SEOUL: The leader of the Unification Church, Han Hak-ja, appeared for questioning by prosecutors on Wednesday over alleged involvement in bribing the wife of ousted South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol as part of a criminal probe into the former first couple.
Han declined to answer questions from reporters about the allegations as she arrived at the office of the special prosecutor.
“I’ve been unwell,” she said, when asked why she had chosen to respond to questioning, after refusing earlier summons.
Han, who is called “True Mother” by followers, is the widow of Unification Church founder Moon Sun-myung, who died in 2012.
Han was assisted by aides as she stepped out of the car and walked slowly through a throng of reporters and security.
A church official shouted “Mother, hang in there,” as Han made her way inside the prosecutors’ office.
An ambulance arranged by Han was on standby while she was interrogated, according to the special prosecutor’s team.
The special prosecutor has indicted former First Lady Kim Keon Hee for bribery and other charges in a widening probe into several charges of wrongdoing by her before and during Yoon’s presidency. Kim has been imprisoned as part of the probe.
Han has been accused of instructing the religious group to bribe the former first lady and Kweon Seong-dong, a veteran lawmaker and close confidante of Yoon. Han has denied the allegations.
Kweon from the conservative People Power Party was detained on Wednesday over concerns he could destroy evidence, prosecutors said. Kweon has denied that he took bribes from the church.
Kim Hyong Kun, deputy special prosecutor, told reporters on Wednesday that Han did not exercise her right to remain silent and answered questions well related to allegations of violating political funding and anti-graft laws.
The prosecutors were not currently considering issuing an arrest warrant for Han, since she had come in for questioning, Kim said.
Yoon, who is also in detention, is on trial over insurrection charges levelled against him by a separate special prosecutor related to his botched bid to declare martial law.
Kim is accused of receiving bribes worth 80 million won ($57,958) that include two Chanel bags and a diamond necklace from an official at the Unification Church in return for using her influence to help the church’s business interests.
Kim’s lawyers have denied the allegations against her, including over her receiving gifts.
Han has called the allegations against her “false information.”
The official from the church that prosecutors say was behind the bribery has been arrested and indicted on charges including violating anti-graft laws.
The Unification Church, formally called the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, said previously it was “deeply regrettable” that it failed to prevent the misconduct of a former senior official, but denied any involvement in the case.
Unification Church leader questioned in ex-South Korea first lady investigation
https://arab.news/jznah
Unification Church leader questioned in ex-South Korea first lady investigation
- Han Hak-ja questioned over bribery allegations involving former First Lady Kim Keon Hee
- Lawmaker detained over evidence destruction concerns, denies bribery
Trump expands travel ban, adding 5 more countries and imposing new limits on others
- Nationals from Syria, South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger are banned from visiting the US
- The White House also fully restricted travel on people with Palestinian-Authority-issued travel documents
WASHINGTON: The Trump administration is expanding its travel ban to include five more countries and impose new limits on others.
This move Tuesday is part of ongoing efforts to tighten US entry standards for travel and immigration. The decision follows the arrest of an Afghan national suspect in the shooting of two National Guard troops over Thanksgiving weekend.
In June, President Donald Trump announced that citizens of 12 countries would be banned from visiting the United States and those from seven others would face restrictions. The decision resurrected a hallmark policy of his first term.
At the time the ban included Afghanistan, Myanmar, Chad, the Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Haiti, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen and heightened restrictions on visitors from Burundi, Cuba, Laos, Sierra Leone, Togo, Turkmenistan and Venezuela.
On Tuesday, the Republican administration announced it was expanding the list of countries whose citizens are banned from entering the US to Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, South Sudan and Syria. The administration also fully restricted travel on people with Palestinian-Authority-issued travel documents.
An additional 15 countries are also being added to the list of countries facing partial restrictions: Angola, Antigua and Barbuda, Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Dominica, Gabon, Gambia, Malawi, Mauritania, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Tonga, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
The Trump administration said in its announcement of the expanded travel ban that many of the countries from which it was restricting travel had “widespread corruption, fraudulent or unreliable civil documents and criminal records” that made it difficult to vet their citizens for travel to the US. It also said some countries had high rates of people overstaying their visas, refused to take back their citizens who the US wished to deport or had a “general lack of stability and government control,” which made vetting difficult.
“The restrictions and limitations imposed by the Proclamation are necessary to prevent the entry of foreign nationals about whom the United States lacks sufficient information to assess the risks they pose, garner cooperation from foreign governments, enforce our immigration laws, and advance other important foreign policy, national security, and counterterrorism objectives,” reads the White House proclamation announcing the changes.
The Afghan man accused of shooting the two National Guard troops near the White House has pleaded not guilty to murder and assault charges.
