The death of a senior diplomat of the Republic of Korea (ROK) in China was not caused by food-originated diseases, even though he died after eating a tuna sandwich, Chinese Health Minister Chen Zhu said on Wednesday.

The death of Whang Joung-il was not caused by food related diseases, and "I am 100 percent sure" of that, Chen said at a press conference in response to a question raised by a Wall Street Journal reporter.

The Ministry of Health organized authoritative experts to conduct medical tests on Whang's case to find out the exact cause of his death and the result has been given to the ROK via diplomatic channels, Chen said, adding that the ministry is planning to work with the ROK in order to further determine the cause.

Chen said he read a report in ROK media that quoted a leading ROK institution as saying that Whang's death was caused by excessive work and cardiologic diseases.

Whang, 52, a major diplomat at the ROK embassy in Beijing, suffered severe stomach pains and vomiting after eating a sandwich bought nearby on July 28. He was brought to the Beijing Vista Clinic the following morning and died two hours later.

"Minister Whang was an old friend of China. We feel grief over his death, and I want to take the opportunity to express our condolences to Whang's family and the ROK People," Chen said.

He said Whang had made great contributions to the Sino-ROK relationship, and "any media reports that play up his death are a disrespect to him and not humanitarian."

(Xinhua News Agency September 5, 2007)