South Korea's First Lady accused of plagiarizing master's thesis

An internal review by Sookmyung Women's University, a private university in Seoul where Kim submitted her thesis in 1999 to earn a master's degree in art education, has preliminarily concluded that the First Lady engaged in plagiarism, the Korea Times reported Wednesday.

It cited sources as saying that the university's research ethics committee sent its findings to Kim in late December last year, giving her until the end of this month to appeal the decision.

If Kim denies the allegations and challenges the conclusion, the committee is expected to review her appeal before making a final decision.

This is not the first time Kim, who is also accused of stock market manipulation and meddling in election nominations, has faced scrutiny over her academic qualifications, according to the South China Morning Post.

In 2022, after a months-long investigation, Seoul’s Kookmin University absolved Kim of plagiarism allegations regarding her doctoral dissertation. She received her PhD in design from the institution in 2008.

Sookmyung Women’s University’s conclusion came as South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol is facing mounting political challenges as controversies surrounding his administration and allies continue to fuel public criticism.

The suspended president has defied repeated summons in a separate criminal investigation into allegations he masterminded insurrection with his Dec. 3 martial law bid, which led to the first arrest warrant issued for a sitting president.

According to Reuters, Yoon has earlier ignored the Constitutional Court's requests to submit legal briefs before the court began its hearing on Dec. 27, but his lawyers have said he was willing to appear in person to argue his case.

Yoon will accept the decision of the Constitutional Court that is trying parliament's impeachment case against him, even if it decides to remove the suspended leader from office, his lawyer said on Thursday.

"So if the decision is 'removal', it cannot but be accepted," lawyer Yoon Kab-keun told a news conference.

Rulings by the court, one of the two highest courts in the country along with the Supreme Court, cannot be appealed.