Park Geun Hye

Park Geun-Hye, the first female president of South Korea, was born in Taegu, South Korea. She was the daughter of Park Chung-Hee, who was the president of South Korea until his assassination in 1979.

Former President Park Chung-hee was assassinated by Kim Jae-kyu, the head of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency. Kim cited Park Chung-hee's failure to address corruption and the influence of Choi Tae-min over Park Chung-hee's daughter, Park Geun-hye, as one of the reasons for the assassination.

After years of avoiding the public eye, Park enters politics and wins a parliamentary seat amid public nostalgia for her father that erupted after South Korea was battered by the Asian financial crisis. She becomes an icon of South Korean conservatives.

An event in 2002 where the daughter of Park Chung Hee entered presidential politics.

Park, then leader of the main conservative opposition party, is attacked by a man wielding a box cutter while she was campaigning in Seoul for upcoming elections. She is given 60 stitches on an 11-centimeter (4-inch) gash on her face. The first words she says at a hospital were, “How is Daejeon?” to check how the election campaign was going in that central city; that further builds up her image as a strong leader.

On February 12, 2007, Park Geun-hye gave a speech at the JFK Jr. Forum at Harvard University.

On May 6, 2009, Park Geun-hye delivered a speech at Stanford University on the topic of 'U.S.–Korea Relations in a Changing World'.

On July 10, 2012, Park formally announced her presidential bid at Time Square, Yeongdeungpo District, Seoul. During this event, she emphasized the right to pursue happiness, a democratic economy, and customized welfare services for the Korean people.

Kim Yong-pan, then the chief of Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, publicly announced there was no evidence of illegal online postings from the collected laptop of the female agent, which was believed to have significantly affected the outcome of the presidential election according to the opposing party.

Park was elected as president of the Republic of Korea on December 19, 2012, with the approval of 51.6% of Korean voters.

Park Geun-Hye was inaugurated as the president of South Korea on February 25, 2013, becoming the first female president of the country.

In May 2013, South Korean President Park Geun Hye visited the United States, where she met with U.S. President Barack Obama and addressed a joint session of the U.S. Congress. During the visit, she emphasized the importance of a strong global relationship between South Korea and the United States and called for a united front against North Korean provocations.

On 13 November 2013, South Korean President Park Geun Hye held an extended meeting with President Vladimir Putin of Russia. They discussed combining Korea's Eurasian Initiative and Russia's Asia-Pacific Policy, and issued a joint communique after the summit.

During her state visit to Germany, Park proposed three steps to North Korea to help move toward the reunification of the Korean Peninsula, including jointly managing rivers and forests, expanding joint projects, and attending the UN Convention on Biological Diversity conference.

The Sewol Ferry Disaster refers to the tragic sinking of the South Korean ferry MV Sewol, resulting in the loss of hundreds of lives, many of whom were students. The disaster was exacerbated by mismanagement and negligence.

After the MV Sewol ferry disaster, Park announced plans to break up South Korea's coastguard and transfer its roles to other departments, aiming to improve response and safety measures.

The Korea Coast Guard and National Emergency Management Agency ceased control as the Ministry of Public Safety and Security was founded, indicating a significant restructuring of safety and security management in South Korea.

Park was criticized for holding press conferences with questions and answers submitted in advance, leading to the label of 'No communication' (불통, Bultong) by her opponents.

Park urged the head of the Asian Development Bank to cooperate with South Korea and the China-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, following South Korea's official application to join the Chinese-led bank.

Around 80,000 anti-government protesters clashed with government forces in Seoul, demanding Park Geun-hye to step down due to business-friendly labor policies and a decision to require state-issued history textbooks. Security forces used tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowd.

Park suffered a serious setback in the 2016 general elections as the Saenuri Party lost both its majority and its status as the first party in the National Assembly. The defeat was attributed to Park's involvement in the elections and the party's nomination process, leading to criticism and blame from other Saenuri members.

Park became the first South Korean president to visit Iran, leading a delegation to discuss bilateral trade and cooperation. Agreements were signed to expand mutual cooperation over various areas, aiming to significantly boost trade volume between the two countries.

In late October 2016, President Park publicly admitted her close relationship with Choi Soon-sil, who had been accused of using her influence to extort money and manipulate university admissions.

Protests began on 26 October calling on President Park's resignation, with her approval rating dropping to 4% and 78% of South Koreans supporting her impeachment as of 9 December.

On 28 October 2016, President Park dismissed key members of her top office staff as her approval ratings plummeted, leading to widespread public outrage and protests.

On 12 November 2016, over 1 million citizens participated in mass protests at Gwanghwamun Square, demanding President Park's resignation or impeachment due to the ongoing controversy and allegations of abuse of power.

On 29 November 2016, President Park offered to resign as president, but the opposition parties rejected the offer, leading to the National Assembly filing a motion for impeachment.

President Park appointed Park Young-soo, former head of the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office, as a special prosecutor to investigate the allegations on 30 November.

By December 3, 2016, the public outcry against President Park had escalated into a massive protest of over 1 million Koreans outside the Blue House. This protest led to the introduction of a bill for her impeachment.

On December 9, 2016, Park Geun Hye was impeached by the liberal-controlled parliament over allegations of extortion, bribery, and other wrongdoing, in collaboration with her longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil.

On 10 March 2017, the Constitutional Court of South Korea unanimously decided to impeach President Park, leading to the suspension of her presidential powers and duties.

Sook Jong Lee's article from March 24, 2017, discusses a potential democratic breakthrough in South Korea.

On 26 March 2017, South Korean prosecutors announced they were seeking an arrest warrant against Park, which was granted by the Seoul Central District Court, leading to her arrest and subsequent sentencing to 25 years in prison.

Park was arrested on 31 March 2017 and held in pre-trial detention at the Seoul Detention Center in Uiwang, Gyeonggi Province. She was later formally charged with abuse of power, bribery, coercion, and leaking government secrets.

On May 9, 2017, Park's rival, Moon, won a presidential by-election to choose her successor.

On May 23, 2017, Park Geun Hye, in handcuffs, was brought to the Seoul Central District Court for the opening of her criminal trial, which was expected to take several months.

An article from January 20, 2018, discusses a controversial presidential friendship in South Korea.

On April 6, 2018, Park Geun Hye was sentenced to 24 years in prison for abuse of power and coercion. The sentence was later increased to 25 years and a substantial fine following an appeal by prosecutors. She was eventually pardoned in December 2021.

On 24 December 2021, it was announced that Park would receive a pardon from South Korean President Moon Jae-in, citing her deteriorating health and the need to promote national unity as reasons for the pardon.