Spotlight On Asia

A scandal over alleged abuse of power engulfing the South Korean president deepened on Tuesday after the embattled leader was forced to withdraw her nominee for prime minister and give up control of the cabinet. Her close friendship with shadowy figure Choi Soon-sil, which has plunged the country into its worst political crisis in decades. The woman at the centre of the growing political scandal surrounding President Park Guen-hye is businesswoman Choi Soon-sil.She has been charged with abuse of power and fraud for using her political connections to force large companies, including Samsung and Hyundai, to donate about 60 million euros to two government-linked foundations.The affair has hurt Park.Since reports emerged in October about Choi’s influence at the heart of the government, thousands of South Koreans have been taking to the streets of the capital Seoul to call on her to step down."One of the reasons why the South Korean public is so up in arms about all this right now is because they thought with Pres