Photo of ex-President Yoon, association head connected to Shincheonji surfaces in investigation
Published: 26 Jan. 2026, 14:26
![Former President Yoon Suk Yeol, then the People Power Party’s presidential candidate, left, meets Lee Hee-ja, the chair of the Korea Geunwoo Association, at a restaurant in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Jan. 16, 2022. [SCREEN CAPTURE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/01/26/e6013f92-48c8-4b6b-9641-c096c213e1d2.jpg)
Former President Yoon Suk Yeol, then the People Power Party’s presidential candidate, left, meets Lee Hee-ja, the chair of the Korea Geunwoo Association, at a restaurant in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Jan. 16, 2022. [SCREEN CAPTURE]
A photo of former President Yoon Suk Yeol meeting Lee Hee-ja, the head of the Korea Geunwoo Association (translated), surfaced during an investigation into alleged improper ties between the conservative People Power Party (PPP) and the Shincheonji Church of Jesus and the Unification Church.
A joint investigation team of prosecutors and police obtained a photograph from a former Shincheonji official, depicting former President Yoon, then the PPP presidential candidate, meeting Lee during his presidential election campaign. She is also known to have personal ties to Lee Man-hee, the head of Shincheonji.
The Korea Geunwoo Association is a women-led civic group that claims to have been established in 1927. The name alludes to Geunwoohoe, one of the largest women’s independence struggle organizations during Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule.
Investigators believe the meeting may have served as a catalyst for Shincheonji members joining the PPP en masse and are continuing their probe.
The photo submitted by the former Shincheonji official shows Yoon and Lee Ha-ja at a restaurant in Mapo District, western Seoul, on Jan. 16, 2022, according to the JoongAng Ilbo on Sunday. The restaurant is a place Lee Ha-ja frequently visited for Korea Geunwoo Association gatherings.
The task force also received the former official’s laptop and is reviewing materials related to the allegedly coordinated enrollment of Shincheonji members to the PPP.
“Lee [Ha-ja] says she met [him] today,” read Telegram messages exchanged among senior Shincheonji officials at the time, reportedly referencing the photo.
The former official who was questioned by the task force also said Lee Ha-ja's meeting with Yoon was directly reported to Shincheonji leader Lee Man-hee.
![Kim Tae-hoon, the chief prosecutor of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office and head of the joint prosecution-police investigative team probing the Unification Church and Shincheonji Church of Jesus, speaks to reporters outside the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Jan. 8. [YONHAP]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/01/26/91856696-2e54-44e7-ad9e-9c6483a3b227.jpg)
Kim Tae-hoon, the chief prosecutor of the Seoul Southern District Prosecutors’ Office and head of the joint prosecution-police investigative team probing the Unification Church and Shincheonji Church of Jesus, speaks to reporters outside the Seoul High Prosecutors’ Office in Seocho District, southern Seoul, on Jan. 8. [YONHAP]
Lee Hee-ja, however, described it as a chance encounter. According to her representatives, she happened to run into Yoon, then Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and then head of the PPP’s Seoul chapter Park Sung-joong, who had been in Mapo District to attend a PPP event. They found a quieter location, which is where and when the two groups took a photo together. Her representatives added that the photo in question was an edit of that group photo.
Though there may have been a customary exchange of asking for the other’s support, her representatives emphasized, “As far as we know, there was no conversation about any specific [plans].”
Former Shincheonji officials questioned by the task force, including the ex-senior official who submitted the photo, said Lee Ha-ja served as a link between Shincheonji and the PPP. They claimed she was recruited by Shincheonji around 2019, after which Shincheonji provided manpower for Korea Geunwoo Association events while she worked to expand Shincheonji’s political influence.
Ko Dong-an, a Shincheonji general secretary who was described as the group’s second-in-command, said in a phone call with another Shincheonji official that Lee Man-hee “wants to secure ties to the Yoon Suk Yeol circle through Lee Hee-ja,” according to officials.
![Members of Shincheonji Church of Jesus gather to celebrate in Daegu on Nov. 12, 2025. [NEWS1]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2026/01/26/b36e3d1b-ecf6-4923-877f-b906c2f3c8aa.jpg)
Members of Shincheonji Church of Jesus gather to celebrate in Daegu on Nov. 12, 2025. [NEWS1]
In May 2021, Ko also said Lee Ha-ja had “shown ‘Teacher’ [Lee Man-hee] photos she took with former presidents,” officials said. In 2020, when Lee Man-hee was detained, Lee Hee-ja reportedly sent him a handwritten letter, writing that she would “risk [her] life by any means necessary” to secure his bail on medical grounds.
Soon after Lee Ha-ja’s meeting with Yoon, Ko was appointed head of Shincheonji’s foreign affairs and policy headquarters on Jan. 28, 2022. The unit oversaw the group’s outside activities, including enrolling members in the PPP. What had previously been carried out covertly among some followers in 2021 became a full-fledged and organized effort, officials said.
“Investigators aim to confirm the scale of the enrollments and determine whether Shincheonji sought specific favors from Yoon’s camp in return,” the task force said.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY JEONG JIN-HO, JO SU-BIN [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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