Secretive Appointment Process Being Unveiled

It has come to light that Byeon Yang-gyun, the former presidential secretary on National Policy, recommended Shin Jeong-ah, a fake Yale graduate, to become a professor at Dongguk University prior to August, 2005. The secretive process of Ms. Shin’s appointment as a professor is now being unveiled.

Hong Ki-sam, the then Dongguk University president, said, while he being investigated by prosecutors on September 11, “In September 2005, Byeon recommended Shin, who claimed to have graduated from Yale University and was a museum curator, to fill a post in art history department.”

This flies in the face of what the university’s own fact-finding committee said on July 20 “We found that there was not outside influence and her appointment was our mistake. We did not thoroughly check out the documents she submitted.”

It has at least become clear that Shin did not become a professor on her merits. So the prosecution is focusing on whether or not Byeon exerted his influence in her employment.

There are many mysteries in her recruitment. Traditionally, the art history department exclusively hired candidates, who majored in Buddhist art. She was the first western art major to have been hired by the department. This prompted controversy.

After her appointment, professors at Art College claimed that she might have a forged academic back ground and demanded the school to investigate.

The university, however, said “The result of our investigation says that this is no problem,” and reinstated her, after six-month leave, to the position of liberal arts professor, rather than just arts professor.

On several occasions, the Buddhist University went too far to make her a professor.

A devout Buddhist, Byeon was a close friend of former president Hong. In June 2004, they assumed the role of co-chairs of the Jogye Order Sutra study session.

However, there are mysteries that need be solved. One of them goes beyond the intricacies of their close relations.

It is possible that Hong was assured of national budget funds earmarked for his university in return for hiring Shin, because Byeon was the minister of planning and budget. Korea’s annual national budget is almost 200 trillion won, over which the Ministry of Planning and Budget (MPB) has control. It must have been very hard for Hong to disregard Byeon’s words.

The prosecution thinks that the university must have thought it could easily get government support if it did the MPB’s bidding.

Others say that there was another outside influence, saying that Hong was left with a situation where he had no other choice but to do what he was told.

Prosecutors think they can criminally punish Byeon if he illegally diverted national budget to the university in return for Shin’s appointment.

needjung@donga.com