검찰이 2007년 남북정상회담 회의록(대화록)이 국가기록원으로 이관되지 않은 채 청와대 문서관리시스템에서 삭제됐다고 잠정 결론을 내린 가운데 다음 주 초부터 경위 파악을 위한 소환 조사에 본격 착수한다.
3일 검찰과 정치권 등에 따르면 서울중앙지검 공안2부(김광수 부장검사)는 노무현 정부 시절의 청와대 문서관리시스템인 '이지원'에 회의록이 탑재됐다가 삭제된 것과 관련, 해당 업무를 담당했던 청와대 실무진들을 불러 조사할 방침이다.
검찰 관계자는 이날 "참여정부 인사들의 소환을 조율 중인데 내주 월요일부터는 조사가 시작될 것으로 보인다"고 말했다.
참여정부 당시 대통령기록물과 업무상 관련이 있는 청와대 내 부서는 총무팀 산하의 업무혁신비서관실과 기록관리비서관실 등이다. 제1부속실에서도 기록물 업무를 담당했다.
회담 직후인 2007년 12월까지 기록관리비서관을 지내고 초대 대통령기록관장을 맡아 '대통령기록물 이관' 준비를 주도한 임상경 전 비서관, 이창우 전 제1부속실 수석행정관, 이지원 시스템 개발을 주도한 민기영 전 업무혁신비서관 등이 소환 대상자로 거론된다.
또 '노 전 대통령이 이지원에서 대화록을 삭제하라는 취지의 지시를 했다'고 이 미 검찰 조사에서 진술한 바 있는 조명균 전 안보정책비서관, '봉하 이지원' 구축에 관여한 연설기획비서관 출신의 김경수 노무현재단 봉하사업부 본부장 등도 대상이다.
검찰은 주요 인사들을 상대로 회의록 삭제를 누가 왜 지시했는지, 국가기록원으로 보내지 않은 이유는 무엇인지 등 구체적인 경위와 과정 등을 집중 조사할 방침이 다.
청와대 비서실을 총괄하는 비서실장을 지낸 문재인 민주당 의원이나 노 전 대통령의 지시에 따라 회의록을 생성한 뒤 국정원에 보관하기까지 과정을 소상히 알고 있는 김만복 전 국정원장 등에 대한 조사도 불가피할 전망이다.
다만 검찰은 문 전 비서실장의 소환 여부와 관련, "아직 정해진 것은 없다"며 "필요한 인물들에 대한 소환 조사를 해봐야 판단할 수 있는 문제"라고 말했다.
검찰이 문 전 실장을 조사한다면 시기는 검찰의 사건 수사가 마무리 단계로 접어드는 이달 말께가 될 것으로 보인다.
김광수 서울중앙지검 공안2부장을 비롯한 수사팀은 휴일인 3일에도 모두 출근해 '봉하 이지원' 시스템에 대한 막바지 분석과 소환자 선별 작업 등을 진행했다.
이지원 등 증거 조사의 객관성을 확보하기 위해 국가기록원 직원들이 검찰 수사 팀에 '1대 1 대응' 형태로 짝을 이뤄 함께 자료를 검토하고 있다. 증거조사 과정은 폐쇄회로(CC) TV로 녹화되고 있다.
검찰은 '노무현 전 대통령 NLL 발언'을 둘러싼 여야 의원의 고소•고발 사건 수 사도 소환 조사와 자료 수집을 병행하며 속도를 내고 있다고 전했다.
<관련 영문 기사>
Key Roh aides to be summoned next week
By Lee Joo-hee
Prosecutors are expected to summon key aides and officials of the former Roh Moo-hyun administration from next week in an investigation into why the 2007 inter-Korean summit transcript was not transferred to the National Archives.
Rival parties, meanwhile, continued to hurl invective over the transcript controversy, signaling a tougher National Assembly session already mired in disputes over a backtracked pension pledge and reform of the National Intelligence Service.
Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ Office’s second division for public security has sent summons to about 30 officials who worked at Cheong Wa Dae at the time. Former presidential secretary for records Im Sang-kyeong and former secretary for security Cho Myung-kyun are among those to be questioned. Former chief of staff Rep. Moon Jae-in and former NIS chief Kim Man-bok may also face summons, according to reports.
The prosecution announced Wednesday that the summit transcript had been deleted from the e-Jiwon system and that while another version exists in the system at Roh’s retirement home in Bongha, South Gyeongsang Province, this version had also not been handed over to the National Archive as it should have been at the end of the administration. The e-Jiwon system was the archive system used at the presidential office during the Roh administration.
Upon confirming that the transcript does not exist at the National Archives, with no trace of the data having been deleted or transferred out of the agency, prosecutors concluded that the records had not been handed over to the agency from the beginning.
Based on Article 11 of the Act on the Management of Presidential Archives, presidential record repositories must transfer presidential records to the central records management institution before the presidential term ends. Article 30 states that anyone who destroys or removes records without permission will be punished by imprisonment of up to 10 years or by a fine not exceeding 30 million won. Those who conceal, divulge or alter records without permission are subject to up to 7 years in prison or a fine of up to 20 million one.
As the probe appeared to narrow down the people and circumstances behind the documents not having been transferred, Kyunghyang Shinmun daily newspaper reported that Roh allegedly ordered revision of the original summit transcript, saying that some of the wording had been misconstrued. Reports said the first draft was deleted upon orders from security secretary Cho, and that the revision was applied in the version that was left in Bongha that is identical to the one disclosed by the NIS this August.
The ruling Saenuri Party depicted the case as an “unprecedented incident that puts the nation into chaos,” and demanded relevant officials and Rep. Moon take responsibility.
“Having taken the transcript back home (Bongha) conforms to stealing an official document and a clear act of violation,” said Saenuri floor leader Rep. Choi Kyung-hwan.
“DP Rep. Moon is not saying a word and it is the ultimate show of irresponsibility after he had even vowed to stake his political life on it.”
Moon had jumped into the fray in June when the NIS disclosed its version of the summit transcript, stoking political wrangling over whether Roh had made remarks to nullify the Northern Limit Line, a sea border with the North in the West Sea, during the talks with then North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
Moon demanded they look into the transcript kept at the National Archives to get to the truth and vowed to stake his political life on Roh never having made such comments.
After the rival lawmakers failed to find the transcript at the National Archives, Moon had said in July that he would bear due responsibility if there had been any oversight on his part.
Moon, upon the prosecution’s interim probe results, said he would state his position later.
The main opposition Democratic Party questioned the timing of the prosecution’s interim probe results and accused the ruling camp of using the incident to distract from the pension controversy and the allegedly forced resignation of former prosecutor general Chae Dong-wook.
“Hastily announcing the investigation results, without summoning the Roh administration officials who had already promised to cooperate, is only leading to political wrangling through various speculation and interpretations,” said DP chairman Kim Han-gil.
Urging the prosecution to thoroughly investigate and clearly state only the confirmed facts, Kim also criticized the ruling camp for concluding that the transcript was lost, citing how some ruling party lawmakers used excerpts from the transcript during the presidential campaign last year.
“Consuming speculation is of no help to the national interest. (The prosecution) must also swiftly and strictly probe the suspected pre-leakage of the transcript by President Park Geun-hye’s election campaign team and whether they used it in their campaign.”
In the run up to the election, Saenuri Party lawmakers alleged that Roh conceded the NLL to the North in their campaign against Park’s rival, Moon.
(
jhl@heraldcorp.com)
