Tak Hyun-min, Kim Jung-sook Respond to 'Expensive Brooch' Controversy: "Not a Luxury Item... Shouldn't Open Others' Closets"

청, Kim Jung-sook's 'Expensive Outfit' Controversy: "Not Special Activity Funds but Personal Money... Regret"

First Lady Kim Jung-sook, wife of President Moon Jae-in, is taking a commemorative photo with Indian international students at Ibom Theater in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, in July 2018. Photo by Cheong Wa Dae Facebook screen capture.

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Amid suspicions that First Lady Kim Jung-sook's brooch is a luxury item worth over 200 million won, Tak Hyun-min, the Blue House Protocol Secretary, refuted on the 29th, stating, "The First Lady's brooch is neither a luxury item nor was it intended to look like one."

Tak wrote on his Facebook that day, "The First Lady's clothes and accessories are never chosen arbitrarily. Whether directly or indirectly, there is always a certain code," explaining this point.

He continued, "It could be matching the colors of the visiting country's flag or aligning with the purpose and nature of the event," and claimed, "The First Lady wore that brooch with an even more 'significant' intention, which was consideration for the country of 'India.'"

He explained, "The First Lady watched the Bollywood movie 'Dangal' with Indian exchange students, Indian actors, and the Indian ambassador. It was an event planned ahead of the President's visit to India," adding, "We even considered wearing the traditional Indian attire 'sari,' but it seemed excessive, so the final decision was to wear a pantsuit with a 'tiger'-shaped brooch."

Tak Hyun-min, Protocol Secretary at the Blue House. [Photo by Yonhap News]

Regarding the reason for wearing the tiger-shaped brooch, Tak said, "India is a country that shows great interest in 'tigers,' to the extent that the Prime Minister holds a press conference on 'Global Tiger Day,' and we reported this fact," adding, "Then the First Lady chose the most suitable brooch from those she had previously, asking, 'Is this a tiger? A leopard? A cat?'"

He also stated, "The important point in this absurd brooch story is that the First Lady wore her own brooch that she had owned for some time and that attendees said the brooch suited the occasion well."

Finally, Tak concluded his post by saying, "One should not open someone else's wardrobe without permission. This is common sense and morality," and added, "Inside the First Lady's wardrobe, there are only her clothes."

Meanwhile, regarding the controversy over the cost of Kim's clothing and protocol expenses, the Blue House stated that these are "baseless claims."

Shin Hye-hyun, Deputy Spokesperson of the Blue House, held a briefing at the Press Center that day and said about the controversy over the First Lady's expensive clothing and protocol costs, "There are baseless claims about the use of special activity funds, but this is completely untrue," adding, "During the term, no special activity funds or national budget were allocated or used for clothing purchases as the President's spouse, and all expenses were borne personally."

She continued, "Clothing supported for diplomatic protocol and international events was either donated or returned," and expressed regret over "reckless and false claims made under the pretext that the Presidential Secretariat's special activity funds cannot be disclosed specifically due to reasons of defense, diplomacy, and security."

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