Nominee's camp cites personal data limits, says it 'does not know'
Legal community flags potential violations of passport and national health insurance laws
Kang Shin-cheol, the nominee for defense minister, has confirmed that his older sister, Kang Shin-young, has lost her Korean nationality — but said only that his response on the matter "is restricted" and that he "does not know."
According to a written response Kang submitted to the office of lawmaker Cheon Ha-ram on Monday, Kang said his answers were "restricted as personal information" when asked about the date his sister — born in 1967 — lost her Korean citizenship and the nationality she subsequently acquired.
Asked when the loss-of-nationality report was filed, how long the gap was between the actual loss and the filing, and whether Kang Shin-young had obtained or renewed a South Korean passport or received national health insurance benefits during that interval, the nominee said only that he "does not know."
Kang gave the same response — that the information "is restricted as personal information" — when asked about when his eldest daughter left for Germany and the details of her stay there, as well as who covers her tuition and living expenses.
Under the Nationality Act, a South Korean citizen who voluntarily acquires a foreign nationality automatically loses Korean citizenship at that moment, but a separate loss-of-nationality report must be filed to update the family registry.
Late filings are not uncommon, but legal experts say that continuing to use a South Korean passport or receiving national health insurance benefits after losing citizenship but before filing the report could constitute violations of the Passport Act and the National Health Insurance Act. The defense minister oversees state secrets and counterintelligence, observers have noted, making it essential that the nominee account for the nationality of his immediate family members.
The nominee's camp has consistently responded to questions about Kang Shin-young's acquired nationality and related matters by saying the written answers "stand as the full response." The pattern of deflection has prompted observers inside and outside the National Defense Committee to predict that Kang will face further questioning on the issue at the confirmation hearing itself.
The confirmation hearing for Kang is scheduled for Wednesday.
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