"Cho Min Travels with Sponsorship, but My Daughter..." Contents of Choi Seo-won's Letter from Prison

Choi "I'm Always the Sacrifice Hit... Don't Try Too Hard to Pardon Me"

A handwritten letter from prison by Choi Seo-won (formerly Choi Soon-sil), who is serving time for the Park Geun-hye government’s state power abuse scandal, was recently revealed. In the letter, she lamented the unfairness of the world by comparing her daughter Jeong Yoo-ra and former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk’s daughter Cho Min. Both Jeong and Cho Min had their university admissions canceled due to fraudulent admissions, but while Cho Min travels using sponsorship funds, Jeong is the breadwinner supporting a difficult life.

Jomin [Image source=Jomin's Instagram]

On the 14th, Jeong Yoo-ra posted her mother’s handwritten letter from prison on her Facebook. In the letter, Choi wrote, “My daughter only completed middle school and all she learned was horseback riding. Her face is well known, so even if she tries to work, there is nowhere she can. This country has taken everything from her,” adding, “But Cho Min is protecting everything she has and receives a lot of sponsorship, so she is traveling.”

She also expressed sorrow, saying, “Jung Kyung-shim had an abundance of sponsorship funds from prison deposits and has already been granted parole, but Yoo-ra is the breadwinner responsible even for my prison deposits.” She continued, “I plead to those on the right wing. Please do not criticize Yoo-ra and support her so she can live.”

In another letter to Jeong, Choi comforted her by saying, “Mom has always been a sacrifice,” and advised, “Don’t work too hard on my pardon issue and try to find a way to live.”

A handwritten letter sent by Choi Seo-won (formerly Choi Soon-sil) from prison to her daughter Jung Yoo-ra
[Image source=Captured from Jung Yoo-ra's Facebook]
Photo by Jung Yoo-ra

Earlier, last month, Choi also requested her release in a letter from prison made public through her lawyer Lee Kyung-jae, stating, “If I am not pardoned this time, I believe the current government will not grant my pardon and reinstatement,” and claimed, “I was stripped of everything by being tied to former President Park Geun-hye as a mere shadow power and co-perpetrator.”

Choi was sentenced to 21 years in prison on June 11, 2020, for abuse of power and obstruction of justice, and is currently incarcerated at Cheongju Women’s Prison. If she serves her full term, she is scheduled to be released at the end of 2037, when she will be 81 years old.

Jung Yu-ra [Photo by Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, Jeong Yoo-ra is actively voicing her opinions on various social issues through her social networking service (SNS).

On the 6th, Jeong shared on her Facebook news about a traffic accident involving a vehicle carrying Yoo Dong-gyu, the key witness in the Daejang-dong development project preferential treatment allegations and former head of planning at Seongnam Urban Development Corporation, colliding with a truck. She wrote, “This is how they silence people,” and added, “Are they trying to kill me too? It’s scary.”

On the 13th, she also criticized former Democratic Party leader Song Young-gil for posting a photo on his SNS of him eating jajangmyeon at a Chinese restaurant in Yongsan with his pet dog.

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