"Hwacheondaeyu, Why No Special Prosecutor... The World Is Going Crazy"
Choi Seo-won (65, formerly Choi Soon-sil), who was sentenced to imprisonment and is currently serving time due to the Park Geun-hye administration's state affairs manipulation scandal. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Choi Seo-won (65, formerly Choi Soon-sil), who is serving an 18-year prison sentence for the Park Geun-hye government’s state corruption scandal, criticized through a prison letter, saying, "I do not understand why the Hwacheon Daeyu case is not being investigated by a special prosecutor, and why impeachment and punishment are not being enforced."
On the 13th, the Chosun Ilbo disclosed the contents of the prison letter sent by Choi on the 7th.
According to the report, in the letter, Choi expressed anger toward former special prosecutor Park Young-soo. She said, "Wasn't it former special prosecutor Park who accused me of bribery over companies’ contributions to the public interest foundations Mir and K-Sports Foundation?" She pointed out, "He pretended to be clean alone, falsely labeling former President Park Geun-hye and me as an economic community, while he himself employed his daughter and son at a company related to the Daejang-dong preferential treatment suspicion. He received advisory fees, and his relatives received 10 billion won."
Choi stated, "This country labeled the money contributed to the foundations as bribes and charged us with bribery as an economic community. Shouldn't the Hwacheon Daeyu case be investigated with the same standard?" She added, "Also, I don’t understand why my name is being dragged into this case regardless of political party. If my name is mentioned any further, I will sue for defamation."
She continued, "I think it is not a coincidence but rather inevitable why Park Young-soo received money and was appointed as the head of the special prosecutor," and said, "I truly feel this is a country I have never experienced before, and I am afraid it might become a country that demands such experiences again."
She then urged strict punishment regarding the Daejang-dong suspicion. Choi said, "In this difficult country, there was a money windfall party like Hwacheon Daeyu, and the related parties should be impeached and pay the price," and claimed, "Who would consider the investigation by the pro-government prosecution neutral when they ignored intelligence from the police?"
She also said, "Former special prosecutor Park confiscated even the building I prepared over 20 years of running a kindergarten and sentenced me to 18 years in prison; does it make sense that he received such a large amount of money?" She added, "Fairness and justice have disappeared, and only the ruling power’s insistence remains. I just wrote down my thoughts because the world these days seems unfair."
Regarding the lawsuit for damages filed against Democratic Party lawmaker Ahn Min-seok, which she won, Choi said, "I don’t know why Representative Ahn appealed, but I wonder if he knows how much money the 300 trillion won hidden assets are," and criticized, "I want to ask why Representative Ahn cannot demand the truth about Hwacheon Daeyu." Representative Ahn raised suspicions about Choi’s hidden assets, was sued by Choi for 100 million won in damages, and lost the case on the 8th of last month.
Additionally, Choi expressed discomfort over being mentioned in the so-called "shaman controversy" surrounding Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party’s presidential candidate, saying, "I am a devout Christian. It is unacceptable to say that I held a shamanistic ritual to bewitch former President Park when I have never even been near a shaman."
Meanwhile, Choi, identified as the "secret power" behind the Park Geun-hye government’s state corruption scandal and arrested and indicted, was sentenced to 18 years in prison and fined 20 billion won by the Supreme Court on June 11 last year and is currently serving her sentence at Cheongju Women’s Prison.
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