First Lady Kim Jung-sook's Private Visit to the Pyramid: Was It Appropriate?

Cheong "'Isn't it a trip?' Public criticism possible, so private"
"Purpose is tourism promotion, but private? Lack of explanation"
"There are tour achievements, need balanced understanding"

President Moon Jae-in and First Lady Kim Jung-sook, who completed a tour of three Middle Eastern countries including the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Egypt, arrived at Seongnam Seoul Airport on the morning of the 22nd of last month and are seen disembarking from Air Force One and moving. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Joo-hee] It has been belatedly revealed that First Lady Kim Jung-sook, spouse of President Moon Jae-in, visited the pyramids during her official visit to Egypt, sparking controversy. The Blue House explained that the visit was scheduled at the request of the Egyptian side and was made to avoid diplomatic faux pas, but there is significant public criticism over the fact that the visit was conducted privately.

According to the Blue House, during her stay in Egypt from the 19th to the 21st of last month, Mrs. Kim toured the UNESCO World Heritage pyramids together with the Egyptian Minister of Culture. President Moon did not accompany her due to other schedules, and only a small number of aides including the security team were present. This visit was not a pre-agreed schedule but was arranged after Mrs. Kim’s visit to Egypt.

This fact was only revealed through media reports on the 3rd. The Blue House stated that Mrs. Kim’s pyramid visit was at the request of the Egyptian government and that the schedule was carried out privately in accordance with bilateral consultations. The Blue House explained that the Egyptian government requested Mrs. Kim’s visit for the purpose of revitalizing their tourism industry and promoting their cultural heritage.

Tak Hyun-min, Protocol Secretary at the Blue House, wrote on Facebook, "Egypt strongly requested from the beginning that the President and the First Lady visit the pyramids together, and we also usually request visits to our cultural heritage sites or field visits when foreign heads of state visit, so we tried to accept it, but ultimately declined," indicating that they initially rejected Egypt’s request.

However, he added, "Egypt requested reconsideration, saying that among foreign heads of state who have made state visits, there has never been a case where the pyramid schedule, a symbol of Egyptian culture, was omitted. After much deliberation, we agreed that the First Lady alone would visit with a minimal number of people on the condition of confidentiality," and that "(the Egyptian side) was very puzzled by the fact that only the First Lady would go and that it had to be kept private." He explained that the reason for initially rejecting Egypt’s request was "because it was obvious that there would be some slander and misunderstanding regarding the heritage site visit."

President Moon Jae-in and First Lady Kim Jung-sook are delivering New Year's greetings through a video at the Blue House to celebrate the Lunar New Year holiday. Photo by Yonhap News

Since this occurred during a period when domestic COVID-19 cases were surging due to the spread of the Omicron variant, fierce criticism came from opposition parties. Above all, suspicions arose that the visit was concealed because the schedule was conducted privately. Previously, the Blue House had caused controversy by belatedly revealing that some members of the presidential delegation on President Moon’s tour of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia, and Egypt had tested positive for COVID-19.

Jang Young-il, senior deputy spokesperson of the People Power Party’s election campaign headquarters, issued a statement saying, "President Moon and his spouse pushed ahead with the tour despite the difficulties and suffering of the people at home," and "Since there were no urgent issues, criticism arose that this was obviously a pleasure trip. Then the Blue House warned that the visit’s achievements are all part of the President’s schedule and told critics to stay quiet if they don’t understand diplomacy," criticizing the Blue House.

Spokesperson Jang said, "But as expected, the First Lady’s sightseeing was revealed. Since it was a private schedule, how could the public have known?" and "Then they make excuses again. They say it was a schedule arranged at Egypt’s request. Are they telling us to complain to Egypt if we have a problem? That’s really cowardly." He added, "There are even suspicions that the Blue House concealed the fact that a staff member who accompanied the tour tested positive for COVID-19 because they were afraid the First Lady’s pyramid visit would be revealed," emphasizing, "What the public wants is not the Blue House’s defensive explanations but a sincere apology and reflection."

As criticism spread, the Blue House once again offered explanations. Park Soo-hyun, Senior Secretary for Public Communication at the Blue House, explained in an interview on MBC Radio’s 'Kim Jong-bae’s Focus' on the 4th that the reason for keeping the schedule private was "to fulfill obligations by considering public sentiment and avoiding diplomatic rudeness."

Regarding the criticism that the tour was a 'pleasure trip' and that if it were unjust, the schedule should have been openly disclosed, he said, "During the time when the Omicron wave was surging and small business owners and self-employed people were suffering, there could have been public criticism that it was a leisure trip," "Even if the schedule had been public, criticism would have arisen. While it is understandable to be criticized for keeping it private, calling it a secret sightseeing trip is an excessive accusation," he said.

Experts said that, according to diplomatic customs, it would have been difficult for the Blue House to refuse the host country’s request. Professor Lee Jun-han of the Department of Political Science and Diplomacy at Incheon National University said, "It is not easy to refuse a request from the host country. The Blue House seems to have carefully arranged the schedule privately," adding, "There were also achievements from this tour such as arms exports. It is necessary to understand these aspects in a balanced way."

However, regarding the private scheduling, he said the Blue House’s explanation was somewhat insufficient. Professor Shin Yul of the Department of Political Science and Diplomacy at Myongji University said, "They said the reason for visiting the pyramids was to promote tourism, but the fact that the schedule was kept private felt inconsistent. In that regard, it would have been better if the Blue House’s explanation had been a bit smoother."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.