It is very painful when people have to take their lives. This is one phenomenon we are seeing so much of in Europe, America and also Asia. We had always rationalised it as being part of the problem of weak family and social structures in Europe and America (family bond has been weakened by individualism) but the Asias aspect puts holes on this argument.

I agree with you, may we never succumb to our demons.

How stressful Koreans are?

I'm a business professor who has lived in South Korea for over ten years. As such, I would like to make two cursory observations concerning the recent suicide of Roh Moo-Hyun.

The first observation is that I consider Roh to be a tragic figure similar to the larger than life characters of a Shakespearean play or Greek drama. I think that if you closely examine his life you will see, especially in the latter years, he was sort of swept up by events and influenced by people in a way that ultimately he had no control over. I think the fact that he mentioned FATE "eun myoung" in his suicide note is especially relevant.

Roh Moo-Hyun was sort of a reluctant leader from the onset. I think he was just as surprised as anyone else that he won the presidential election. He was elected because he was an outsider and people hoped he would bring about Obamaesque change. But that doomed him from the start. I think as far as politics is concerned in South Korea, you have to be an insider or else the rival politicians and the media are going to eat you alive.

The other observation I would like to make is that I think Korea and Asian countries IN GENERAL have a different perception of suicide than European and North American countries. In my country of birth, America, suicide is usually considered cowardly.

But I have been surprised by the recent events insofar as just two weeks ago many of students if asked would have expressed disgust towards Roh Moo-Hyun. Since committing suicide, however, these same students are in deep mourning and are expressing anger towards the Lee Myoung Bak administration for investigating Roh Moo-Hyun.

Ultimately, in the end, I feel that Roh Moo-Hyun was a sort of scapegoat for the nation. A sacrificial lamb that, instead of being nailed to a cross, chose to hurl himself off the top of a mountain.

RIP AND GOD BLESS.

With the death of President Roh, a generation that had so much to offer and lead progress of the Korea will suffer a trenmendous damage. 386 Generation that had elected him to change the OLD WAYS and bring in the NEW WAYS will be lost without any sense of political direction. We are not mouring for the death of one man. It is a day the hope of political progress against reactionaries had died along with it. Status quo will flourish or even expand under these circumstances. Harship for those underqualified to join the club will only get worsen now. Farewell to hope.

Today(Friday, May 29 ,2009).

We will remember former South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun forever.

However admireable a person is for their personal success, this person at the end killed himself. Was it out of despair? Was it out duty? No. It was neither and possibly motivated by simple calculus. As a public office holder, he admitted his family received $6million from someone already under investigation. Call it a loan. Call it an investment but when a public office holder recieves funds without an obligation to repay or produce any return on such investment, it warrants an investigation. To commit suicide over this is simple. Within Korean culture, it's customary to stop investigations once someone is dead. At end of day, I believe he calculated that he is better of dead than alive to his family and friends. Hence he did the right thing. At least he salvages some sympathy and his family gets off clean. I wonder if they will every pay back $6million. Doubt it.

I am Korean American and my wife is from Korea. I have a limited understanding of the loss that my wife is feeling for the man she calls "Woori (our) President". While that term doesn't sound quite right in English, it has a profound implication in Korea. By calling him ours, she implies that she can identify him and that he was one of us.

Korean society is rigid and very authoritarian but will be forced to change as today's younger generations assume more role in the society.

One thing that strikes me odd though is how fast the mass media in Korea have concluded that this was indeed a suicide. Many facts are coming to light that puts a big question mark into the nature of the killing. The lone witness (secret service agent) has changed his story saying he did not actually witness the fall when initially he said that he was with the president at the time. The suicide note was not hand written but typed on his computer. The body is being rushed to be cremated rather than to be examined by an expert. Perhaps I am paranoid but I just find it odd that a man of that much integrity who has been through so much will choose an easy way out....

I am an expat living in Seoul and happened to be married to a Korean. I have with great admiration and affinity to President Roh. I feel sad myself. Korea with a very hardened society driven to success, he tried to put humanistic touch to the people. He thought beyond the boundaries and seek to enhance a better quality of life for the people. On the international front, he seeked friendship to the North Korean because in his heart that only through friendship there could be peace. Unfortunately, he succumbed to the politics of the oppositions and its an incredible loss that he has chose to end like this.

My condolence to his family and Koreans. President Roh was a true inspiration despite this. I hope his action dont send the wrong message to young people in Korea and also around the world.

Trully, it is sad and tragic.

Now with him being a part of history, I sincerely hope that Koreans will let him leave placidly and peacefully, not making any further political conflicts over his death.

