By Ryu Jin
Staff Reporter

South Korea’s decision to send troops to Iraq is facing growing public opposition as the security situation in the Middle East country continues to deteriorate.

Civic groups are taking a strong stand on the issue, trying to force the government to reconsider the troop dispatch plan. So far, however, the government is standing by its plan of sending an additional 3,000 troops.

A coalition of 351 civic groups decided to launch a campaign aimed at blocking the election of those candidates who supported the troop dispatch bill in Assembly ahead of the April 15 polls.

With antiwar voices clamoring, some political parties have begun to rethink their positions and are calling for a review of the plan, which has already been approved by the National Assembly.

The minor opposition Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) and the leftwing Democratic Labor Party (DLP) urged an immediate halt to the troop dispatch. Chu Mi-ae, chief campaigner for the MDP, proposed the withdrawal of the troop dispatch as a new election pledge for her party. The DLP also said it will push for an ``anti-troop dispatch bill’’ in the Assembly after the elections.

However, the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP) and the pro-government Uri Party stood firm on their positions. ``The Assembly has already given the go-ahead to the plan and the only remaining matter is the deployment site,’’ GNP chairwoman Park Geun-hye told reporters.

South Korea planned to send some 3,000 troops, including combat-ready soldiers, to the northern Iraqi town of Kirkuk in late April, on top of the 400 medics and engineers already in southern Iraq. But the deployment was delayed last month for security reasons.

The National Security Council (NSC) cancelled its planned standing committee meeting on Thursday afternoon. An NSC spokesperson said the meeting was called off since Acting President Goh Kun had already convened a meeting of security-related ministers the previous day to confirm Seoul’s commitment to the troop dispatch plan.

A fact-finding mission will head to northern Iraq today to examine the security situation, public opinion and logistics issues in the Kurdish autonomous regions where the additional Korean troops will likely be sent.


jinryu@koreatimes.co.kr