With its former leader arrested and imprisoned for her alleged crimes in creating a blacklist of cultural figures, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism had been a "disgrace" for the past few months.
But with the new Moon Jae-in administration, came in the new culture minister,... a poet-turned-politician Do Jong-hwan, who was also the first to unveil the blacklist scandal.
Lee Ji-won has more.
Sworn in as culture minister,... lawmaker from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea,... Do Jong-hwan.
A former school teacher, and an active poet,... Do entered politics back in 2012... but more recently gained notoriety as the person who disclosed the blacklist of artists created under the former Park Geun-hye administration,... a factor that had led to the impeachment of the former leader.
That list barred nearly 450 organizations and cultural figures deemed critical of the government from getting state support,... and eventually landed two top former officials, including the former culture minister, Cho Yoon-sun, in jail.
Do Jong-hwan wound up on the list himself,... one of the reasons why in his confirmation hearing he vowed to make sure such lists are done away with.
June 14th, 2017
"This kind of blacklist should never be made again. It not only cuts artists off from financial support, it's a form of social exclusion,... marring our democracy and violating the Constitution."
And there he promised to set up a special committee to thoroughly investigate the matter.
Some have voiced concerns that the ministry will create a new, different blacklist under his supervision,... but Minister Do said he'll make sure that doesn't happen.
Just a few days into the job,... the new minister is hard at work on one of the country's top priorities -- preparations to successfully host the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics.
He's also working to keep his promise of working with experts in relevant fields when drawing up policies for museums, excavations and the preservation of antiquites.
That... along with providing financial support for the less privileged to narrow the cultural engagement gap between income groups.
But most importantly, is restoring the people's confidence in the ministry.
And hopes are high at the ministry itself,... now led for the first time in six years by someone with a background in the arts,... that perhaps,... as he puts it,... "Korea will be beautified by its culture."
Lee Ji-won, Arirang News.