Political and sentimental disintegration in this tough time surrounded by suffocating internal and external problems may bring about even more tragic accidents.

I agree that we should never succumb to our demons... However, what Roh did was unacceptable. As an American married to a Korean, living in Korea, I am disappointed in this situation. President Roh was a great president, and one of the best Korea has seen in a great many years. The way he left this world sets Korea back many years. It was a selfish act in escaping his allegations. Because of this, Koreans are now even more affirmed in the belief that you NEED to succeed and make a lot of money to be happy. If not, then life isn't worth living. This is why Korea has one of the highest suicide rates, particularly in teens (who couldn't impress parents with straight A's, or couldn't be the perfect offspring) and 45 and younger men (who's business or workforce aspirations have failed). My wife has lost an uncle for one of these reasons, and knows of four others the same way.

Bottom line is that Koreans need to quit thinking that suicide is the only way to solve one's problems. It is selfish, and sets the society back.

The death of President Roh has been very shocking indeed. As an African I thought about the Presidents from the African Union. Most of them have lost every credibility and moral values. From rigging elections to amassing wealth. Instead of developing their countries they entrench themselves in power to shamelessly loot and plunder the State coffers as well as oppressing their people. At least president Roh had moral values and prefered death to enjoying life with stolen money. Oh poor Roh!

i am so sad.. i miss you. Roh.

what a shame. it is very sad that a man who identified with the small man can go out this way.

I am a Canadian-Korean. I left Korea 8 years ago at the age of fourty. As long as I know, the ex-president Roh was the cleanest president ever. His integrity, honesty and self-esteem drove him to death, awaring later that his family received some money from a his long time friend and sponser. But the amount of the money was the smaller than any other ones which the others ex-presidents received in the past. Mr. Roh was an humanitarian and phillantrophist.
Current president, Mr. Lee can not be, should not be free from the responsibility of Mr. Roh's death. In the process of investigation, without proofs, too details have been exposed thru media to damage Mr. Roh's integrity and to humiliate him.
After his death, Korean people starts to feel how good president they had.
Good-bye Mr. Roh!
Peace be with you forever!

What President Roh did was a cowardly act. As a former PRESIDENT of a country, you have a responsibility not only to yourself and your family, but to your country as well. By committing despicable act, he has put not only himself, but the whole country in a negative spot light. Think about it. I have personally never heard of ANY leader of ANY country committing suicides. Heck, even Nixon accepted his mistakes and lived quietly rest of his life.
However... I have this one inkling feeling... Is it just coincidence that N. Korea decides to start acting like they want to start WWIII when S. Korea is in just turmoil over President Roh's death? I wonder...

What President Roh did was a cowardly act. As a former PRESIDENT of a country, you have a responsibility not only to yourself and your family, but to your country as well. By committing this despicable act, he has put not only himself, but the whole country in a negative spot light. Think about it. I have personally never heard of ANY leader of ANY country committing suicides. Heck, even Nixon accepted his mistakes and lived quietly rest of his life.
However... I have this one inkling feeling... Is it just coincidence that N. Korea decides to start acting like they want to start WWIII when S. Korea is in this turmoil over President Roh's death? I wonder...

I am a Korean living in the US. I was just shocked when I first heard the news on Friday (US time) and was crying on and off for the next couple of days. I was very proud of how Korea had come a long way to achieve a true democracy while the late president was in office and am very disappointed and angry at what the current government has done to democracy, our freedom of speech, etc in the last year or so. Four days after the death of the former president, the "apparent" suicide "confirmed" by the police looks to be not so reliable an information. There is no witness or evidence of the suicide whatsoever. And more importantly, the bodyguard, who was thought to be with the president when he fell off the cliff, changed his claims and admitted to lying about his whereabouts when the president jumped off the cliff. There are too many mysteries to call it a suicide. Is it going to remain a mysterious death? I hope not.

i sit in an office bldg blocks from where the funeral procession will be and am amazed at the grandeur of the planned ceremonies and outpouring of public sympathy as he goes to his final resting place. if i were in the states, one would be asking 'who's paying for all of this?' but i guess here, it is inconsequential. hopefully, suicide in this country does not become a trend to solve problems and hopefully the man is at peace and his family will find comfort as the nation mourns with them.

It is amazing that you all support and feel sorry for Roh now that he is dead. Last week he was criticized by everyone, had no friends and you were all talking disrespectfully about him and his family. Korean "jeong", or deep attachment is a pathetic joke. People are sorry because the image of Korea abroad is tarnished...even worse than it already was, and because Koreans feel guilty. Saying now "he was one of us" is disgusting, last week he was not one of you, he was disgraced and alone.

