An Instance of Reality Being Stranger Than Fiction

When reading any type of novel, plot twists are one of the key elements that

make it entertaining. It can either be some sort of clich or something entirely original

that would possibly be regarded as either a stroke of genius or complete stupidity. What

is reassuring about this twists of fate are that they are merely fiction. Fiction wherein it is

least likely to happen in a real setting. That they are mere plots that authors have come

up with to spice up a story. The series of events that have transpired in the politics of

South Korea are something that truly makes one question whether one is living in some

sort of fiction novel. The shocking revelations and truths uncovered are indeed strange

almost to the point that they would seem unbelievable. That despite its supposed

unrealistic nature, the evidence and admission of its truth make its authenticity

undeniable.

The history of this rather shocking incident have started years ago, around the

1970s. These were the years when South Korea was still under the dictatorship of Park

Chung-hee, who was also the father of the now controversial President Park Geun-hye.

The trigger that ultimately led to the scandal was during the death of the mother, Yuk

Yeong-su, through the failed assassination of the late Park Chung-hee. North Korean

spies had tried to assassinate the dictator then but it missed which hit the first lady

instead, thus taking her life and leading to the 23-year-old Park Geun-hye to heavily

grieve for her death. This came to the attention of Choi Tae-min who was then known as

a founder of a preudo-Christian cult wherein he dubbed himself as the Future Buddha.

He claimed to have be gifted with the ability to supernaturally heal people as well as

speak to the deceased. Knowing that Park Geun-hyes mother had just died, he sent
letters to her showing his supposed concern for her state as well as claiming that he

had managed to speak to the spirit of her deceased mother. He had continued to do this

until Park Geun-hye had decided to invite the cult leader where she was then convinced

that her own mothers death was a supposedly planned by herself to pave a way for

Park Geun-hye to once again have the Park family enter politics. This led to Park Geun-

hye completely giving her trust towards Choi Tae-min and employing him as her tutor

until 1994 at which was the year when Choi Tae-min died. The death of the then cult

leader shouldve been the end to the poisonous grasp than held on the Park Geun-hye

but this string of endless manipulation was immediately inherited by Choi Tae-mins

daughter, Choi Soon-sil.

Prior to Park Geun-hyes election, there were already rumors regarding the Choi

familys influence towards her but they were all labeled as merely conspiracy theories or

lunatic speculations. One of such rumors even managed to appear in the 2007

Wikileaks issue wherein a confidential message sent by the U.S. Ambassador of South

Korea contained the spread of those rumors. Without any evidences, such claims were

merely disregarded as false. Who couldve known that such absurd rumors were true.

That a cult leader had groomed a person to be the next leader of a country. That a man

had succeeded in his plan in acquiring political power through brainwashing. Despite

Choi Tae-min being dead, the fruits of his labor had still managed to be enjoyed by his

daughter. How a country decided to elect such a person did not count to mere luck

either.

Power is a concept that is capable of corrupting even the most noble of saints.

The country of South Korea had suffered from countless corrupt leaders. During the
times when it was still a dictatorship, its leader would amass fortunes for the enjoyment

of themselves and their cronies. With the end of dictatorship, the country had later

adapted a democratic form of government. Yet despite the change, even the

democratically elected presidents were no exception to the practice of corruption. Every

end of a presidential term would be the time when multitudes of graft and corruption

cases would surface. All of such would eventually lead to the imprisonment of the once

elected president and the great disappointment of the South Korean citizens. Despite

their desire to have a leader who is free from having a personal agenda, their

expectations would remain unfulfilled. This was how Park Geun-hye managed to be

elected. She had lost the election during the prior term but the proven corruption of the

previous elected president had led the people to rely on her. South Koreans had almost

lost faith in their leaders that they have decided to elect Park Geun-hye for being the

least likely to be corrupt. This is supported in the fact she had no family that would be

too close to her that couldve influenced her from making unethical decisions. Her

parents were already dead and was estranged from her siblings due to her ties with

Choi Tae-min. At one point, her siblings had even tried to seek help from the

government to save their sister from the corrupt influences of Choi Tae-min which

turned out to be a fruitless endeavor in their part. With the citizens believing that she

was the least corrupt amongst those nominated, she was elected as the 11 th President

of South Korea thus making Choi Tae-min dreams turn into a reality.

Throughout Park Geun-hyes presidency, her acts of corruption were almost

entirely undetected and only with little suspicions regarding her secret dealings. Her

actions were later discovered unexpectedly due to a minor scandal in the prestigious
Ewha Womans University involving Choi Soon-sils daughter. Choi Soon-sils daughter

grade records have proven that her acceptance in the school was not only miraculous

but also mysterious which led to some students wanting an investigation over the

preferential treatment the daughter had allegedly acquired. Such investigations led to

the involvement of elected president and her dealings with the universitys

administration to admit Choi Soon-sils daughter to the school despite being unqualified.

This preferential treatment over one girl sparked curiosity as to why the president would

risk her own reputation to forcefully admit a girl in a prestigious university when there

were no close ties publicly known between the two. The heat of the controversy led to

Choi Soon-sil and her daughter fleeing to Germany and her act of running away had led

to the media even more desperate on finding out the ties between her and President

Park Geun-hye. It was upon the snooping of JTBC, a cable TV network, while looking

for leads in one of Chois properties had stumbled upon an abandoned tablet device

which was owned by her and that she had supposedly forgotten. The tablet contained

the presidential speeches with Choi's corrections, presidential briefs for cabinet

meetings, appointment information of presidential aides, chat messages with

presidential aides, the president's vacation schedule, draft designs for commemorative

stamps featuring the president, and other confidential information that shouldnt be so

easily acquired in an abandoned tablet that contains files that are only accessible by the

current administration. This led to an explanation of the multitudes of peculiar actions

the current administration had been conducting and later shocked the entire nation for

its absolute absurdity. It was an explanation that supporters and critics couldnt have

foreseen. That all those crazy and unbelievable rumors surrounding the current elected
president for countless years were true. That a person had been brainwashed and

groomed by a self-proclaimed psychic and his daughter to be next president of a

country as well as to unconditionally do their bidding. This was a scenario that could

only be seen in fiction and yet is something that happened in real life. This revelation led

to the outcry of almost all South Korean citizens wanting the President to be

immediately impeached.

This scenario seemed like some sort of fiction novel; from how it began until how

it ended. A scheme so grand to be considered almost unrealistic was uncovered and

foiled by something so simple. The father of Choi Tae-min may be considered as some

sort of evil genius but his daughter is certainly someone very special; and thats not a

compliment. To abandon the tablet without a password that contained all files that are

sufficient evidence to prove the entire scheme can only be done by some who is lacking

in the IQ department. As the scandal is still hot, it is quite a sight to see how things will

escalate. Now with crazy conspiracy theories being proven to be real, what other sort of

unbelievable rumors may actually be proven true all along.