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If it had been the president's concern

Published: 16 Oct. 2025, 00:02

Ahn Hai-ri

The author is an editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo.

A 22-year-old university student surnamed Park left for Cambodia in July to attend what he believed was a job fair. Three weeks later, he was found dead, showing signs of brutal torture and forced drug injections. As a mother with a son around the same age, I was horrified by the crime itself — but even more by how indifferent the Korean government appeared to be toward protecting its own citizens abroad.

At a National Assembly hearing on Oct. 13, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said he recognized the seriousness of the case “around last week,” explaining that after the first report in July, “no additional information was received, so even the embassy did not know for quite some time.” The admission was shocking.

Signs in the Chinese language are displayed alongside local ones on a commercial building in Sihanoukville, Cambodia on the afternoon of Oct. 14, local time. The area is known for numerous offices and properties operated by Chinese and other transnational criminal groups, earning it the nickname “crime district.” [YONHAP]

Reports about Chinese criminal syndicates operating in Cambodia — luring young, low-income Koreans with fake “high-paying jobs,” then kidnapping and forcing them into online fraud — have been circulating since last year. One Korean outlet first reported Park's death, headlined “Traces of Torture,” in early August, two months before the Foreign Ministry began to take the case seriously. Despite repeated media warnings, the government did nothing substantive to prevent such tragedies. That the minister could remain unaware for nearly two months, without any sense of accountability, is beyond comprehension.

It was only after Cambodian prosecutors indicted three Chinese nationals on murder and fraud charges on Oct. 9 — and domestic coverage surged — that the Foreign Ministry summoned the Cambodian ambassador. The timing made it clear the ministry was more responsive to media pressure than to its duty to protect citizens.

This was not the first instance of bureaucratic detachment. Back in August, immediately after reports of Park’s death surfaced, the ministry issued a statement downplaying the coverage. It claimed, “The article contains inaccuracies based on information verified through the Cambodian authorities,” and asked the media to “refrain from speculative reporting that may cause distress to the bereaved family.” The statement's tone implied that responsibility might lie with the victim himself, discouraging further follow-up reporting.

Two months later, after President Lee Jae Myung ordered an “all-out response,” the ministry released another statement that was no less defensive. It said the incident reported by multiple outlets on Oct. 9 was “the same case already covered in August,” and that “the government has provided full consular assistance for rescue and repatriation when necessary.” It also claimed that “the allegation that another victim hid in a garbage pile is not supported by CCTV footage,” and it added that “many of those involved voluntarily participated in criminal activities.” The language displayed neither compassion nor accountability — only the instinct to shift blame to the victims.

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun answers questions about crimes against Korean nationals in Cambodia during a parliamentary audit by the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on Oct. 13. [YONHAP]

Such responses raise troubling questions about how selectively the state values the lives of its citizens. Minister Cho's indifference seems rooted in who the victims were: socially vulnerable young Koreans, some suspected of minor wrongdoing, with no power or influence. Their deaths did not align with the administration's political priorities.

If these victims had been workers killed in a workplace accident or if the issue had drawn the president’s personal attention, would the response have been so slow, so cold? The government’s obligation to protect its citizens does not depend on class, occupation or circumstance. Every life deserves equal concern and dignity. To neglect that duty — simply because the victims were poor, powerless or inconvenient — is a failure of state responsibility.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.