Friday, February 24, 2023

Three obvious Yoon Seok-yeol lies that undermine his administration

Under South Korean law, if a candidate lies during a campaign to gain office, he is subject to removal. In the case of Yoon Seok-yeol, as president, this would require impeachment and trial.

(Source- repoact.com 01.24.22) Outtake from prosecution records records shows that prosecutor Yang Jae-tek, Kim Gon-hee (then named Kim Myung-shin, now the First Lady) and Choi Eun-soon (Kim Gon-hee's mother) were all charged with two counts of bribery related charges which were nolle prossed by prosecution offices.


Lie Number one- That Yoon's wife Kim Gon-hee, was not directly involved in the Deustche Motors stock manipulation scheme. Account records and transcripts of recorded phone calls show that she was. Kim Gon-hee's mother was also involved. The statute of limitations will run out on this potential criminal case against Kim Gon-hee in the near future. Appointment of a special prosecutor by the National Assembly will be required because the charge against Kim had already been disposed by a nolle prosse. It is highly unlikely that the Prosecutor General or the Minister of Justice would pursue this matter in good faith.

Lie Number two- That Yoon's mother in law, Choi Eun-soon, did not make "one dime" from fraudulent business schemes. An administrative fine was upheld against her in court just recently, January 19, 2019, finding against her in her lawsuit to have the fine set aside:

According to the ruling, the court confirmed that Mr. (sic) Choi was the actual owner of the land in Dochon-dong and judged that the penalty imposed by Seongnam City was lawful. It was said that “the fact that the plaintiff (Choi Eun-soon) violated the real estate law and entrusted the real estate in Dochon-dong with title can be acknowledged.” It also said, "As a result of the disposition in this case, Choi Eun-soon must pay a considerable amount of penalty, but even taking into account all the circumstances that Mr. (sic) Choi claims, the public interest to be achieved by the disposition in this case far outweighs the disadvantages that Mr.(sic) Choi will suffer." He also said, “The real estate real-name law is to contribute to the sound development of the national economy by preventing anti-social behavior such as real estate speculation and tax evasion and promoting the normalization of real estate transactions.”*


'Choi Eun-soon's Dochon-dong suspicion is true'... Yoon Seok-yeol's lie proved by court ruling (youtube translation)
Hyunseok KangEnter 2023. 2. 22. 10:00Edit 2023. 2. 23. 13:37
https://v.daum.net/v/GPwR6vPld1 and:
Newstapa youtube 2.22.23 최은순 도촌동 의혹은 사실’... 윤석열 거짓말 입증 법원 판결 나왔다 - 뉴스타파

(Source- 열린공감TV youtube, composite photo from Yeollin Gonggam TV) Pictured First Lady, Kim Gon-hee(left), Yoon Seok-yeol (center) and Kim's mother Choi Eun-soon (right)


Yoon also had stated that accusations his mother in law, Choi, had purchased land for speculation by violating laws against purchases of real estate with any name but one's own, were "fake news."

Lie number three- That loans from Pusan Savings Bank that provided the seed money for the Daejangdong development scheme in Seongnam-si, Kyeongkido, were ordinary loans and not procured through financial breach of duty and other misconduct. Yoon covered up this misconduct at the time it originally became public as the prosecutor responsible for the investigation then, allowing those involved in Hwacheon Daewoo investment group to carry out their graft and corruption scheme. In fact, Yoon's former boss and long time mentor, Park Young-soo, was a member of the so called 5 billion won club, that took money and special favors from the investment group conspiracy. Yoon's family also received money (1.7 billion won) from the principal's sister for the president's father's home, which Yoon claims was sold for less than market value. Yoon denies any material connection to the conspirators. Instead, his presidential staff, his prosecutors, and the conservative media in South Korea, try to connect, the democratic party leader, Lee Jae-myung to the scandal, to distract from the president's material involvement which basically appears to have been obstruction of justice from its initial stages.

