View source for Bo Hi Pak

{{Short description|Unification Church member (1930–2019)}}
{{family name hatnote|[[Park (Korean name)|Pak]]||lang=Korean}}
{{Infobox Korean name/auto
|hangul=%박보희
|hanja=朴普熙
}}
'''Bo Hi Pak''' ({{Korean|hangul=박보희}}; August 18, 1930 – January 12, 2019) was a prominent member of the [[Unification Church]]. During the 1970s and 1980s, he was a major leader in the church movement, leading projects such as newspapers (notably ''[[The Washington Times]]''), schools, performing arts projects, political projects such as the [[anti-communist]] organization [[CAUSA International]], and was president of the Unification Church International 1977–1991.<ref name=autobio/>  He was also the president of [[Little Angels Children's Folk Ballet of Korea]].<ref>[http://hamptonroads.com/2010/06/korean-war-vets-thanked-little-angels-norfolk Korean War vets thanked by Little Angels in Norfolk], ''Virginian-Pilot'', June 8, 2010</ref>

== Life ==
Pak was a lieutenant colonel in the South Korean military when he joined the Unification Church in the 1950s. Serving church founder [[Sun Myung Moon]] as his main English interpreter during speaking tours in the United States, he was referred to in the media as Moon's "right-hand man"<ref>"Moon and his ballet stars", by Robert Black, ''The Telegraph'', October 26, 2000.</ref> (or similarly), such as "Moon's top deputy".<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/longterm/cult/unification/image.htm "Church Spends Millions On Its Image"] by Michael Isikoff, ''The Washington Post'', September 17, 1984; Page A01.</ref>

He was the central figure in Moon's publishing businesses, including founding President and Publisher, ''[[The News World]]'' (later renamed ''New York City Tribune''); founding [[President (corporate title)|President]] and [[Chair (official)|Chairman of the Board]], the [[Washington Times]] Corporation; and President, World Media Association.<ref name=autobio>Appendix B: Brief Chronology of the Life of Dr. Bo Hi Pak, in ''Messiah: My Testimony to Rev. Sun Myung Moon, Vol I'' by Bo Hi Pak (2000), Lanham, MD: University Press of America.

*1973    Principal, the Little Angels Arts School, Seoul, Korea.
*1974    Principal evangelist and director general of the Sun Myung Moon Christian Crusade.
*1976-1988       Chairman, Sun-Hwa Educational Foundation, Seoul, Korea.
*1976-1990       President and publisher, the ''News World'' daily newspaper in New York City (later renamed New York City Tribune).
*1977-1991       President, Unification Church International.
*1977-Present   Member of the Board, Unification Church International.
*1978-1995       President, World Media Association.
*1980-1992       President and Publisher. ''Noticias Del Muudo'', New York Spanish-language daily newspaper.
*1981-Present   President, [[CAUSA International]].
*1982-1992       President, the Washington Times Corporation. (''The Washington Times'' daily newspaper and ''[[Insight on the News]]'' weekly magazine, and ''World & I'' monthly academic journal
*1982-1997       Chairman of the Board, the Washington Times Corporation.
*1983-1997       Chairman, Association for the Unity of Latin America.
*1986-Present   President, Universal Ballet Foundation, corporate sponsors of the Kirov Academy of Ballet in Washington, D.C.
*1987-1997       President, Summit Council for World Peace.
*1990-Present   Chairman of the hoard and chief executive officer, Panda Motors Corporation in the United States, Hong Kong, and China.
*1991-1994       President and publisher, ''Seyge Ilbo'' daily newspaper, Seoul, Korea.</ref>

In 1976 Pak incorporated [[True World Foods]] which became the largest sushi supplier in America.<ref name= "Willamette Week" >{{cite web |last1=Moore |first1=Elizabeth Armstrong |title=Holy Mackerel! |url=https://www.wweek.com/portland/article-5734-holy-mackerel.html |website=wweek.com |publisher=Willamette Week |access-date=11 December 2022}}</ref>

In 1977/1978, Pak testified before the [[Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations|Fraser Committee]] in its investigation of the Unification Church, commenting: "I am a proud Korean &ndash; a proud Moonie &ndash; and a dedicated anti-Communist and I intend to remain so the rest of my life."<ref>''Inquisition: The Persecution and Prosecution of the Reverend Sun Myung Moon'', by Carlton Sherwood, 1991, Regnery Gateway, page 558, {{ISBN|978-0-89526-532-6}}</ref>  In response to the adversarial investigation, Pak wrote ''Truth is My Sword''. [[Alexander Haig]] commented in the introduction: "From the battlefield of the Korean peninsula to the halls of the U.S. Congress, Dr. Pak's speeches mirror the convictions of an individual whose ardent sense of justice has always been the cornerstone of his advocacy of personal freedom and democracy."<ref>[http://www.tparents.org/library/unification/books/tims1/Tims1-00-d.htm Introduction, ''Truth Is My Sword Volume I: Collected Speeches in the Public Arena'' by Bo Hi Pak]</ref>

