Business leaders, 2,100 others pardoned ahead of Liberation Day
President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks during a meeting with officials of United Nations Command at the presidential office in Seoul, Thursday. Yoon on Monday granted pardons to 2,176 people on the occasion of Liberation Day, including business tycoons. Yonhap
List includes ex-chiefs of Kumho Petrochemical, Booyoung, Lotte Foundation
By Jung Min-ho
President Yoon Suk Yeol granted pardons to 2,176 people, Monday, on the occasion of Liberation Day (Aug. 15), including the former chiefs of Kumho Petrochemical, Booyoung and Lotte Foundation.
Park Chan-koo, former chairman and CEO of the leading manufacturer of synthetic rubber, Lee Joong-keun, founder and former chairman of Booyoung, a building developer and Shin Young-ja, a daughter of late Lotte Group founder Shin Kyuk-ho, were among those on this year's list. The three were all convicted of breach of duty and embezzlement.
Other names on the list include Kim Tae-woo, who was given a suspended prison term after disclosing classified information regarding the misconduct of the previous Moon Jae-in administration, and Kang Man-soo, who was sentenced to five years and two months in prison for abusing his authority to give his acquaintances government projects while working as an adviser to former President Lee Myung-bak.
With their rights and freedom restored, the beneficiaries are now allowed to return to their top posts at public companies or run for political office.
Most of those pardoned had been convicted of white-collar crimes and minor offenses. It is a tradition for the president to issue mass pardons to mark major holidays in Korea.
Rhee Jang-han, chairman of Chong Kun Dang, a pharmaceutical company; Lee Ho-jin, former chairman of Taekwang Group, an apparel giant; Kang Jeong-seok, former chairman of Dong-A Socio Holdings, another pharmaceutical company, were other prominent figures to be pardoned.
From left are Kumho Petrochemical former Chairman and CEO Park Chan-koo, Booyoung founder and former Chairman Lee Joong-keun, Chong Kun Dang Chairman Rhee Jang-han, Taekwang Group former Chairman Lee Ho-jin and Kim Tae-woo, former inspector at the presidential office under the previous Moon Jae-in administration. Yonhap
At a Cabinet meeting in which the pardon list was confirmed, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said he “listened carefully to many different voices” during the selection process.
“For economic recovery, businesspeople, particularly, small business owners, were included in the list,” Han said. “I hope these special pardons would unite all of us in a joint effort for economic improvement.”
Key figures in the influence-peddling scandal that eventually led to the impeachment of former president Park Geun-hye, such as Choi Gee-sung, a former senior Samsung executive, and An Chong-bum, Park's senior secretary for policy coordination, were excluded from the list.
According to the Ministry of Justice, those who had committed corruption or violent crimes, including murder, robbery and sexual offenses, were not considered.
The ministry also said many of the beneficiaries suffered from the effects of COVID-19, adding that it sought to give a second chance to those who were convicted as a result.
“Because of the pandemic, the economy has been in serious trouble, with inflation and the protracted economic downturn,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Virus restrictions caused many problems in the lives of the public … We also sought pardons for violators of those rules in minor cases as part of the effort to complete a return to normal life after COVID-19.”
Organizations representing businesses welcomed the pardons. The Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry said, “We see this as a move for businesspeople to play proactive roles in reviving the economy … We will redouble our efforts to do our part for the development of our economy and social responsibility.”
Kim Tae-woo, the whistleblower who was later elected head of Gangseo's District Office in Seoul, thanked the president and vowed to run again for office. He lost his position on May 18 when the Supreme Court upheld the lower court's verdict, finding him guilty of revealing classified information.
His revelations led to the convictions of some key officials under Moon including the former Environment Minister for making a “blacklist” targeting officials appointed under the previous administration. She was eventually sentenced to two years in prison.