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UNCLAS SEOUL 000449 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KS PGOV PINR PREL
SUBJECT: ROK PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE PARK GEUN-HYE: CAN SHE 
RETURN HOME TO THE BLUE HOUSE? 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary: Opposition presidential hopeful Park 
Geun-hye, currently second in all presidential polls with 
about 20 percent support, is the first woman to run for 
president in Korea.  As former President Park Chung-hee's 
daughter, she earns votes from those who are nostalgic for 
the double digit economic growth of President Park's rule 
(1961-1979) and loses votes from those who remember the 
injustices of her father's authoritarian reign.  She 
successfully led the main opposition Grand National Party 
(GNP) from March 2004 until June 2006 to a surprisingly good 
result in the National Assembly elections in April 2004 and 
multiple victories in subsequent local and by-elections.  Her 
popularity peaked after, despite being attacked during a 
speech and hospitalized, she heroically left her hospital bed 
and went directly to campaign.  Her inspiring performance led 
the GNP to a sweeping victory in the May 31 local elections. 
She lost both her parents to assassination in the 1970s and 
has never married.  As a presidential candidate, Park's clean 
image and devotion to her country have won her a solid base 
of conservative support, but she remains well behind the 
leading GNP candidate Lee Myung-bak.  End Summary 
 
Formative Years 
--------------- 
 
¶2.  (SBU) Former GNP Chair Park Geun-hye was born February 2, 
1952 and raised in the Blue House from the age of 9. Park's 
mother made every effort to offer Park a normal life, sending 
her to public schools and allowing her to ride the tram like 
other children.  According to her official bio, she spent her 
early years, "learning traditional arts and living a quiet 
life observing great events."  Her mother is credited with 
ensuring Park had the best education.  After hearing a 
distinguished American visitor to the Blue House say that 
engineering was the key to Korea's future, Park decided to 
major in engineering.  When she graduated from prestigious 
Sogang University with a degree in electrical engineering, 
she was one of a handful of women with such a degree. 
 
Mother's Assassination 
---------------------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) After graduating from Catholic Sogang University in 
1974, Park went to France for further study.  In August of 
1974, her mother was killed in a North Korean assassination 
plot by a Japanese-Korean on then President Park Chung-hee. 
Park Geun-hye returned home after her mother's death and as 
the president's eldest daughter, Park served as acting first 
lady from 1974 to 1979. 
 
Father's Assassination 
---------------------- 
 
¶4.  (SBU) On October 26, 1979, her father was assassinated by 
his KCIA chief.  When Park Geun-hye learned of her father's 
death, her first reaction was apparently to ask, "Is the DMZ 
all right?"  Some believe Park Chung-hee was grooming his 
eldest daughter to be president, although there is no 
evidence to support this claim.  During the ensuing Chun 
Doo-hwan regime, Park's personal life was difficult as she 
was shadowed by the KCIA and many of her confidants were sent 
to hard-time prisons and even tortured. 
 
Preparing for the Blue House? 17 Years of Solitude 
--------------------------------------------- ----- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) From late 1979 until late 1996, Park lived a 
largely solitary life.  She dealt with the shock of both her 
parents' deaths and spent much of her time dealing with her 
own grief.  As the family head, Park also had a number of 
serious problems.  Her brother suffered serious drug 
addiction and was arrested on several occasions.  Her sister 
had a difficult divorce during this time.  Park Geun-hye 
worked mostly at home although she did hold the chairperson 
position at Daegu's Youngnam University during this period. 
In 1992, she wrote in her diary, "If I were to choose, I 
might choose death over a life like this again." 
 
¶6.  (SBU) She spent a considerable amount of her time with 
Yukyoung Foundation and the Saemaeum Hospital, charitable 
foundations established by her father.  She also held a 
controversial position as head of the Jangsu Scholarhip 
Foundation that was founded with Busan Ilbo newspaper stock 
 
"given" -- possibly under pressure -- to the foundation by 
Busan Ilbo's founder.  Since she started work with Girl 
Scouts of Korea in 1974 and she became involved in various 
welfare projects during the 70s and 80s, Park has always put 
a strong emphasis on charitable work. 
 
Step Back into the Spotlight 
---------------------------- 
 
¶7.  (SBU) In 1996 Park joined the New Korea Party (the Grand 
National Party predecessor party) and became an Assemblywoman 
representing Daegu through by-elections in 1998.  She said 
she returned to public view to "save the country."  In 
speeches Park says that she was motivated by the economic 
crisis of 1997 and wanted to "reform the party system and the 
overall political environment." 
 
Campaign Trail 
-------------- 
 
¶8.  (SBU) Park officially declared her candidacy in October 
2006 but has been working on her campaign since she stepped 
down in June 2006 from her position as Chairman of the GNP. 
Her popularity peaked in May 2006 after a 50-year-old man 
slashed her with a small knife, causing a 10-centimeter wound 
on her face that required 60 stitches and hours of surgery. 
Her well-publicized first words after the attack were, "I am 
all right.  Don't overreact," which helped sweep the GNP to 
victory across the nation. 
 
¶9.  (SBU) In January 2007, Park put her campaign into high 
gear with veiled and not-so-veiled attacks at front-runner 
Lee Myung-bak.  She has had a series of high profile speeches 
laying out her policy positions and she has even changed her 
trademark hairstyle.  (Note: Her previous hairstyle was 
identical to that of her mother's.  Her current style is much 
more modern.  End Note)  Her speaking style is 
straightforward and cautious.  While some pundits criticize 
her for a lack of dynamism in her speaking style, even her 
detractors agree that she has a "certain charisma." 
 
¶10.  (SBU) In 1975 eight students who struggled against 
Park's rule were sentenced to death on trumped up charges of 
violating the National Security Law and treason.  The eight 
were executed less than 24 hours after the trial.  Recently, 
a court revisited the cases and declared the eight activists 
innocent.  Park Geun-hye was asked to comment on the case. 
She replied that the case was only being dealt with now for 
political reasons and she had already apologized for any 
injustices committed when she was in the Blue House. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) Park is now in the United States, hoping to shore 
up her image as a leader on a bigger stage.  While former 
Seoul Mayor Lee Myung-bak leads all polls with his focus on 
the economy and his proposed "MBnomics," Park seeks, 
according to advisors, to show she is a capable leader who 
can be trusted with the economy and the country.  She 
emphasizes in her speeches that the GNP should choose not 
just the candidate who can win the primary, but the candidate 
who can withstand scrutiny and attacks from the press and 
progressive candidates in the general election. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶12.  (SBU) Park Geun-hye impresses all who meet her and her 
complete devotion to her country is unquestionable.    While 
she is running a strong second in all polls and cannot be 
dismissed, many, even in the GNP, say that Korea may not be 
ready yet to elect a female president.  They probably have a 
point, because she is running 20-30 points behind Lee. 
Still, even if she loses this time, Park will remain a key 
figure in Korean politics for many years to come. 
VERSHBOW