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Kim Kun-hee, wife of the main opposition People Power Party’s presidential candidate Yoon Seok-youl, apologizes on Dec. 26 for falsely reporting her work experience. (Yonhap) |
Kim Kun-hee, wife of the main opposition People Power Party’s presidential candidate Yoon Seok-youl, is accused of falsifying her work experience at Alternative Space Loop, a nonprofit cultural center in Seoul, amid continued criticism over Kim’s exaggeration of her past career in applying for jobs at colleges.
Loop was founded in 1999 as a nonprofit organization to share contemporary art and cultural experience with the public as well as promoting experimental artists who have built up aesthetics and practices that address contemporary social issues.
According to an exclusive news report from JTBC, Kim falsely recorded her experience at Loop in the career certificate submitted in her application for a teaching position at Suwon Women’s University. She indicated she worked at the organization from 1998 to 2002 as a curator. However, no official from the organization was reportedly able to confirm her career.
“The only thing I can confirm is that Kim participated in an exhibition in 2005 at the organization. It is true that her career was exaggerated in the certificate,” a then-director who co-founded the organization in 1999 and ran it until 2015 told The Korea Herald on Wednesday. He declined to be named.
“We are not sure if the certificate was forged or not. There is no way at this moment to confirm how the certificate was issued as we are unable to reach the four people who worked at the organization at the time,” he added.
On Dec. 26, Kim held a press conference some 10 days after allegations concerning falsification of her work experience to get jobs at colleges first surfaced. She admitted to her wrongdoings, stating: “I attempted to overstate my career while pursuing jobs and studies at the same time. … It is painful that my husband has been criticized because of my faults.”
The presidential election is scheduled to take place March 9 with a largely two-way race between Yoon and Lee Jae-myung, presidential candidate for the ruling Democratic Party of Korea.
By Park Yuna (
yunapark@heraldcorp.com)
