South Korea's first lady accused of plagiarizing master's thesis

Sookmyung Women's University, which is investigating allegations that South Korean First Lady Kim Keon Hee plagiarized her master's thesis, has released its preliminary conclusions.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee - Photo: AFP

The Korea Times reported on January 8 that an internal review of Sookmyung Women's University - where South Korean First Lady Kim Keon Hee submitted her thesis in 1999 to receive a master's degree in art education - had made a preliminary conclusion that Ms. Kim plagiarized her master's thesis.

According to sources, the school's research ethics committee sent the findings to Ms. Kim in late December last year, and gave her until the end of January this year to appeal the decision.

If the first lady disputes and contests the finding, the committee is expected to consider her appeal before making a final decision.

Controversy over Kim's plagiarism of her master's thesis has been raging since 2022. Accordingly, Kim was accused of plagiarism in her master's thesis titled "A Study on the Characteristics of Paul Klee's Paintings", submitted in 1999 at Sookmyung University as part of the requirements to complete the master's program.

Faced with controversy, Sookmyung University established a committee under the Federation of Korean Industries in 2022 and began a preliminary investigation, then launched a formal investigation in mid-December 2022.

As a rule, the main investigation must be initiated within 30 days from the date the preliminary investigation results are approved and completed within 90 days from the date of initiation.

However, this verification took up to two years.

On January 7, YTN (South Korea) reported that the Sookmyung Democracy Alliance, the party that raised the plagiarism suspicion, said they were only informed that the results were out, but the school had not yet provided them with detailed information.

In response, Sookmyung University explained that the committee decided to notify the subject of the investigation first, and then notify the accuser. The university also emphasized that, in principle, it is not necessary to notify both parties at the same time.

In addition to the plagiarism allegations, Ms. Kim has been implicated in a number of other controversies, including allegations of stock price manipulation, accepting luxury gifts and interfering in the presidential election.

These issues have attracted significant public and political attention, posing additional challenges to the administration of President Yoon Suk Yeol, currently suspended from office due to martial law.

Source: https://tuoitre.vn/de-nhat-phu-nhan-quoc-bi-cao-buoc-dao-luan-van-thac-si-20250109113429605.htm