Kim apologizes 'from my deep in heart' for his sons

President Kim Dae-jung apologized Monday for the second time in 11 days over the implication of two of his sons in major financial corruption cases. He also resigned from the Millennium Democratic Party, allowing the ruling party and its presidential nominee, Roh Moo-hyun, to distance themselves in an election year from the torrent of corruption scandals.

"I am at a loss to apologize for the controversy caused by my children and a few of my aides, and for the stinging criticism that they have engendered," Mr. Kim said in a statement read by the Blue House chief of staff, Park Jie-won. His previous apology was read by his spokeswoman, Park Sun-sook.

"These words of apology come from deep in my heart," the statement continued. "I and my wife are spending days in agony, and we sincerely hope that the case will be strictly dealt with by prosecutors."

Mr. Kim added, "I quit my membership of the Millennium Democratic Party to focus on government affairs for my remaining time in office. The World Cup soccer games, the Busan Asian Games, the economy and inter-Korean relations, tasks that will determine national prosperity, will proceed without setback, and I will ensure that the coming elections will be the cleanest and fairest in history."

The main opposition Grand Na-tional Party at-tacked Mr. Kim's departure from his party, as "deception, unless it is accompanied by a solid commitment to political neutrality."

Mr. Kim's cabinet members who have party affiliation National Defense Minister Kim Dong-shin, Labor Minister Bang Yong-suk, Agriculture Minister Kim Dong-tae, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Yu Sam-nam and Gender Equality Minister Han Myung-sook also resigned from the party.

Political watchers had expected to see the president bowing on national television to apologize for the scandals involving his sons as the former President Kim Young-sam did on Feb. 25, 1997, for his second son, Kim Hyun-chul.

by Chung Young-gi