If anyone is to blame, then blame his wife, she is the souce of this entire sad affair and should be investigated. You have no sense of democracy at all.

Last week Roh was a sad lonely figure. He needed your praise, howevber false and insincere, then, not now. It is too late to pretend you care!! A life has ended. May he rest in peace.

Last week Roh Mu Hyun had no friends or supporters.....this week so many.....only it is too late now! Wipe away your fake tears, he needed your support when he was alive. Too much, too late!

i was really shocked...living in america and opposite time zone....it happened when i was at church. His run in the office was clean and very calm. People should remember him

We Korean have very complicate feelings about him. But overall, it is we are really really sorry.

He lived for righteousness and that was why we elected him for the President. But we poeple actually dumped him for our greed and left him alone in the unfair treatment by the current government. Now his death has remined us of what we have to live for. That is why we are mourn with a lot of guilty feelings.

I am Korean. I think myself disgusting. And feel guilty for his death. But, that is not because I hated him or I was insincere. But, because of the ignorance. I did not know what to do.

Anyway, his family got some money from businessman. Even though it was trivial considering the sum even usual Korean businessman get as a bribe. He was tainted. His virtue came from his "Clean" image. He was loved by his "Rightness". His supporters lost ground. I loved him still. But could not express it.,

I was afraid to be attacked. If I had known more, had studied more, or listened to him more, I might have protected him. I might have known what I could do. But, at that time, I had no choice but stand still and watch.

Since I was so naive, I could give his opponents the power to disgrace Roh. His death show us "Belive, Decide, and Act"
He belived his own ability to protect others. He knew that he could protect his family and his friends. He knew that his death will stop any more agony to his friends. He decided and did what he decided.

Korean know that he did not kill himself in shame. He killed himself to protect the people he loved.

I can't express any better because of my poor English. But hope "Sincerity can be communicated not by words but by hearts"

We are in great sorrow that we never imageined.
The first reason is we lost president who was like father or brother.
He was the first president and may be the last president who was same as ordinary people.
The second reason is he was a symbol of korean democrasy. Now we lost not only loving presidunt but also democracy.
Current government confiscats all yellow colored thing from funneral participating people because it, the yellow, stands for president Roh Moohyun. Why? This government thinks all people who have yellow colored thing are President Roh Moohyun's follower and these people are potencinal demonstrator against this government,
Moreover, this government prohibited using bamboo pole which is used as flag pole (in korean traditional buddisst funeral, flags attached on bamboo pole follow coffin to the cremation place and then cremated together with the body).
Why? Government said the bamboo pole can be used as bamboo spears. So instead of bamboo flag pole PVC pole is being used.
This is current situation of korea. All korean who love President Roh are potential demonstrator and targets to watch.

"Heck, Joseph", For starters, Nixon was American NOT Korean. "Cowardly" – well, that's your opinion and certainly not the opinion of ALL. There are probably people out there who understand that his leap was not NECESSARILY a "despicable" act nor a "cowardly" one. I just wish he hadn't come to the decision he did.

I am korean as well.
I can't express how deeply I feel sorrow about my President's death, Roh.
I'm so sorry for not protecting him when he was struggleing with many difficullties.
I am proud of him and won't forget him forever.

I will remember HIM as the GREATEST PRESIDENT
EVER FOR S. KOREA!!
SHAME ON YOU, President Lee!!

Is there anyone who would believe this was a suicide? There is no evidence to substaniate it and the will was found on his computer by the police. Doesn't a will have to be hand-written and perhaps in front of witnesses...
It is not about whether he was good or bad or left or right. He was one of a very few presidents who was not a tyrannt., who did not kidnapp people in the middle of the night and kill them. He was trying for a democratic nation and he is the one who ends up dead while the tyrannts who killed numerous people attend his funeral. This should not be. It should be a place where good people do not get murdered because they have the balls to speak their mind. There are rumours all over the blogs and also the media is reporting the evidence and testimony of the body guard does not substantiate anything yet the police is CERTAIN it is a suicide. they are so certain that they announced suicide just after taking a brief testimony from one bodyguard which he later changed twice. But I guess they were very certain.

My sincere condolences to the family of the late Mr Roh!

I had many Korean friends who are mourning for his demise now, my heart goes out to all of you! I'm so sorry for the loss...but I also hope that people do not succumb to a moment of grief & followed the 'wrong step'!

Please pass on the legacy & goodness of Mr Roh that so touched & close to the people's heart to the next generation...the future of the South Korea!

