Deceased ROK Army Solider to Receive US Bronze Star

The body of the first ROK Army fatality in the Global War on Terror, SGT Yoon Jang-ho has arrived in Korea:

U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Alexander Vershbow visited the military hospital in Seongnam, just outside of Seoul, where Yoon’s body lay in rest, and delivered the U.S. Bronze Star Medal and his condolences to Yoon’s bereaved family.

The medal is the fourth highest in the U.S. armed forces, and can be given to non-American soldiers who died while carrying out missions with U.S. forces.

Tuesday’s attack is believed to have targeted U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, who was visiting the area, according to the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). Reports stated that the Taliban has claimed responsibility for the bombing that also killed one American soldier, an American contractor and 20 Afghan civilians.

Yoon’s parents flew to Kuwait and received the body, which was airlifted by the U.S. military from Afghanistan on Thursday.

The body arrived at a military airport in Seongnam, a city just south of Seoul, at 7:15 a.m. aboard a chartered flight amid falling rain. The plane also carried Yoon’s parents and some 300 South Korean soldiers returning home after completing a six-month mission in Iraq.

Yoon’s body was met solemnly by Army Chief of Staff Park Heung-ryul and some 100 soldiers from the military unit to which Yoon belonged before his departure to Afghanistan.

I think it was a nice gesture by Ambassador Vershbow to award the Bronze Star to SGT Yoon.  As a commenter pointed out, an American died in this blast as well, PFC Zizumbo who like SGT Yoon was from the midwest and also 27 years old.  I’m sure he will post-humanously be awarded the Bronze Star and a Purple Heart for his sacrifice as well.  Let’s also not forget the 20 Afghan truck drivers and children that were killed by this cowardly suicide bomber. 

What I’m curious about is where is President Roh?  President Roh so far is treating SGT Yoon’s death like how he treated the death of the six ROK sailors that died fighting off a North Korean ambush in 2002; by ignoring it.  It just seems callous to me that the US Ambassador is able to get to the hospital and meet SGT Yoon’s family and award him a medal before President Roh does. 

In other news related to SGT Yoon’s death, predictably the Hankyoreh is using SGT Yoon’s death to bash the United States:

The U.S. invaded Afghanistan following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 because it had provided refuge to al Qaida, and it toppled the Taliban government there. Its oppressive occupation policy since has lasted six years and has made the people of that country turn against U.S. forces and has actually strengthened the Taliban.

(…)

Given the situation, Korea needs to give serious thought as to whether the Korean military should continue to support the U.S.-led occupation forces when they are not recognized as legitimate. The Korean government has continued to ignore calls for withdrawal coming from all sectors of society, all the while invoking its obligations to the U.S.-Korea alliance. However, being true to your duties as a true member of the alliance means making the U.S. listen to the views of the international community and not blindly following the U.S. around while having to put up with international criticism. The government needs to immediately start the process of withdrawing our soldiers from Iraq and Afghanistan.

"Oppressive occupation"?  The Taliban conducting public executions, banning music, treating women no better than dogs, among a host of other wonders of Sharia Law was oppressive.  The US building schools, roads, establishing a democratic system of government among a host of other reconstruction projects is not oppressive.  Than again this is the Hankyoreh and they probably think the US presence in South Korea is an oppressive occupation.  It is totally dishonest to say that the people of Afghanistan have "turned against US forces" because then why does the Taliban have to hide in Pakistan if they supposedly have the support of the Afghan people?  It is because the vast majority of the Afghan people can’t stand the Taliban and are glad to see them go.  The Hankyoreh really needs to read this story if they think the Afghan people dislike the United States.

Also the Hankyoreh left out any mention that SGT Yoon volunteered to go to Afghanistan and deeply believed in the mission that he was doing.  If the Afghan people hated the "oppressive occupation" so much, how come all these Afghans were coming to receive job skills training from SGT Yoon and the rest of the Korean contingent in Afghanistan?  It is disgusting to me that instead of honoring SGT Yoon’s death as the hero that he is, the Hankyoreh is using his death to push their own political agenda, but I’m not surprised.