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S. Koreans gather for funeral of former President Roh
By Shin Hae-in
SEOUL, May 29 (Yonhap) -- Amid tight security and a solemn atmosphere, a long line of South Koreans encircled the stone walls of Seoul's most prominent ancient palace early Friday morning for the funeral of former President Roh Moo-hyun.
Roh died Saturday at the age of 62, leaping from a mountainside precipice above his rural hometown amid a bribery investigation that tarnished his legacy as an anti-corruption fighter. He served as the country's leader from 2003 to 2008.
"We came to pray for his soul," a Catholic nun waiting outside Gyeongbok Palace said. "I barely slept last night. Too many thoughts crossed my mind and I was overtaken by emotions."
Some 60,000 South Koreans have turned out daily at makeshift altars in Seoul and across the nation from morning to night. Nearly 400,000 people have visited a memorial site in Roh's hometown Bongha, where the former president retired to after leaving office in February last year.
"I can't believe a week has passed already, and he is really gone," said Lee Han-bok, who came to attend the ceremony with his wife, leaving home at dawn to avoid the crowd.
As a "people's funeral," the ceremony, beginning at 11 a.m., was to be attended by some 3,000, including President Lee Myung-bak, former Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Kim Young-sam, lawmakers, diplomats in Seoul as well as ordinary citizens who received invitations.
A large screen placed in central Seoul was to broadcast the ceremony live for those who could not enter the palace, the country's landmark historical site from the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910).
Roh's funeral procession left his hometown Bongha at 5 a.m., some 450 kilometers southeast of Seoul, as his wife, children and his closest confidants looked on with members of his support group, club Nosamo, a Korean acronym for "people who love Roh."
TV footage showed villagers weeping and praying as his hearse was carried on to a convoy to head to Seoul. Onlookers flew yellow paper planes toward the convoy, the color that symbolized Roh's presidential campaign.
Roh's body will be cremated after the funeral and the ashes will be taken back for burial near Bongha, as he requested in a note left to family just before his death.
Roh, a self-taught human rights lawyer and left-wing politician, strove during his time in office to undo the polarization of wealth, authoritarianism and regionalism that has plagued South Korea, while also pushing for reconciliation with North Korea.
Just 15 months after he returned to Bongha Village to take up the life of a farmer, breaking precedent with other former heads of state, Roh became mired in a bribery scandal involving US$6 million he and his family allegedly received from a wealthy businessman. Roh vehemently denied personal ties to the scandal.
In April, he became the third former president in the nation to appear before prosecutors.
His supporters, accusing the Lee Myung-bak administration of a politically motivated investigation against his predecessor, have flooded the Internet with tributes to the late leader.
A funeral procession will be held from 1 p.m., stopping at the central Seoul Plaza for a memorial rite to wish the deceased a peaceful repose. The procession will be joined by 1,000 citizens chosen through the Internet.
It will continue on foot through the city for half an hour before heading to Suwon, adjacent to Seoul, for cremation.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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