The nation of Korea is indeed going through a phase of mourning in the aftermath of President Roh's tragic death. For some, the overwhelming feelings of lost and grief is intensified by the strong affinity for an outsider who rose to the presidency, or as we say in Korea – 'the Great Power’ by holding firm to his beliefs and ideals. As he has professed in interviews, President Roh took liking to people calling him ‘Stupid Roh Moo Hyun’. As it applied to Roh, his nickname was not a challenge to his intelligence, but rather a highest compliment bestowed on a politician, as it symbolizes the unwillingness to compromise on conveniences and indulgences offered by settling on conformities and realities.
The path that President Roh chose for himself is a testament to his character and courage of a man to take on a fight for the just cause. President Roh gave up a career as a judge, a prestigious and highly regarded career for only a select few, to become a civil rights lawyer. He pointed out the flaws of authority with ferocity and fearlessness when the remnants of militaristic authoritarianism were pervasive in the government and society. In a country rift by regionalism, he ran for a post that he knew he would not win and he did it three times over because he never gave up on his hope and his ideals for the nation.
In due time, I think President Roh will find his rightful place in the Korean history as the debris of our past and the lessons learned will transform into a stronger base for more mature and democratic society.
My president, stupid Roh Moo Hyun, you will be missed. R.I.P.

I'm Korean. I live in Jeonju, South Korea.
I have never been to abroad, and I don't know how do the foreigner think about this. I think that this is not a case of suicide, but political lose.

There are two magor political parties in Korea, The Grand Korea and The Democrats. Basically they have diffrent political view pont. The former aims on the upper class, and the latter concerns the middle class. For over the 10 years, 2 presidents were from The Democrats, Kim Dae jung, and Roh Mu-Hyun. After Lee Myong Bak elected a president, Mr. president started clearing and changing. He started to make the bureaucrat resigened, because they're close to Mr. Roh.
After the arounds were cleared, he started to attack Mr. Roh.

Actually, The prosecutors and President Lee myong bak casted suspicion on the bribery scandal. However nothing was found
clearly. Everything was just mere guesswork.

It's true that the 6million dollars were given to Mr. Roh, but no one knows wheter it was a bribe or just a investment.
Mr. Roh said that after his retirement, he could realize the money.
(because the money was given to his family)
However Prosecutors insisted that Mr. Roh already knew the money was a bribe, and released the suspicion to the media without evidence.

During the investigation, the media and his political rivals attacked him everyday with the rumer without any evidence. it seemed like a political witch hunt. That's why most of korean get angry with the government. Even i think this was a political revenge.

I am Korean. I now feel like my father died though I was not one of Roh's supporter "Nosamo". And I also believe the truth will be turn out as clear as day and my only true president of S.Korea will be remembered forever. He was a real hero in history of democracy and human-right.
Rest in peace, Roh.
I love you.

The procecutor's office released investigation reports with every single petty things(especially private things too) about his bribe probe before finishing the investigation. It means there's no crime which is confirmed officially yet.

However, media and government made him criminal, also led the public to blame him. Mr Rho wrote on his website that please leave me,I'm not enough to be taken supported by Korean, I feel ashamed my self.

In Korea, so many people are in the deepest sorrow.
The reason is they feel like lose theire neighbor or relative.
And, they feel it's a sort of torture or scrifice by political power.

I love you, I miss you!

He did not take money from anybody. Yes It is fact his family member received money from his supporter, but he did not take penny out from anybody knowingly. Please Do not disgrace him. if you don't know him. He had been fighted and devoted his life for citizens of Korea. President Roh you did not died in vein. You have made us realized how we were played by gov't and media.

Rest in peace

Not only as a part of Korean but also as a one ordinary human being, I am terribly sad and can't stop shedding tears.

He spent his whle life embracing the poor and pursuing justice and human-right.
I don't know how to say cuz I am not familiar with political issues naturally(shame on me), but just me as an ordinary korean,
I can say that he was a truly respectful person for sure.

Rest in Peac,

President Roh will remain the only president of Korea in Koreans' heart. We believe he is innocent. We'll never forget you.

All the millions of people that are now mourning and missing Mr.Roh – did they stay as "silent majority" until his death? Or is it that his death triggered nationwide emotionalism and made his foes friendly? I can't tell. I only wish, if we learned anything true from his death at all, he may forgive our belated awakening.

You have to know President Roh is not guilty. Prosecutor are JUST suspecting of bribe. They have not suggest any evidence about that until now.
We believe he had to determine a suicide because of his people including his family, not because of his own shame.
He know that his people will be in continuous pain because the current government just don't like him and deprive the prestige from him by fair means or foul.