Contenders for Yoon's conservative party PPP leader position, except Kim Ki-hyun, the Yoon clique's candidate, have been effectively eliminated from consideration for one reason or another. The list includes Na Kyung-won, Ahn Chul-soo, and Hong Joon-pyo, among others. One well known candidate, Hwang Kyo-ahn, remains standing. Threats of prosecution were used to depose the former PPP party leader, Lee Jun-seok. Na could probably not withstand any further exposure of her own involvement in a so called college entrance corruption scheme on behalf of one of her children. Ahn Chul-soo attempted to intimidate the favored Yoon candidate for the job by accusing him of real estate corruption while mayor of Ulsan, but the plan seems to have backfired, as Ahn's support collapsed after the allegations. Hong's candidacy for the party leader position has never been strong, he has consistently taken an approach remonstrating against Yoon for various reasons. Hwang on the other hand played a key role in the past, disciplining Yoon as a prosecutor, when Hwang served as Minister of Justice. The one month disciplinary suspension was based upon an apparent conflict of interest that was displayed by Yoon co-habiting with Kim Gon-hee, at a time when, Kim and her mother Choi Eun-soon, were involved in litigation, under Yoon's jurisdiction as prosecutor.

(Source- 뉴스썰TV April 1, 2020) Former Prime Minister during the Park Geun-hye administration, Hwang Kyo-ahn (center) and Supreme Prosecutor Yoon Seok-yeol (right)

The litigation involved real estate fraud, in which Choi and Kim Gon-hee were accused of defrauding investor Jeong Tae-tek out of approximately two million dollars. The litigation resulted in the complainant himself ultimately being convicted of coercion of Choi and being sent to prison for two years. Subsequently, upon release from prison, Jeong filed a complaint against Yoon for conflict of interest, covering up fraud, perjury, and forgery, in court proceedings involving Choi. Hwang, justice minister at the time, handled the matter as a simple apparent conflict of interest by Yoon, without diclosing the grounds for Yoon's suspension in a letter to Jeong Tae-tek, the aggreived party and complainant. Soon after (2012), Yoon married Kim Gon-hee in an attempt to legitimize the illicit relationship as a normal romance. This was necessary because of Choi Eun-soon's frequent involvement in litigation. Kim Gon-hee had previously co-habited with another prosecutor in the same building under a different name, in a similar scheme, while her mother allegedly sent payoff money to his wife in the US.


(Source- 서울의소리 Voice of Seoul 2.22.23) Jeong Tae-tek, went to prison for two years after litigation against Yoon's mother in law, Choi Eun-Soon.

Hwang knows what the true nature of the relationship between Yoon and Kim Gon-hee entails. It remains to be seen whether this will make him "bullet proof" in political terms. Hwang had fallen out of favor after the debacle of the Park Geun-hye administration, in which he served as Prime Minister and as "acting president" during and after her impeachment proceedings until the inauguration of Moon Jae-in as president. Hwang had been faulted in the past by far right elements for not implementing a martial law plan designed to rescue former President Park Geun-hye from her impeachment proceedings. Yoon's image is that of a leading figure in the impeachment trial of former President Park Geun-hye, for which he seems to get to a pass from conservatives. This helped create Yoon's false image as a prosecutor dedicated to combating corruption.

Hwang like Hong, positions himself as a traditional conservative, and a man of principle. By virtue of not withdrawing as a candidate for party leader, he is, as yet, opposing the Yoon favorite. Thus far, his popularity seems to have remained suppressed. Anyone who opposes Yoon, is likely to be libeled, viewed unfavorably in the conservative mainstream media, or not at all. Further opposition to Yoon, can always result in investigation, jail, trial, and prison.

Saturday, February 18, 2023

In a hole, the Yoon government keeps digging

Recent headlines:

Arrest warrant sought for leader of top opposition party for first time in history of Korea’s constitutional government
Posted on : Feb.17, 2023 Hankyoreh
The warrant is being sought on charges of breach of duty and bribery and other suspicions during Lee Jae-myung’s tenure as mayor of Seongnam

"For the first time in Korea’s modern history, prosecutors have sought an arrest warrant for the chairperson of the main opposition party."


https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/1078690.html

The case is bogus and obviously politically motivated. As a sitting National Assembly member, a majority of National Assembly representatives have to approve an arrest warrant of any sitting member. Indications from the Democratic Party suggest that isn't going to happen. After a fishing expedition involving hundreds of warrants, nitpicking prosecution investigators are trying to cobble together a case. They have been trying to convict Lee Jae-myung of something, anything for years. He went through a series of trials on unrelated charges before the presidential campaign in which he was the candidate opposing Yoon, and he was found not guilty.

At an earlier trial of alleged Daejangdong co-conspirators, nothing in the evidence adduced in court implicated Lee. A lawyer for one arrested witness, Jeong Jin-san, came forward yesterday, and alleged his client was questioned improperly outside his presence, and offered inducements and threats by prosecutors to produce desired testimony (to implicate Lee). The recent statements of other alleged co-conspirators has changed and is incconsistent with their prior trial testimony. If democrats haven't learned their lesson from the persecution of former Minister of Justice Cho Guk and the destruction of his family by politically motivated prosecutors, it is likely Yoon will achieve arbitrary dictatorial rule.

