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검찰은 2007년 남북정상회담 회의록이 고(故) 노무현 전 대통령의 지시에 따라 참여정부에서 고의적으로 폐기됐다고 15일 밝혔다.
검찰은 회의록이 대통령기록관으로 이관되지 않은 것도 노 전 대통령의 지시에 따른 것이라고 말했다.
서울중앙지검 공안2부(김광수 부장검사)는 이날 '2007년 남북정상회담 회의록 폐기 의혹' 수사 결과를 발표했다.
검찰은 회의록 삭제 및 미이관이 모두 노 전 대통령의 지시에 따른 것이며 백종천 전 청와대 외교안보실장과 조명균 전 청와대 안보정책비서관이 그 지시를 구체적으로 이행해 고의성이 있다고 판단했다.
검찰은 수사를 통해 '삭제 매뉴얼'이 발견됐으며 실무자의 단순 실수가 아니었다고 결론을 내렸다.
검찰은 "이 사건 수사는 당연히 대통령기록관으로 이관돼야 할 역사적 기록물인 회의록이 이관되지 않았다는 의혹에서 시작됐고 고도의 복잡한 과정을 통해 복구한 것"이라며 "회의록이 국정원에 있으니 문제가 없다, 봉하 이지원에서 발견됐다는 참 여정부측 주장은 옳지 않다"고 말했다.
수사 결과 삭제 매뉴얼에 의해 다수의 대통령기록물이 삭제된 사실이 확인됐으며 수정•변경된 회의록 문건이 출력돼 문서 파쇄기로 파쇄된 흔적도 파악됐다.
이에 따라 검찰은 회의록 삭제 및 미이관에 적극적으로 관여한 백 전 실장과 조 전 비서관 등 2명을 대통령기록물관리법 위반과 형법상 공용전자기록 등 손상 혐의로 각각 불구속 기소했다.
지난 2007년 말 청와대 비서실장으로 있으면서 회담 준비위원장을 맡았고 이후 회의록 생산과 대통령기록관 이관 과정에 관여한 민주당 문재인 의원은 처벌 대상에서 빠졌다.
검찰은 문 의원의 경우 회의록 삭제 또는 유출에 관여한 직접적인 증거가 없다고 밝혔다. 문 의원은 6일 참고인 조사를 받았다.
검찰은 나머지 참여정부 관계자들에 대해서도 "상부의 지시 또는 관련 부서 요청에 따라 실무적인 차원에서 삭제 행위에 가담한 점 등을 감안해 별도로 입건하지 않았다"고 밝혔다.
또 서해 NLL(북방한계선) 포기 발언과 관련, 청와대 이지원에서 삭제된 회의록과 '봉하 이지원'으로 유출된 회의록을 비교한 결과 김정일 북한 국방위원장이 '포기' 발언을 한 것으로 확인됐다.
그의 발언은 삭제본에서 "지금 서해 문제가 복잡하게 되어 있는 이상에는 양측이 용단을 내려서 그 옛날 선들 다 포기한다. 평화지대를 선포(선언)한다"로 기록됐다.
유출된 회의록에서는 "지금 서해 문제가 복잡하게 제기되어 있는 이상에는 양측이 용단을 내려서 그 옛날 선들 다 포기한다. 평화지대를 선포, 선언한다"로 수정됐다.
노 전 대통령의 경우 삭제본에서 "내가 임기 동안에 NLL 문제를 다 해결하게…"라고 발언한 것으로 기록됐으나 유출본에서는 "내가 임기 동안에 NLL 문제는 다 치유가 됩니다"로 말한 것으로 수정됐다. 그러나 이렇게 변경된 부분은 국정원이 실제 녹음 내용에 따라 수정한 것으로 확인됐다.
앞서 새누리당은 '2007년 10월 2∼4일 이뤄진 노무현 전 대통령과 김정일 북한 국방위원장의 회의 내용을 기재한 회의록을 청와대에 보관 중 이를 무단으로 파기, 은닉 또는 유출한 의혹이 있다'며 '성명 불상자들'을 지난 7월 25일 검찰에 고발했다.
검찰은 고발장이 접수된 당일 수사에 착수했다. 발표일인 15일까지 114일간 대통령기록관에 대한 현장답사와 압수수색, 참여정부 청와대 근무자들에 대한 소환 조 사 등이 이뤄졌다.
검찰은 대검찰청 디지털포렌직 팀 등 첨단 수사기법을 동원해 8월 16일부터 국가기록원 대통령기록관에 있는 기록물 755만건을 열람하거나 사본 압수 작업을 벌여 회의록의 존재 및 의도적 폐기 여부를 확인해 왔다.
<관련 영문 기사>
Roh ordered deletion of transcript: prosecution
By Choi He-suk
The prosecution on Friday indicted two former aides of late President Roh Moo-hyun, concluding that the 2007 inter-Korean summit transcript was erased deliberately from the presidential data system.
Former chief presidential security advisor Baek Jong-chun and former security sectary Cho Myung-kyun were charged for playing active roles in destroying the transcript under orders from Roh.
The prosecution did not file charges against the Democratic Party’s Rep. Moon Jae-in, who served as Roh’s chief of staff, and other Roh administration officials.
