Status: 12/24/2021 8:48 a.m.
South Korea’s former President Park was sentenced to a long prison term for corruption. But now the government is showing mercy – Park is released early from custody.
The former President of South Korea, Park Geun Hye, who has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for corruption, has been pardoned. Justice Minister Park Beom Kye said the former head of state was on a list of people to receive a “special amnesty”.
Park was involved in a major corruption scandal during her tenure. She was removed from office by the Constitutional Court in 2017. Her successor is the socially liberal Moon Jae In.
The amnesty and pardon for Park should serve national unity and harmony, as well as “the beginning of a new era,” said Moon’s office. In the Parks case, her poor health was also taken into account, which had deteriorated during her prison term. Park, currently in a hospital, is slated to be officially released before the end of the year. The amnesty only comes about three months before the next presidential election in South Korea. Moon cannot be re-elected after serving five years.
Street protests against the park
The now 69-year-old and her close friend Choi Soon Sil were accused in 2017 of accepting bribes from large corporations like Samsung. Park, who was elected South Korea’s first head of state in 2013, is said to have passed on secret documents, blacklisted critical artists and sacked officials who opposed her. When the allegations became known, thousands of people took to the streets against the head of state and her conservative party.
In addition to the 20 years imprisonment for corruption and abuse of power, Park was also sentenced to two years in prison for violating the electoral law. She was also sentenced to a large fine. Because she had not paid the fine of the equivalent of 16 million euros, the public prosecutor’s office confiscated the former president’s property in March.
Park’s predecessor Lee Myung Bak is also serving a long prison sentence for corruption. Unlike Park, however, he was not on the amnesty list. The ruling Democratic Party had repeatedly brought up the possibility of a pardon for both ex-heads of state. A pardon for both is controversial in the population.