Park Sun-young faces criticism for praising exam results, amid election speculation

Former chairperson of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission for Past Incidents Park Sun-young sparked controversy after posting a social media (SNS) message praising the educational philosophy of Lee Boo-jin, president of Shilla Hotel, regarding her son. When the issue drew public criticism, Park stated, "There is no problem."

Park wrote on Facebook on the 4th, "In group chats among mothers interested in education, 'Lee Boo-jin' has been a keyword for nearly half a month. The president's son, Lim, a third-year student at Hwi-won High School, apparently got only one question wrong on this year's CSAT. I heard he never missed first place in his school during middle school at Hwi-won Middle School."

She continued, "These days, celebrities and quasi-chaebol families with some money spare no effort to send their children abroad, starting from English kindergartens. Yet, the Samsung Group heiress, who has nothing to envy in the world, sent her son to elementary, middle, and high schools all in Korea. I'm almost grateful. They say he'll attend a domestic university too? Not medicine, though."

Park added, "Anyway, I like Lee Boo-jin. I hope our broken education system can stand properly thanks to her. Let's properly diagnose and fix South Korea's education this time."

It remains unconfirmed whether Lim actually achieved outstanding results in the 2026 academic year CSAT, but online discussions about his "preliminary CSAT score" heated up the day before the official score announcement date, the 5th. Speculations even arose that Lim plans to enroll in a specific department at a domestic university.

Some questioned Park's motive for posting content unrelated to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), with speculation that it might be tied to next year's local elections and the concurrent superintendent election. Park had previously run for Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education superintendent in 2018 and 2022.

As the controversy persisted, Park posted another message on Facebook late that afternoon.

Targeting a media outlet that labeled her a "source of chaebol gossip," Park wrote, "I've suddenly become Samsung's informant." She rebutted, "Since yesterday, hundreds of posts have flooded educational websites saying, 'Lim from ○○ High School got one CSAT question wrong. He's not going to medical school.' How could I have written this post without knowing these facts? Am I Samsung's informant?"

She argued, "I've never met Lee Boo-jin. I'm not an informant, let alone connected. I simply wrote the facts as someone lamenting the collapsed education system. The TRC is a committee for settling past affairs. Even if I were still in office, I could write about education. I'm not even in office now -- what's the issue?"

The second TRC, led by Park, ended its activities late last month. The "Basic Act on the Truth and Reconciliation for the Settlement of Past Affairs," aimed at launching the third TRC, passed the National Assembly Legislation and Judiciary Committee on the 3rd and is awaiting a plenary session vote.

Former TRC Chair's Post on Lee's Son's CSAT Sparks Backlash