South Korea's Political Storm: Ex-First Lady Indicted, PM Under Fire in High-Stakes Scandals

South Korea finds itself in the grip of a deepening political maelstrom as its legal system takes aim at the highest echelons of power. Former First Lady Kim Keon-hee, wife of President Yoon Suk-yeol, has been formally indicted on charges of alleged stock price manipulation, a move that significantly escalates pressure on the presidential office.

Concurrently, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo faces a barrage of calls for his resignation and a looming parliamentary investigation into his conduct surrounding the tragic Itaewon crowd crush, alongside separate allegations of property value misrepresentation.

The indictment of Kim Keon-hee by prosecutors marks a pivotal moment in a long-running scandal.

She is accused of involvement in manipulating the stock prices of Deutsch Motors Inc., a local car dealer, between 2009 and 2012. This particular case has cast a long shadow over President Yoon Suk-yeol's administration, with the opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) persistently demanding accountability.

Despite a prior investigation by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office that concluded without her indictment in December 2022, the political will for a special probe persisted, culminating in this significant legal development. The allegations center on her supposed role in orchestrating illicit trading activities to inflate Deutsch Motors' share value for personal gain.

Adding to the government's woes, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's position has become increasingly precarious.

He stands accused of negligence in his handling of the aftermath of the devastating Itaewon crowd crush in October 2022, an incident that claimed 159 lives. The DPK successfully passed a motion calling for his dismissal in September of the previous year, highlighting the widespread dissatisfaction with his leadership during the crisis.

Critics argue that his response to the tragedy was inadequate and failed to demonstrate sufficient responsibility for the victims and their families.

Beyond the Itaewon controversy, Han Duck-soo is also entangled in a separate legal inquiry concerning alleged property value misrepresentation. The Prime Minister is suspected of falsely inflating the value of land he owned in Sejong City, specifically a 60-square-meter plot within a 1,770-square-meter parcel.

He reportedly sold this land to the Korea Land & Housing Corp. for approximately 150 million won (about $110,000) in 2022. The DPK has fiercely asserted that Han's initial acquisition of the land in 1999, shortly before his appointment as head of the Office for Government Policy Coordination, was suspicious, and that the subsequent sale price was artificially inflated, implying a potential abuse of his former official position.

The opposition, led by the Democratic Party, has been relentless in its pursuit of independent special probes into both the First Lady's alleged stock manipulation and the Prime Minister's various controversies.

They argue that the current investigations, conducted by government-appointed prosecutors, lack the necessary impartiality. The DPK's persistent demands underscore a broader political struggle to hold powerful figures accountable and to ensure transparency within the administration. These unfolding legal dramas promise to keep South Korea's political landscape tumultuous, with significant implications for President Yoon Suk-yeol's remaining term and the public's trust in its institutions.