NHRC's Stance Changed After One Year Due to Kim Kun-hee

 

Recently, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRC) responded to inquiries about similar cases following the conclusion of the luxury bag gift case involving First Lady Kim Kun-hee, wife of President Yoon Suk-yeol. This incident has garnered significant public attention, highlighting notable changes in the NHRC's stance.

Change in NHRC's Stance

The NHRC has recently provided new interpretations regarding the "Anti-Graft Act" (commonly known as the "Kim Young-ran Act") related to public officials receiving gifts. Last year, the NHRC maintained that spouses of public officials could not accept gifts exceeding 1 million KRW. However, this year, the stance has shifted to "gifts to public officials' spouses are not restricted if they are unrelated to the public official's duties."

This shift seems to stem from the incident involving Kim Kun-hee's acceptance of a luxury bag. The NHRC concluded that there were "no violations" when the civic group People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy filed a complaint against President Yoon and Pastor Choi Jae-young, who gave the gift. Following this decision, many similar inquiries appeared on the NHRC website, and the commission began responding to these queries.

Specific Cases and NHRC's Responses

For instance, one user asked, "I want to give a luxury bag worth 3 million KRW to the First Lady. I don't intend to use the President's status, but I want to utilize the First Lady's status. Is this legal?" The NHRC replied, "The Anti-Graft Act does not restrict the acceptance of gifts by the spouses of public officials if it is unrelated to the public official's duties."

Another user inquired, "Can I gift 3 million KRW worth of traditional Korean candy to the First Lady?" The NHRC gave a similar response, stating, "If the gift is unrelated to the public official's duties, it is not restricted." They added that determining the legality of such gifts requires considering whether the gift relates to the public official's duties.

Criticism and Concerns

This shift in the NHRC's stance has sparked significant controversy. One user, identifying as a teacher, criticized, "I have to be cautious about receiving even a single carnation from beloved students. Can I gift 300,000 KRW bags to the First Lady, the Education Superintendent's wife, and the Principal's wife?" This highlights real concerns and criticisms from the public.

Previously, the NHRC clearly stated that public officials' spouses could not receive gifts exceeding 1 million KRW. The change in stance following this incident could undermine trust in public official ethics and transparency.

Conclusion

The recent shift in the NHRC's stance emerged from the luxury bag incident involving First Lady Kim Kun-hee, providing new guidelines for receiving gifts. However, this change has elicited public criticism and concern, indicating a need for clearer and more consistent standards from the NHRC to restore trust.

 

 

 

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