Koreans turn out in force for Roh

May 30, 2009 - 0:0

South Korean President Lee Myung Bak and 3,000 other guests have been attending his predecessor Roh Moo-hyun's funeral in the capital Seoul.

The ceremony began with the South Korean national anthem, after a hearse brought former President Roh from his hometown of Bongha to the capital.
Mr Roh jumped off a cliff last Saturday amid allegations, which he denied, of bribery. His death shocked South Korea.
Some say Mr Roh was investigated for political reasons.
Riot police were on standby in case there were disturbances at the funeral.
Millions of South Koreans have already paid condolences at mourning altars across the country.
A human rights lawyer by profession who came from a humble family, Mr Roh left office last year after a five-year term as president. He left a note suggesting his death was a suicide.
He was a firm believer in reconciliation with North Korea, says the BBC's Kevin Kim in Seoul.
Many of the policies were overturned by his conservative successor President Lee Myung-bak, in terms of dealings with North Korea and industrial relations.
Mr Roh took office in 2003 vowing to fight corruption, but analysts say his term was a rollercoaster ride, with his Uri party hit by scandal and infighting.
He prided himself on being a ""clean"" politician in a country with a long history of political graft, BBC correspondent says.
He was suspended early in 2004, after parliament voted to impeach him over a breach of election rules, but the Constitutional Court later overturned the move and he was reinstated.
Last month, Mr Roh was questioned over allegations that his family had taken more than $6m in bribes from a wealthy shoe manufacturer, Park Yeon-cha, who was indicted in December on separate bribery and tax evasion charges.
The former president later apologised for the scandal.