I picked my post's title before I saw this editorial:

[Editorial] An unprecedented arrest warrant request that will spark a political black hole This development has already sparked fierce battles in the political world, giving rise to concerns that the people’s livelihoods will be put on the back burner Hankyoreh Feb.17,2023

...Above all, it is difficult to rule out the possibility that investigation by prosecutors will be used as a means of political oppression, seeing that the subject of their arrest warrant is the leader of the main opposition party. This is why the Constitution states that “no member of the National Assembly shall be arrested or detained without the consent of the National Assembly” during session, and why more caution should be taken so as to not raise questions about the appropriateness and context of the warrant request.

This development has already sparked fierce battles in the political world. Lee stated that “today is the day that the rule of law has collapsed in the ruling party’s attempt to get rid of their political opponents,” while the ruling People Power Party stated that “this was something bound to happen” and pushed for the approval of the arrest motion.


https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_editorial/1080169.html

Lee Jae-myung, “You Must Ask a Fortune Teller or Prosecutor Before Making Policy Decisions, Otherwise You Will Be Sent to Prison”
By Tak Ji-young Kyunghyang Sinmoon 2.17
http://english.khan.co.kr/khan_art_view.html?artid=202302171359537&code=710100&utm_source=livere&utm_medium=social_share

This is a reference to the Yoon receiving guidance from the guru Cheon Gong, the leader of a South Korean cult. The relationship is regarded as an abuse of power by Yoon and disputed. Allegedly, a witness to Cheon Gong's interference in official affairs is the former Chief of Staff of the ROK Army. This is according to an independent media source and a book author.

South Korean defence minister denies Vietnam War massacres
Minister said the court ruling dishonoured South Korean soldiers by finding them responsible for the massacre of Vietnamese villagers
Al Jazeera 2.17 (AP)
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/2/17/south-korean-defence-minister-denies-vietnam-war-massacres

This is sort of back handed way of letting Japan off the hook for its war crimes. In any case, Yoon is an admirer of former dictator Chun Doo-won, who was in Vietnam with the White Horse division. It's a facile way to appeal to veterans and the pro-Japanese faction whose forebears benefited from Japanese collaboration during the colonial period and subsequent South Korean dictatorships.

Celebration of Japanese emperor's birthday in Seoul met with protest : 2023-02-17
Korea Times 2.17 Lee Hyo-jin
https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/nation/2023/02/281_345653.html?utm_source=tw

A reception held in Seoul to celebrate the Japanese Emperor's birthday has raised eyebrows, especially after it was reported that the Japanese national anthem ― which is widely considered a symbol of Japan's militaristic past here ― was played during the event.

Hosted by the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, the reception took place at a hotel on Thursday, ahead of the emperor's birthday on Feb. 23. Among the guests who showed up were Korea's Vice Foreign Minister Lee Do-hoon and Sohn Kyung-sik, chairman of the Korea Enterprises Federation...

...Japanese media reported that until now, Tokyo has refrained from playing the anthem, acknowledging the anti-Japan sentiment in Korea. But it decided to play it this year due to the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's recent moves to improve bilateral ties.


Not suprisingly, today's candlelight demostration opposing the Yoon administration characterized Yoon as a pro-Japanese traitor in addition to criticizing his administration as a dictatorship led by Yoon's prosecutors. The candlelight movement procession assembled near Namdaemun and marched to Samgachi Plaza, near the Yongsan base where the Presidential Office is located. Yoon had refused to move into the Blue House, on the advice of his wife and allegedly, the cult leader Cheon Gong. The theme of today's assembly was "Let's topple Yoon Seok-yeol." The numbers appeared significant, as police appeared to have difficulty restricting the crowd due to its size and as the day went on, it appeared they were only capable of keeping one lane of traffic open around the massive crowd. I've become accustomed to seeing large numbers of police, barricades, and/or police buses forcing the crowd to one side of main boulevards and keeping at least two lanes of traffic open in both directions. I think because of restrictions on drone flights in Seoul and lack of access to nearby high rises, high angle shots which would give a greater sense of crowd size are not available.

During the demonstration, the organizers claimed there were supporting demonstrations in Tokyo, LA, New York and Maryland. Those in the Tokyo demonstration appeared to be ethnic Koreans and were small in number. I didn't see reports of these supporting demos in the US.

