hankyoreh

By Song Ho-kyun and Ko Na-mu, Hankyoreh 21 staff reporters

Theme 2: A conservative messiah?

Park Geun-hye doesn’t allow her close associates to act independently- she alone makes all important decisions. Since 2004, when Park appeared at the forefront of South Korean politics, she has been a kind of messiah for conservatives. It is not a coincidence that she has been using some religious terms such as summon, destiny, nirvana or liberation in her writings.

Park has been interested in religion from her days in the Blue House. She graduated from Sacred Heart Girl’s High School and Sogang University, operated by the Catholic Church. She was baptized under the name Juliana.

Since Park acted as the First Lady of the Blue House, she has kept a special relationship with pastor Choi Tae-min, who is a controversial figure in religious circles. Choi married 5 times and has pretended to be a monk, principal, and pastor at different times under different names. Jeong Yun-hoe, a son-in-law of Choi, was suspected to have unofficially led Park’s campaign for the 2007 Grand National Party presidential nomination. (The Grand National Party was renamed the New Frontier Party in February.)

Park’s mother Yuk Young-soo was a devout Buddhist. Park was influenced by Buddhist doctrines as well as by Catholicism. In 2005 she was given a Buddhist name from Donghwa Temple in Daegu. The given name ‘Seondeokhwa’ followed the same meaning of the Queen Seondeok of the Silla dynasty.

After Park left the Blue House, she devoured various kinds of religious books. She wrote in her diary on May 31, 1982, “Nirvana is when one’s emotional flames are completely extinguished.”

Park is the one who has tried to depict herself as a messiah. On her diaries in the late 80s and early 90s, she even tended to identify herself with Jesus or Buddha.

In an entry on Nov. 5, 1989, she said, “Christianity was able to spread because of religious persecution. The difficulties that I face make me broaden boundaries like Jesus did.”

On August 21, 1991 she wrote, “Last night I read the rebellion part of Devadatta. I felt kind of a comfort that even Buddha suffered from betrayal. Humans have always undergone an ordeal without exception.” Devadatta was Buddha’s cousin and a student, but is said to have parted from the Buddha and gone against him. It’s also said that he even tried to kill Buddha.

The New York Times reported on April 20 that Park Geun-hye’s followers regard Park as a saint who lost her parents and gave up marriage and childbirth.

The saint woman vested holiness for herself, which was accepted as she followed heaven’s calling. On her essay ‘Words of my spirit’ published in 1995, she said, “The ultimate life we pursue will be accomplished when we live according to the word from heaven, participate in God’s business and do his work.” She added, “Only God’s business is valuable, meaningful, and eternal among all other things happening in the world.”

On her diary on Sep. 2, 1990, she wrote, “Power is like a sword. If someone has more power, it means he has sharper sword. No one can manage huge power if he doesn’t cultivate himself with a firm philosophical view, or he is not protected by heaven.”

For someone who believes they are on a mission from heaven, there is no room for free communication and horizontal talk. Even Park’s close associates find her to be unapproachable, feeling they are facing a heavy wall in front of her.

On the other hand, some people give positive evaluations for her. They think Park’s such values let her to have a virtue of preceding private obligations with public affairs.

“It is Park’s merit that she puts public obligations ahead of private affairs,” said former Environment Minister Yoon Yeo-joon. “But people need to watch closely to figure out if she means a nationalist public or a democratic public.”

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