Political Scandal Involving National Assembly Members
Two prominent members of the 22nd-term National Assembly are currently under scrutiny for alleged ties with the Unification Church. Kweon Seong-dong, a representative from the People Power Party, is facing legal consequences after being indicted for allegedly receiving illegal political funds. On the other hand, Chun Jae-soo, a representative from the Democratic Party of Korea, has not seen similar actions despite allegations of receiving cash and luxury items from the same organization.
The investigation into Kweon’s case moved quickly, while the probe against Chun has been significantly delayed. This discrepancy in the speed of investigations has raised questions about fairness and impartiality in the process.
Ruling Party Representative Chun Jae-soo’s Delayed Investigation
Chun Jae-soo is accused of receiving 20 million Korean won in cash and a Cartier watch valued at 7 million Korean won from Han Hak-ja, a leader of the Unification Church, during a meeting in August 2018. The meeting took place at Cheon Jeong Gung in Gapyeong County, Gyeonggi Province. Additionally, it is alleged that he was asked to support the church’s agenda, including the Korea-Japan undersea tunnel project.
The initial allegations against Chun emerged during a meeting between Yun Young-ho, former head of the Unification Church’s global headquarters, and Special Counsel Min Joong-ki’s team. Yun claimed that he gave 100 million Korean won to Kweon and mentioned that Democratic Party figures, including Chun, also received funds and gifts from the church.
Despite these claims, the special counsel did not conduct further investigations into Chun’s case or transfer it to other agencies. It wasn’t until Yun publicly disclosed details of his meeting during his trial that the special counsel finally handed the case over to the police. A raid on Chun’s office followed, and he was questioned as a suspect for 14 hours.
Since the joint investigation team took over the case earlier this year, the progress has been slow. Allegations suggest that Chun’s staff locked the door to the National Assembly office building and destroyed evidence, while a local aide discarded a PC hard drive in a field. However, the joint team only conducted related raids two months later, and Chun himself was not targeted during these operations.
The joint team first summoned Chun for questioning three months after taking over the case. They investigated for 18 hours regarding suspicions that a Cartier ‘Ballon Bleu’ model purchased by the Unification Church in 2018 was repaired by an acquaintance of Chun, and that the church’s foundation bought 500 copies of Chun’s book. However, no significant results have been released over ten days later.
Opposition Party Representative Kweon Seong-dong’s Swift Investigation
In contrast, the investigation into Kweon Seong-dong proceeded rapidly. The special counsel raided Kweon’s office on July 18 of last year. Before the formation of the special counsel, Yun Young-ho faced prosecution for allegedly giving Chanel bags to former first lady Kim Keon-hee via Jeon Seong-bae, a shaman known as Geonjin, to lobby for the Unification Church’s agenda.
The special counsel inherited the case and confirmed evidence of Yun’s cash delivery to Kweon through phone records, leading to a criminal investigation. Kweon was questioned on August 27, about a month after the raid, and a bench warrant was requested the next day. The National Assembly passed the arrest motion on September 11, and the Seoul Central District Court issued the warrant on September 16, citing “risk of evidence destruction.”
Kweon was indicted on October 2 and sentenced to two years in prison and a 100 million Korean won surcharge at his first trial on January 28. His second trial is scheduled for the 23rd of next month.
Differing Speeds in Investigations
Some argue that directly comparing the two cases is difficult. Kweon’s case involved direct evidence, including photos of the money bundle and Yun’s diary detailing the timeline. In contrast, Yun did not directly give gifts to Chun, and the joint team has not secured cash photos or related text messages.
However, a former deputy prosecutor general stated, “Even so, the time difference from detecting clues to raids, suspect summons, and prosecution decisions is too large,” adding, “It’s inevitable that people will say investigations are lenient toward the ruling party and harsh toward the opposition.”
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