A couple of anti-Yoon, anti Kim Gon-hee cartoons exhibited during the demonstration below in the first image. Kim Gon-hee as Marie Antoinette giving Yoon his homework (left) and Kim Gon-hee as nanny pushing an infantile pro-Japanese Yoon.
(Images source- 빨간아재, youtube 2.18) 검사독재 역풍! "민주파괴 검찰독재 윤석열을 타도하자!" 2월 전국집중 촛불대행진 / 3시 삼각지역






Monday, February 13, 2023

When did it begin?



(Source- 롯본기 김교수 live, youtube 11.9) 문재인 윤석열 충격적인 관계! 언제부터 윤석열과 친분을 유지했을까? 언제부터 적폐세력과 한몸이 됐을까? 윤대진한동훈노무현강금원안희정통일은 대박이다! "When did it begin? When did Moon (lower left) join with the corrupt special interests? (Yoon Seok-yeol's long time friend) Yoon Tae-jin (center, pink tie), Han Dong-hun, No Moo-hyun administration (targeted) Kang Geum-won, and Ahn Hee-jung. Amazing!" They joined together to obstruct the reform agenda of the No Moo-hyun administration. Yoon Tae-jin, Yoon Seok-yeol's long time colleague worked with Moon Jae-in when Moon was Secretary for Civil Affairs in the No Moo-hyun administration.*

Kang Geum-won, (pictured above Yoon Tae-jin in the graphic) President No Moo-hyun's (picture top above host) closest friend and his political aide, described as No's right hand, and Ahn Hee-jung, No's "left hand," (picture blue background, face partially covered) were targeted by Yoon Tae-jin for prosecuton by Yoon Seok-yeol to disable the reform agenda of No Moo-hyun. Even after No Moo-hyun's suicide, prosecution of his family members continued. What did Moon do? (lower left) The graphic from the video itelf and "professor Kim's" presentation appear to be the Rosetta stone for cracking the mystery of why Moon Jae-in appointed Yoon as Prosecutor General in his own administration when he devastated democratic reform with politically targeted prosecutions and blocked prosecutions of friends, family, and cronies.

(Source- OhMyTV Koo Yeong-shik special report, 01.30.22) Yoon and wife, Kim Gon-hee, present for a meeting convened by then President Moon Jae-in at the Blue House. Cho Guk, (far left) a cabinet member, Civil Affairs Secretary at the time, their future victim, sat next to Yoon at the meeting. In this screen capture Cho, Yoon and Kim Gon-hee are standing together.

Later, Yoon Seok Yeol, Han Dong-hun, and then prime minister Lee Nak-hyun played a similar role in the Moon administration. After Moon appointed Cho Guk Justice Minister, Yoon began his prosecutions to destroy Cho Guk and his family politically, as a potential presidential contender, and also to block his legal reforms aimed at stripping away excessive prosecution powers. Those powers were still being used by Yoon to persecute politicians related to the democracy movement and to protect his family and cronies involved in scandals. The thesis is Moon Jae-in was a wolf in sheep's clothing, and Yoon's clique was his tool on behalf of chaebol (corporate) interests. This relationship began many years earlier and is documented in the 2.09.23 live Kim Kyo su 김교수 video.* (he calls himself Professsor Kim).

Yet, since Moon's retirement from presidential office, he has been threatened by people connected to the Yoon presidential office. Prosecutors suggested they would investigate Moon's wife for receiving jewelry and expensive clothes and misuse of a credit card. This was similar to a tactic used against previous president No Moo-hyun which ultimately drove him to suicide. Nothing came of the threats of prosecution against Moon and his family so far. At one point Moon thanked President Yoon in a phone call, for letting him retire in peace, after a court order upheld an ordinance passed to keep right wing demonstrators 300m away from his home, and forcing unruly demonstrators to conform to city codes on noise. A few of the demonstrators were arrested. Moon recently said he will run a bookstore during his retirement.

Moon, appears to have been the equivalent of Bill Clinton, or Joe Biden, in presidential politics. Democrat in name only, DINO, is referred to as soobak 수박 (watermelon) in Korean, blue on the outside, red on the inside (the respective party campaign colors, blue equals democratic, red equals conservative).

*Link to "Professor Kim's" youtube on this topic-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SQwhcdqkTck&t=2101s

Sunday, February 12, 2023

Who is the criminal?

