his way to the unit from the island’s quay after giving up on his military leave in North Korea’s shelling of Yeonpyeongdo on Nov. 23, 2010. He was awarded the Hwarang Order of Military Merit and buried in the Daejeon National Cemetery.


Sang-Ho Yun ysh1005@donga.com