Minister of Justice Park Beom-gye is speaking at a meeting with legal reporters held at the Government Complex Gwacheon on the 11th. Photo by Ministry of Justice.
[Asia Economy Reporter Choi Seok-jin] On the 11th, Park Beom-gye, Minister of Justice, emphasized the "public's sense of justice and consensus" in response to questions regarding the parole issue of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong.
At a press conference with legal reporters held at the Government Complex Gwacheon in the afternoon to mark his 100th day in office, Minister Park was asked, "While pardon is a political decision by the president and requires public consensus, parole is viewed from the Ministry of Justice's perspective. If the conditions for parole are met, how do you view the parole of Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong?" He referred to the criteria announced by President Moon Jae-in at his 4th anniversary press conference the day before.
He stated, "At the president's 4th anniversary press conference yesterday, he mentioned four elements: public consensus, fairness, issues related to the semiconductor industry, and precedent."
He continued, "When comprehensively considering our Penal Execution Act and its enforcement ordinances and rules related to parole, there are expressions similar to the public consensus mentioned by the president. Summarizing the terms used in parole review, such as social sentiment and grounds for mitigation, it can be condensed to the public's sense of justice and consensus. I believe Lee Jae-yong is no exception."
Meanwhile, Minister Park announced that he would approve a plan to lower the sentence requirement criteria for parole to increase the parole rate.
He said, "Currently, under our Penal Code, parole is possible after serving one-third of the sentence. However, according to the ministerial regulations, which are subordinate laws, the required incarceration rate is 65%, and in reality, even after serving 65% of the sentence, parole is not granted; nearly 80% of the sentence must be served."
Minister Park stated, "(Legally) parole is possible after serving one-third of the sentence, but I questioned whether it is appropriate to set such cut-off lines by regulations. Immediately after taking office, through several meetings, we diagnosed that the current regulation requires 65%, and in practice, 80%. Today, I plan to approve a measure to relax this by about 5% to 60%."
He added, "The parole procedure involves the warden's application, followed by a parole board meeting. There is a need to refine the parole board process and also to ensure that the warden's parole application itself is objectively well conducted."
However, Minister Park drew a clear line, saying, "The philosophy of increasing the parole rate has been held since before taking office, and preparations have been made to increase the parole rate, with approval planned today, but this is unrelated to Lee Jae-yong."
He emphasized, "Even if Lee Jae-yong meets the 60% incarceration requirement, parole review requires the warden's application. No one can intervene in that."
He continued, "There must be a resolution by the Classification and Treatment Committee at the initial stage (to select parole review applicants). The application for parole review cannot be forced or disputed. Lee Jae-yong is no exception."
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