(Source- Lee Jae-Myung channel youtube, 2.10) "(Prosecutors) have yet to produce one clear piece of evidence." Lee Jae-Myung, Democratic Party leader, symbol of the political opposition to the Yoon Seok-yeol adinistration, outside prosecution offices 2.10.


The historic theme was announced in Lee Jae-myung's press briefing outside the prosecutors' offices to which he was summoned Friday, for his third interrogation.

유권 무죄 무권 유죄
有權 無罪 無權 有罪
If one has power they are not guilty;
If one does not have power, they are guilty.


(Source- KBS 1 History Journal, ep. 199) Ito was assassinated by Korean patriot Ahn Jung-geun, October 26, 1909 in Harbin, China.

There was a remarkable performance by a musical stage group at the 26th candlelight assembly in downtown Seoul the next day. The performance was an adaptation of the song Who is the Criminal, from the musical Hero, about one of Korea's great patriots in modern history, Ahn Jung-geun. Ahn was a leading member of the Righteous Army, a militia organization that opposed Japanese occupation and colonization of Korea. Ahn assassinated Ito Hirobumi, the former Resident General of Korea during the early stages of Korean colonization by the Japanese. Ito also had been a former prime minister of Japan. Ahn shot and killed Ito and then was tried by Japan and executed. The song from Hero, Who is the Criminal, is the dramatic rendition of Ahn's listing of the 15 Korean grievances against Japan in 1909 which justified Ito's assassination.

The fifteen reasons can be read here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An_Jung-geun

The original lyrics to hero and a video of the stage performance (in Korean) are posted at:

https://culture-ing.tistory.com/60


My interest concerns the lyrics of this contemporary adaptation of the musical performance at the candlelight demonstration February 11, in Seoul. Below is a rough translation. The performers asked that the audience spread the word world wide, but only the Korean subtitles were provided.

First, this large scale candlelight assembly interferes with the traffic of Seoul citizens for which we sincerely apologize.
Yet, as citizens of Korea we must cry out "Yoon Seok-yeol, step down!" and boldly transmit the reasons.

The crime of avoidance of responsibility for the Itaewan disaster.
The crime of quashing the voices of the survivors by force.
The crime of compelling the reduction of budget items for the greater welfare of the Korean people, one after another.
The crime of allowing prices of heating oil and electricity, essential to the citizens' livelihood, double, ruining their lives.

Who is the criminal, who is the criminal?

The crime of stigmatizing the voice of the people as unlawful assembly.
The crime of using the National Security Law to stigmatize organized labor as spies.
The crime of using your overseas tours to degrade the national dignity of Korea.
The crime of blaming others for your overseas blundering and humiliation.

Who is the criminal, who is the criminal?


(Against Kim Gon-hee, First Lady, whom Yoon is protecting from prosecution)
The crime of violating laws against stock price manipulation to make a million dollars in less than a year.
The crime of passing yourself off as someone of presidential status to deceive the people.
The crime of abusing your power to elevate cult leader Jeon Gong over goverment authority.
The crime of fabricating false credentials and plagiarism.

Who is the criminal, who is the criminal?

The crime of desiring US protection for Korea, at the same time bringing large quantities of modern weapons into Korea aggravating the threat of war.
The crime of advocating pre-emptive attack repeatedly, calling for war.
The crime of subordinating Korea to Japan, paving the way for the Japanese armed forces.

Because you are thoroughly destoying peace on the Korean peninsula, you sin against heaven and humanity.

Who is the criminal, who is the criminal?

Avoiding the wellbeing of citizens, incompetent, ignorant Yoon Seok-yeol
The completely manufactured fraudulent life of Kim Gon-hee.

The president and his wife, this is why we say our country is completely screwed.
It is a true honor to fight this without hesitation.
We were born citizens of Korea, to serve our country,
We raise up the candle's light.
This is true glory, we intend to fight without hesitation.

All people, don't be fooled by Yoon's lies and ambitions.
Let the world know-
Yoon Seok-yeol, step down!
Special prosecution for Kim Gon-hee!

Those who fight and serve the nation, is it right to call them criminals?
Who causes the nation to fail?
We raise up the candle lights!
Shall those who serve the country be punished?

Shall we know the suffering of losing our country?

Who is the criminal, who is the criminal?


The South Korean democracy movement uses traditional culture and art forms to advance their goals. Kim Min-jung also performed, including the democracy movement unofficial theme, Morning Dew. What yesterday's demonstration lacked in numbers compared to the prior demonstations, was more than compensated by quality.