[Aju News DB]
South Korean President Park Geun-hye appeared to have distressed herself about her facial scars she got during a local election campaign ten years ago, a plastic surgeon testified Friday.
In 2006, a 50-year-old man with multiple criminal convictions slashed Park's face with a utility knife, causing an 11-centimeter wound that required 60 stitches and several hours of surgery.
The attack helped her follower score an upset victory in a local election to select city mayors and provincial chiefs. Afterward, Park won a nickname "Queen of Elections" in return for a permanent scar on her face.
"She appears to have a complex about her facial scar," said Kim Young-jae, a plastic surgeon who has provided skin care treatment for Park and her arrested crony, Choi Soon-sil.
The doctor told parliamentary investigators that he had been called to the presidential Blue House sometimes because of Park's complaint about "a facial tic whenever she feels tired".
"An asymmetrical structure of her face appeared to have put her under a lot of stress," Kim was quoted as saying.
Witnesses and former presidential staff claimed that since she took office as South Korea's first female president in early 2013, close face-to-face meetings between Park and people in the presidential residence have not been common.
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
![[IMPEACHMENT] S. Koreas constitutional court defines Park as intolerable criminal](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2017/03/10/20170310130447580701.jpg)
![[IMPEACHMENT] Park faces unease life at her private home, possible prosecution](https://image.ajunews.com/content/image/2017/03/10/20170310131438211920.jpg)