The transcript first became a hot political issue in October when the Saenuri Party’s Rep. Chung Moon-hun claimed that Roh denied the validity of the Northern Limit Line in the West Sea in a meeting with late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
The argument that raged throughout the presidential campaign led to DP and Saenuri Party lawmakers agreeing to view the presidential records. However, the transcript was found to be missing from the National Archives, leading to the prosecutors’ probe.
The investigation located a modified version of the transcript and recovered the draft version which had been deleted from the e-Jiwon system in Bongha.
“(Roh) gave orders for the transcript to be made into a class 1 secret document, and to be kept at the National Intelligence Service, and that the document be deleted from e-Jiwon,” said Lee Jin-han, deputy chief of Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. The e-Jiwon system is the presidential data storage system used by the Roh Moo-hyun administration and at Roh’s retirement home in Bongha, South Gyeongsang Province.
“Even if the deletion and destruction of the transcript was carried out under the president’s orders, the act of deleting it through an extremely abnormal route is not a small matter.”
He added that the investigators confirmed that both the draft and final transcripts of other summit meeting had been kept as presidential records. Lee also said that the probe confirmed that Cho accessed the e-Jiwon system while it was offline, and uploaded the transcript as an attachment to enable the transcript to be transferred to the e-Jiwon system at Bongha.
The DP refuted the investigation’s results accusing the prosecution of being biased and the ruling Saenuri Party of orchestrating all the related developments.
“The prosecution’s announcement fell squarely within the concerns that a neutral investigation would not be carried out,” the DP’s committee on the issue said. The lawmakers on the committee argued that a draft cannot be a presidential record, and that Roh only ordered for corrections to be made.
“If (Roh) attempted to hide the contents of the transcript, then it should have been sent to the National Archives as a presidential record, instead of sending it to the NIS.”
The Saenuri Party for its part welcomed the prosecution’s findings and again pressed Moon to take responsibility for the matter.
“(Moon) should apologize to the public for creating the chaos by using the transcript for his political ends,” Saenuri Party spokesman Rep. Yoo Il-ho said.
“The courts should pass solemn judgment on the indicted individuals according to the law. Now that the prosecution’s investigation has ended, the ruling and opposition parties should focus on the National Assembly’s function for the people’s livelihoods and the economy.”
(cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)
Roh ordered deletion of transcript: prosecution
By Choi He-suk
The prosecution on Friday indicted two former aides of late President Roh Moo-hyun, concluding that the 2007 inter-Korean summit transcript was erased deliberately from the presidential data system.
Former chief presidential security advisor Baek Jong-chun and former security sectary Cho Myung-kyun were charged for playing active roles in destroying the transcript under orders from Roh.
The prosecution did not file charges against the Democratic Party’s Rep. Moon Jae-in, who served as Roh’s chief of staff, and other Roh administration officials.
The transcript first became a hot political issue in October when the Saenuri Party’s Rep. Chung Moon-hun claimed that Roh denied the validity of the Northern Limit Line in the West Sea in a meeting with late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
The argument that raged throughout the presidential campaign led to DP and Saenuri Party lawmakers agreeing to view the presidential records. However, the transcript was found to be missing from the National Archives, leading to the prosecutors’ probe.
The investigation located a modified version of the transcript and recovered the draft version which had been deleted from the e-Jiwon system in Bongha.
“(Roh) gave orders for the transcript to be made into a class 1 secret document, and to be kept at the National Intelligence Service, and that the document be deleted from e-Jiwon,” said Lee Jin-han, deputy chief of Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office. The e-Jiwon system is the presidential data storage system used by the Roh Moo-hyun administration and at Roh’s retirement home in Bongha, South Gyeongsang Province.
“Even if the deletion and destruction of the transcript was carried out under the president’s orders, the act of deleting it through an extremely abnormal route is not a small matter.”
He added that the investigators confirmed that both the draft and final transcripts of other summit meeting had been kept as presidential records. Lee also said that the probe confirmed that Cho accessed the e-Jiwon system while it was offline, and uploaded the transcript as an attachment to enable the transcript to be transferred to the e-Jiwon system at Bongha.
The DP refuted the investigation’s results accusing the prosecution of being biased and the ruling Saenuri Party of orchestrating all the related developments.
“The prosecution’s announcement fell squarely within the concerns that a neutral investigation would not be carried out,” the DP’s committee on the issue said. The lawmakers on the committee argued that a draft cannot be a presidential record, and that Roh only ordered for corrections to be made.
“If (Roh) attempted to hide the contents of the transcript, then it should have been sent to the National Archives as a presidential record, instead of sending it to the NIS.”
The Saenuri Party for its part welcomed the prosecution’s findings and again pressed Moon to take responsibility for the matter.
“(Moon) should apologize to the public for creating the chaos by using the transcript for his political ends,” Saenuri Party spokesman Rep. Yoo Il-ho said.
“The courts should pass solemn judgment on the indicted individuals according to the law. Now that the prosecution’s investigation has ended, the ruling and opposition parties should focus on the National Assembly’s function for the people’s livelihoods and the economy.”
(cheesuk@heraldcorp.com)
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