South Korea leader acknowledges ties to woman in scandal
South Korean President Park Geun-hye delivers a speech at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, on Oct. 24. Park proposed revising the country’s Constitution to change the current single five-year presidential system. Critics quickly criticized Park’s overture, saying it appears aimed at diverting public attention away from a snowballing corruption scandal involving a purported longtime confidant of hers. AP
SEOUL, South Korea—South Korea’s president has offered a public apology after acknowledging her close ties to a mysterious woman at the center of a corruption scandal.
President Park Geun-hye’s apology Tuesday came a day after a South Korean TV network reported that the woman, who has no government job, was informally involved in editing some of Park’s key speeches.
The JTBC network’s report followed other media speculation that the woman, Choi Soon-sil, was close to Park and might have meddled in state affairs.
Local media also said Choi might have used her connections to Park to push companies to make contributions to establishing non-profit foundations.
Park says Choi helped her on speeches during her 2012 presidential campaigning and after her 2013 inauguration.
Park apologized but didn’t mention Choi’s corruption allegations.
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