Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, was sentenced to one year in prison and two years of probation for lying. The court believed that Kim Moon-ki’s statement that the golf photo with former Seongnam Urban Development Corporation director was doctored was a denial of the fact that he “played golf” with Kim Moon-ki, and regarding the statement that “there was a threat from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport” regarding the change of use of the Baekhyeon-dong site, ” “There was a request from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, but it did not create a strong burden to the point of using the expression ‘threatened’,” he said, ruling it as false.
Although the situation is raising questions due to the abundance of analogical interpretations prohibited by Supreme Court precedent, the legal debate over existing rulings is not the topic of this article. Now, there is a need to look at the issue from the perspective of the issue of ‘fairness’ that the Yoon Seok-yeol government is promoting as its ‘banner’. It’s a question of the president’s lies. Since the court freely uses analogical interpretation, I will look at a few cases where analogical interpretation is possible.
When President Trump was elected on the 6th, the President’s Office promoted on the 10th that President Yoon Seok-yeol had picked up a golf club for the first time in eight years. However, when it was revealed that he had been secretly enjoying golf even before President Trump was elected, the president’s advisers changed their story and said that he played golf in anticipation of President Trump’s election. There were some comments that it was embarrassing, but the person who came up with the excuse of ‘predicting Trump’s election and playing golf in advance’ must have slapped his knee, asking how he could deny President Yoon’s ‘inner intention’.
But in fact, there is a very high possibility that this statement is false. For example, it was revealed that President Yoon played golf last August, and at that time, Trump’s son and close associate Trump Jr., who would be the number one contributor to Trump’s election, happened to be in Korea. According to reports, one of the dates President Yoon played golf at Hansung University CC in Seongnam was Saturday, August 24th. It is said that on this day, Trump Jr. was in Korea, and at COEX, only about 12km away from President Yoon. If President Yoon had predicted Trump’s election, he should have gone to see Trump Jr. right away instead of picking up a golf club.
Now, I picked up a golf club for the first time in 8 years, but President Trump had picked up a golf club even before he was elected. Then, he said that he had been practicing golf in advance in anticipation of Trump’s election, but when Trump’s closest relative and close associate came to Korea, he ignored him. I don’t know how many layers of dilemma there are. If you predicted Trump’s election, it would already be a lie to say that you picked up a golf club for the first time in eight years. If you try to replace this lie with the words ‘I predicted Trump’s election,’ you become a ‘fool’ who was holding a golf club instead of the ‘golden connection’ in front of you. Now, are you a liar or a fool?
Then the doubts become bigger. Why on earth do you play golf? Why did you hide the fact that you played golf? One more thing, who on earth did you play golf with? At the scene where President Yoon was playing golf, the bodyguards who caught the reporter who was covering the story asked, “Are you here to cover your companion?” I can’t help but wonder who the ‘companion’ was and why they had to meet and play golf in such extreme secrecy.
In any other administration, a single lie could have been enough to get people in trouble. However, under the Yoon Seok-yeol government, small lies continue. This is not the first time there has been controversy over the president’s lies. At the press conference marking the second anniversary of his inauguration, when asked if he was enraged ‘on the day he was informed’ of the death of Chae Sang-byeong in the line of duty, he suddenly avoided answering by listing at length the fact that he had ‘rebuked’ the Minister of National Defense ‘on the day of his death’. The prosecution’s investigation revealed that the mother-in-law, who said, “I have never harmed anyone by even a single 10 won,” went to prison for fraud, and that First Lady Kim Kun-hee, who said she suffered “tens of millions of won in losses,” actually made billions in profits from her stock investments. While explaining the ‘Palm King’ character, President Yoon’s side said, “I tried to erase it with detergent,” but First Lady Kim Kun-hee said, “I couldn’t refuse, so I used it (via phone with Seoul Voice reporter Lee Myung-soo).” People are becoming more and more dull. Was this what they were aiming for in the first place?
What about the social interactions between political broker Myung Tae-gyun, President Yoon Seok-yeol, and First Lady Kim Kun-hee? Regarding the relationship with Myung Tae-gyun, the President’s Office said on October 8, “Once at the Acro Vista home in Seocho-dong in early July 2021, after the President started politics but before joining the People Power Party,” and once again at his home “some time later.” Explaining that they only met twice, he said, “I don’t remember ever exchanging text messages or talking on the phone with Myung after (the presidential primary).” It’s all a lie. It was revealed that the president met Myung Tae-gyun four times, and even a phone call between Myung Tae-gyun and President Yoon was made public after the presidential primary and the day before the presidential inauguration when he was president-elect.
