Allegations have emerged that South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol played golf at a military facility without a reservation, leading to the cancellation of previously scheduled tee times for other groups.
The presidential office has defended the president’s actions, stating there is no issue with the commander-in-chief visiting military golf courses. However, the controversy has intensified following claims that Yoon played golf during a period when military personnel were prohibited from doing so due to joint U.S.-South Korea military exercises, sparking further public concern.
On Thursday, Kim Byung Ju, a Democratic Party lawmaker and retired four-star general, raised the issue during a National Assembly budget committee meeting. He revealed that a report from August 24 claimed that Yoon had played golf at a military course, specifically at Hanseong University, and that the report had been nearly confirmed.
Kim noted that military personnel were banned from playing golf between August 19 and 29 due to the ongoing South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises. He also highlighted the timing, pointing out that the golf outing occurred just two days after a deadly hotel fire in Bucheon on August 22, which claimed 19 lives. The period was officially designated as a national mourning time.
Kim questioned, “How can the public understand that the Commander-in-Chief, during a national mourning period and amid large-scale military exercises, was playing golf?” He raised concerns over the appropriateness of the timing and criticized the president’s actions.
The presidential office responded with a defense, saying, “Why is it a problem for the Commander-in-Chief to play golf at a military facility?”
Kim further disclosed that he had received seven reports regarding Yoon’s golf outings. He said that, after the initial report on August 24, additional reports suggested that Yoon had played golf on several other occasions: August 31, September 7 and 28, October 12, and November 2 and 9. These outings reportedly occurred about once every one to three weeks, typically on Saturdays. Kim argued that these were particularly inappropriate times for the president to engage in recreational activities.
Kim further elaborated on the timing of several of these outings, saying, “On October 12, North Korea claimed that South Korean drones had infiltrated Pyongyang the day before. This was when the military was on high alert, and golf had been banned as part of the security measures.” He also pointed out that on November 2, a phone conversation recording between Yoon and Myung Tae Kyu was released, further adding to the scrutiny.
When Kim pressed Kim about the timing of these outings, Kim Seong Hoon, the head of the Presidential Security Service, responded, “I cannot comment on the president’s schedule,” avoiding a direct answer. He added that media reports taught him about the president’s golf schedule.
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