In 1984 Pak was [[Kidnaping|kidnapped]] in New York City and held for ransom.  The [[FBI]] arrested the kidnappers, who claimed that the crime was an attempt to change Unification Church policy.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20100902025144/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,955359,00.html Crime: Kidnaping of a Moonie], ''[[Time magazine|Time]]'', December 10, 1984</ref>

In 1987 at a church gathering, a Zimbabwean Unification Church member who was thought by Moon to be the continuous "channel" on earth for his deceased son [[Heung Jin Moon]], "beat Bo Hi Pak so badly that he was hospitalized for a week in Georgetown Hospital."<ref>Hong, Nansook. (1998). ''In the Shadow of the Moons: My Life in the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Family''. Little, Brown. ({{ISBN|0-316-34816-3}})</ref> ''[[The Washington Post]]'' reported that "Later, Pak underwent surgery in South Korea to repair a blood vessel in his skull, according to Times executives."<ref>[http://www.skepticfiles.org/cultinfo/wp-mon33.htm Theological Uproar in Unification Church; Rev. Moon Recognizes Zimbabwean as His Reincarnated Son] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110120144233/http://www.skepticfiles.org/cultinfo/wp-mon33.htm |date=2011-01-20 }},  by Michael Isikoff, Washington Post staff writer, ''[[The Washington Post]]'', 30 March 1988. Accessed Saturday, August 19, 2006.</ref>

In 1994, Pak visited [[North Korea]] to attend the funeral of President [[Kim Il Sung]], risking legal trouble by the South Korean government in doing so. In 1998 he visited again, leading a trade delegation representing Unification Church interests with the blessing of the South Korean government.<ref>[http://www.iht.com/articles/1998/05/02/unite.t.php Reverend Moon's Group Wants to Talk Investment: Seoul Nods At Church's Foray North] Kirk, Don [[International Herald Tribune]] 1999-06-02]</ref>

On July 20, 2004 the Eastern Seoul District Prosecutor imprisoned Pak and charged him with financial fraud because he was unable to repay his debts to Korean businessmen.<ref>[http://www.savebohipak.org/english/casebackground.htm case background] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051215121319/http://www.savebohipak.org/english/casebackground.htm |date=December 15, 2005 }}</ref>  In 2006, Pak was released on [[probation]] after serving 2 years and 3 ½ months. On November 6, 2006, he sent a letter to be distributed by Unification Church publications worldwide to give an account of his experiences in prison. In the letter he wrote:

{{quote|Being able to live to the age of 76 was already a great blessing, but in my physical condition, I could not conceive how I would be able to serve time in prison until I became 81. I thought of [[John the Baptist]] 2000 years ago. He came with the mission to bear witness about Jesus but ended up dying in prison.  I, Bo Hi, have lived with the conviction that I was born with the mission of John the Baptist for the time of the Second Advent. If it was my mission and destiny to die in prison in order to indemnify the failure of the first John the Baptist, then I was resolutely determined to solemnly receive my fate.<ref>[http://www.unification.net/news/BoHiPak20061106.html "Letter from Prison"]</ref>}}

== See also ==
* [[Unification Church political activities]]
* [[List of Unification movement people]]
* [[Koreagate]]
* [[Subcommittee on International Organizations of the Committee on International Relations]] (Fraser Committee)
* [[The Washington Times]]
* [[True World Foods]]
* [[Unification Church of the United States]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{wikiquote}}
* [http://www.tparents.org/Library/Unification/Books/Tims2/Tims2-a09.htm Book by James Gavin]
* [http://www.tparents.org/unews/unws0310/book_rev_messiah_2.htm ''Messiah''], a book about Sun Myung Moon by Bo Hi Pak
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070312063442/http://www.savebohipak.org/english/contents.htm?no=13 Open letter to members of the Unification Church] by InJin Moon
* [http://www.unification.net/news/BoHiPak20061106.html Letter to Unification Church publications] by Bo Hi Pak

{{Unification Church}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pak, Bo Hi}}
[[Category:1930 births]]
[[Category:2019 deaths]]
[[Category:South Korean anti-communists]]
[[Category:South Korean Unificationists]]
[[Category:Republic of Korea Army personnel]]
[[Category:South Korean prisoners and detainees]]
[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of South Korea]]
[[Category:The Washington Times people]]
[[Category:Kidnapped South Korean people]]
[[Category:People convicted of fraud]]