There are conflicting claims about when he first met Myung Tae-gyun. The President said early July 2021, but Myung Tae-gyun set the date as June 18, 2021 in a media interview. Myung Tae-gyun claims that he spoke on the phone with the president and his wife several times every day for the next six months. The day President Yoon was elected as a presidential candidate was November 5, 2021. It is said that for the next two months, the couple spoke on “speaker phone” “several times a day,” even together. President Yoon is not actively denying this ‘act of association’. The first explanation is clearly a lie.
ⓒScreen capture of the President’s Office website
He has risen to the rank of ‘prophet’, but is it okay for the president to lie? No. So the president corrects the facts to say that his staff lied.
“After I won the presidential election, I received a call from (Myung Tae-gyun), but I don’t know what it came from. I deleted my phone number and my name still remains on Telegram, so I’m not sure if it came from a Telegram phone or a phone call, but anyway, I received it. So, when I received a congratulatory phone call, I also told the secretary that I clearly remember Tae-gyun Myung saying that he had done a good job and that he had helped in various ways at the beginning of the election. “It is difficult for a spokesperson or other person to talk about this or that, so I said to the effect that there was virtually no contact after the primary election.” (November 7 press conference)
The simple statement, ‘The secretary lied,’ is really a long-winded statement. The scary thing about lying is that it makes it difficult to trust the person who lied anymore. As we become accustomed to the ‘lying controversy’ surrounding the President, we begin to feel suspicious of this ‘honest’ explanation. ‘I told the truth, but the secretary’s office was wrong’ is just a one-sided claim by the president. They almost made the president a ‘liar’, but I haven’t heard of him being reprimanded. What if the first explanation given by the President’s Office was a literal translation of ‘the President’s words’? The president’s explanation to the public could be a lie. So, I would like to sincerely ask the Presidential staff who said they ‘lied’. Did the secretary’s office turn the president into a liar as the president said? If I’m not careful, the president could be accused of being a teacher of perjury, so I really want to hear a careful answer.
If you look at the history of Myung Tae-gyun, whom President Yoon ‘friended’, he is a person who has built up a mountain of lies. In the past, public opinion polls were often manipulated and fines of tens of millions of won were imposed. Even after being caught by the National Election Commission several times, the name of the public opinion poll company was changed and the same manipulation method was used for several years. In September 2021, during the last presidential election, a false manipulation was ordered, saying, “Raise the coefficient of young people’s responses so that Yoon Seok-yeol gets 2-3% more votes than Hong Jun-pyo.” The fact that the president and his wife hung out together with someone who ignored lies is not such a disgrace in itself.
Rather than being angry that the president is lying, I feel despair that the president is becoming an unreliable person. If the ruling against Representative Lee Jae-myung is confirmed, the opposition leader’s lies will stop at preventing him from running for president, but the president’s lies will erode trust in government affairs and endanger the country.
▲President Yoon Seok-yeol ⓒYonhap News
[박세열 기자(ilys123@pressian.com)]
* Given the complex interplay between a president’s personal life and public office, what specific ethical boundaries should be established regarding their personal associations?
## Open-Ended Questions for Discussion:
This article raises several concerning points about President Yoon’s interactions with Myung Tae-gyun and the honesty of the President’s Office. Here are some open-ended questions to encourage discussion and different viewpoints:
**Section 1: The ‘Palm King’ and Conflicting Explanations**
* Do you think the President’s explanation regarding the ‘Palm King’ incident was satisfactory? Why or why not?
* How important is transparency and honesty from political leaders? What are the consequences when trust is broken?
**Section 2: President Yoon’s Relationship with Myung Tae-gyun**
* What are the ethical implications of a president associating with someone like Myung Tae-gyun, who has a history of manipulating public opinion polls?
* Should the president’s personal relationships be subject to public scrutiny, even if they are not directly related to their official duties?
**Section 3: The President’s Office and Responsibility**
* Who should be held accountable for the conflicting information released by the President’s Office?
* Do you think the President’s response to the conflicting statements – blaming his staff – is adequate?
**Section 4: Impact on Public Trust and Governance**
* How does this situation impact public trust in the government and the presidency?
* What are the potential long-term consequences of these events for Korean politics and society?
**Section 5: Broader Ethical Considerations**
* What ethical responsibilities do journalists have when reporting on potentially controversial or sensitive information?
* How can citizens engage in informed and responsible dialog about political issues, especially when dealing with complex and emotionally charged topics?
These open-ended questions aim to promote a nuanced discussion by encouraging participants to consider multiple perspectives, analyze the information presented, and express their own informed opinions.
