Housewives suffer ordeal as influence peddling scandal spreads

Former senior presidential secretary for policy coordination Ahn Jong-beom claimed to special prosecutors that he wasn't aware of the fact that his wife received a luxury bag and 25 million won (21,795 U.S. dollars) in cash from Park Chae-yoon, head of medical device manufacturer Y. Jacobs Medical and wife of Kim Yong-jae, a doctor who allegedly gave cosmetic treatment to the president. Ahn said that the telephone conversation between himself and Park in which he told her "Thanks for the present. I got a good grade from my wife" was just an appreciation for the cosmetics and that he knew that his wife got a luxury bag and cash only when his wife confessed to him after the influence-peddling scandal emerged last year. Special prosecutors believe that Park bought the bag at a department store and left it there packaged as a gift that Ahn's wife came to take later. Ahn's explanation appears to be a flimsy excuse.

The wife of Jeon In-beom, former special commander scouted to the camp of Moon Jae-in, former leader of the main opposition Minjoo Party, is also mired in disputes. Jeon posted a message on Facebook saying "What do you think I would have done if my wife was involved in corruption? I would have shot her with a gun." Jeon's wife is Sungshin Woman's University President Shim Hwa-jin. Jeon's Facebook message was a reaction to strongly claim her innocence after students urged Shim to step down due to corruption. However, women are angry over his idea of shooting his wife no matter how he acts militarily.

At a written opinion submitted to the Constitutional Court on Friday, President Park Geun-hye said, "I thought Choi Soon-sil was an ordinary housewife and wasn't aware of the fact that she was managing various companies." While it is hard to believe that she, who has known Choi for 40 years, didn't know what kind of work Choi was doing, the most striking part is that she described Choi who had managed nine corporations in Korea and Germany as a housewife. Ordinary housewives don't talk and act like Choi. The president insulted Korean housewives overall.

Husband and wife are a life companion but at the same time independent human beings who have their own thoughts and lifestyles. Wives of public officials are obligated to be upright, but husbands treating wives as their possessions make people raise eyebrows. It cannot be forgiven if one brings false accusations against his wife as was the case for some politicians in the past. While there are some men who deserve such criticism, it is more shocking that the country's president who is a woman herself is making housewives look foolish.