[Editorial] Bring to light Park’s and Woo’s roles in Choi Sun-sil’s interference in government

Posted on : 2016-11-09 18:49 KST Modified on : 2016-11-09 18:49 KST
President Park Geun-hye talks with Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin during a visit to the Busan Center for Creative Economy and Innovation
President Park Geun-hye talks with Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin during a visit to the Busan Center for Creative Economy and Innovation

It is becoming ever clearer that President Park Geun-hye played a leading role in Choi Sun-sil’s manipulation of the government. There is also increasing evidence that former Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs Woo Byung-woo was involved as well.

It now appears that Park will be unable to avoid accusations of having been guilty of bribery by proxy. Other companies will need to be investigated as well, but the evidence is clear just from what has come to light in the investigation into Lotte. Park held closed-door private meetings with the heads of large corporations not only on July 24 and 25 of last year but also on Feb. 18 of this year, after the establishment of the Mir and K-Sports Foundations. After raising the initial funds for establishing the foundations, Park appears to have been raising additional funds.

After meeting Lotte Group Vice Chairman Lee In-won on Feb. 18, Park apparently met separately with Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin in late February and early March. At the time, Lotte was being investigated by the prosecutors (Lee committed suicide on Aug. 26, one day before he was to be summoned by prosecutors). In mid-March, after Park’s meeting with Shin (who was the subject of this investigation), Park apparently was briefed on the status of the additional fundraising by former Blue House Senior Secretary for Policy Coordination Ahn Jong-beom and gave him instructions as well. In May, Lotte donated 7 billion won (US$6.2 million) to the K-Sports Foundation.

 Mar. 16. (Yonhap News)
Mar. 16. (Yonhap News)

If Lotte donated the money before the investigation on the understanding that the prosecutors would go easy on them, then this donation was a bribe. Since Ahn has told the prosecutors that the compulsory fundraising took place on Park’s orders, it is clear who the primary culprit is. There is also testimony from Senior Private Secretary to the President Jung Ho-sung that classified documents at the Blue House were leaked on Park’s instructions.

The allegations against Woo don’t end with personal corruption and dereliction of duty: they go much further than that. The incident at Lotte is one of the clues. On June 9 (not long after receiving 7 billion won from Lotte), the K-Sports Foundation returned the money to Lotte over the space of five days. June 10 was the day that the prosecutors carried out a major raid on the Lotte Group. The previous day, the foundation suddenly returned the money in several payments, suggesting that it had not been ready to do so and was in quite a hurry.

There is clear evidence that the K-Sports Foundation had learned about the raid from someone and was hurrying to return the money out of concern that it might cause a problem. If a tip about the raid (which is classified information about an investigation) was given to the foundation in advance, there are only a few places it could have come from. We have heard that Woo entered the Blue House under Choi’s protection. Since he was senior secretary for civil affairs, he must have known about Choi’s meddling in the government and the various privileges she enjoyed. Woo supervised the prosecutors and other government investigators, and if he leaked classified information about an investigation in connection with Choi’s protection and his connivance in her influence peddling, he ought to be prosecuted for more than dereliction of duty.

Both Park and Woo need to be thoroughly investigated.

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