He will be live in people's heart.
He is my President forever.

i don't know if he was a good president but he sure was a good person. what i don't get is that how the media can be so influential to the public. after seeing the media and internet opinion direction for this week, i cannot but feel dissapointed than ever at the general standard of objectivity of the media as well as the public.
koreans tend to be very emotional, not accepting the FACTs in front of them, and act according to their emotions. that is why the do not see the fact that this man killed himself because he was alledged to accept bribes. i myself is a korean but i just want to point out that there are people who do not want to join this wave of sympathy towards him.

Now, I feel Mr Roh as a man with real conscience and bravery.
We will not forget him

As a result, Roh's suicide has provided a seed of conflict and wrath, instead of national unity. In this regard, Roh was an irresponsible politician. He's a Korean Chavez. I have respect for his desire for the poor but don't like his biased perpective toward the rich. A good leader should have a balanced philosophy of governing. Korea is not the state for a certain group or class. He was an one-eyed leader.

South Korea will be 'divided' ideologically, which must be a political burden to President Lee Myung-bak. Without knowing anything from Roh's death, Lee will also face a serious chanllenge from his people, not from a nuclear North Korea.

The tragedy began when Korean people elected a 14 time convict as Mr. Roh's successor. We're too greed and blind to sustain man like him. RIP Mr. Roh, we're lucky to have you as our president.

Isn't Honor an unusual thing? It is so important to a man in Asia, that he will take his own life to accept responsibility for the shame.

In the USA, people just lie over and over again until they convince themselves it is the truth. They even use the media to convince the public it is true and this in the long run, makes the corrupt feel less guilty.

You don't see Cheney or Bush jumping off cliffs. They are part of a larger political machine, that uses mob mentallity to justify no one's responsibility, yet thousands lie dead in their wake......

For the foreiner who may not know late President Roh,
He was only one Great Tribunus Plebis.
So we mourn him.

He never accepted any money by illegal way.

But consecutors supported by government and big press

has investigated Roh's friends, supporters, relatives, and his wife
one by one.

To your understanding why he commit suicide,
let me telll you what Roh told us during an interview
when he was alive.

inverviewer : "What a leader has to do?"
Roh : "First of all, A Leader should not let his constituents in a hell.
Leader is always responsible of his family, and constituents"

Even He was innocent guy didn't get any bribe, never break the law
he didn't want his family and his relatives to be sentenced
by prosecutors and Government which actullay aiming Roh.

I can say "He was real leader"

I am a Korean living in Korea now. I spent 13 years in USA. There is a
big cultural difference toward suicide between Christian culture and the Asian culture. It is simply because Christ considered suicide as one of the most sinful acts by itself beside being a cowardly act.
Christians think that every sin may be pardoned by
accepting Christ in his heart. An asian who has no belief in Christ does
not think that way. We asians think that some sins can only be
pardoned by commiting suicide.

The ex-president Rho confessed that he does not believe in
Christ, although he was once baptized(?) as a catholic. Unfortunately, it
appears that he really did not know what had been going on in his own
family almost at the end of his tenure because he had no time to
care for his own family.

It is quite sad because all he was able to do nearing prosecutors'
prosecution in order to take care of his own family was committing suicide.
It is quite respectable that he did not make any complaint on anybody.
The suicide note simply had "Life and death is just one thing, Do not grieve."
among other brief messages.

He was not an ordinary Joe (the plumber) next door.
About a couple of months ago, Captain Richard Philips was hailed as a
hero who demonstrated extraordinary sense of responsibility for his crew's safety.

I think that Ex-president Rho showed a similar feat
as a head of his family at the least.
Thanks to his act, he and his family got pardoned by most
of the Korean people.

FYI, Korea is probably the most christianized (protestant) society in Asia beside
Catholic Philiphines. Yet, the suicide rate is probably the highest
among all countries in the world. Especially, we have a high suicidal rate
among protestant christians. I would not tell you the reason. You
may guess, however.

Ex-president Rho's suicide is not just the result of personal depression.
It was the most rational conduct that earned my full respect.
Also, he was the only clean president in our short history of democracy.

Hugh

It is shameful for me to realize his greatness after his death.

I don't know how great his dream was and how lonely his agony was.

I'm so sorry to be with his dream and agony together.

Now I decide to live a life to love and serve other, to protect and mature democracy of Korea, and to teach my student and the young.

How irresposible for a former president to commit a suicide and the people make this cowardly, selfish person a hero????
He should not be a role model for any on in this world.
Suicid is not an answer!!!!

President Roh made the wrong choice and it sends the wrong message to all Koreans – young and old – and the rest of the world. Our problems – personal and national – are a matter of perception; no life is worth taking because of those problems.