First lady's fan club gets in hot water again

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First lady's fan club gets in hot water again

Published: 25 Aug. 2022, 16:04

A fan club for first lady Kim Keon-hee sparked controversy after it released unseen photos of President Yoon Suk-yeol and first lady Kim Keon-hee with their dogs at the presidential office in Yongsan, central Seoul, on May 29. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

President Yoon Suk-yeol's official schedule was leaked by fans of his wife, first lady Kim Keon-hee, raising security concerns.

On Tuesday, a member of the fan club Keon-hee Sarang, or "Love Keon-hee," posted details of Yoon's official schedule for Friday, including the time of one event and location. The fan club has gotten in trouble in the past for sharing unauthorized photos of the presidential couple and its founder's gaffes.

For security reasons, the president's schedule is usually kept confidential until an event ends. The presidential press corps abides by strict embargoes when informed about his schedule ahead of time.

The leak occurred on the Facebook page for Keon-hee Sarang on Tuesday. One user posted : "Notice. President Yoon Suk-yeol will be visiting Daegu Seomun Market at 12 p.m. on Aug. 26. We ask you to participate and promote [the event]. Please come to the public parking lot."

Another member responded to the post, "I will go in support!"

The presidential office apologized for the incident Wednesday.

"We apologize again and will be even more vigilant so that something like this doesn't recur," a senior presidential official told reporters. "Through the Presidential Security Service, we will figure out how this happened and do our best to prevent it from happening again."

On the source of the leak to the fan club, the official said People Power Party (PPP) members in Daegu were "in the process of gathering the opinions of many people who wanted to participate in the event, such as party members, lawmakers and aides while preparing for the event," and that the president's schedule may have been made known.

However, the official added, "I believe the incident didn't occur with any special intention but rather came from wanting to be supportive."

A screen capture Tuesday of a post on a fan club for the first lady Kim Keon-hee, ″Keon-hee Sarang,″ revealing Presidential Yoon Suk-yeol’s upcoming schedule. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The official emphasized that the first lady has nothing to do with the fan club.

The Democratic Party (DP) immediately criticized the leak and the security threat it posed.

"This is a serious breach of state discipline that threatens the safety of the president," said Rep. Shin Hyun-young, a DP spokesperson, in a press briefing Wednesday. "It's tragic how the presidential office is managing the president's schedule."

Members of Yoon's PPP also expressed disgruntlement over the incident.

"A fan club that makes things more difficult for the running of the country needs to be disbanded," Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo wrote in a Facebook post Wednesday. "I have been in politics for 26 years and never have I heard of a fan club for the first lady."

This is not the first controversy for Keon-hee Sarang.

Photos of the first lady's visits to the presidential office in Yongsan on May 27 and 28 were posted on the Keon-hee Sarang Facebook account within days.

As the photos were taken in an area that requires security clearance, there were questions about who had taken the photos and released them.

Last month, Kang Shin-up, the attorney who founded Keon-hee Sarang last November, stepped down as its president because of the controversies surrounding the group.

First lady Kim has kept her official activities to a minimum, although presidential officials revealed Thursday that she privately volunteered with flood recovery efforts after heavy rainfall this month.

Kim was said to have met with victims and helped with cleaning and other volunteer efforts two to three time a week for the past two weeks.

She was said to have been accompanied by minimal security and the victims purportedly didn't recognize her because she was masked.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]