[Exclusive] Choi Seo-won, Who Requested 'Park Geun-hye Pardon' from President Moon... Blue House "Will Consider" (Comprehensive)

"Former President's Health Deteriorates During Imprisonment, Please Consider National Unity"
Blue House Delivers General Response Through Ministry of Justice Saying "For Reference in Work"

A portion of the five-page handwritten letter sent by Choi Seo-won (formerly Choi Soon-sil) to President Moon Jae-in on the 3rd of last month

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] Choi Seo-won (formerly Choi Soon-sil), who was sentenced to 18 years for the state corruption scandal and is currently serving her sentence at Cheongju Women's Prison, officially requested a special pardon for former President Park Geun-hye from President Moon Jae-in. The Blue House responded through the Ministry of Justice, saying to Choi, "We will take it into consideration."

In a five-page handwritten letter sent to President Moon on the 3rd of last month, Choi appealed, "I hope that the final days of the female president, who is suffering severe physical pain, will not end in tragedy, and that the exhausted person can at least stay at home through a pardon." In the letter, Choi mainly explained that former President Park's health has deteriorated, that she did not act out of personal gain, and that a decision is needed for national unity.

After receiving the letter, the Blue House instructed the Ministry of Justice to respond, and on the 25th of last month, the Ministry of Justice's Prosecution Bureau sent a notification letter to Choi stating, "We will refer to this in handling matters related to special pardons." Regarding whether Choi's request was conveyed directly to President Moon, a Blue House official said, "We cannot confirm."

Choi Seo-won (formerly Choi Soon-sil) [Image source=Yonhap News]

The reasons given for the need for a pardon included that former President Park is approaching 70 years of age and that she has done her best for the national interest. Choi said, "Former President Park has been detained for over four years and is now in her seventies," adding, "She lost her mother in her twenties, a flower-like young age, and overcame the pain and suffering of scraping the bottom. She faithfully fulfilled the role of her late mother (Mrs. Yuk Young-soo). If former President Park had not faithfully guarded her mother's role beside former President Park Chung-hee, it would have been difficult to prevent social chaos and division."

She also emphasized that no former president has been imprisoned for more than four years. Choi said, "Former Presidents Kim Dae-jung and Kim Young-sam were imprisoned but not for more than four years." She continued, "Former President Park has already apologized to the people," and rather urged, "I think President Moon's decision would help form a consensus."

Choi conveyed the fact that she requested a pardon for former President Park to President Moon through her lawyer during a meeting with reporters and also sent a separate letter with additional explanations. In the letter, Choi stated, "I wrote the request after much consideration because it pains me that an ordinary citizen like me has caused long-standing difficulties."

She also expressed difficulties in prison life, including the unfairness of the guilty verdict in the state corruption scandal, poor prison meals, and excessive work. She pointed out, "The prison meal budget is 4,708 won per day," and "Most of the ingredients are from China." She also noted, "(In the kitchen) about 16 to 18 staff members cook for approximately 800 inmates." Choi also filed a complaint with the prosecution in April against the warden and staff of Cheongju Women's Prison on charges including sexual assault. Regarding this, she criticized, "Is it reasonable for the medical director to continue pressuring through authority while placing sexual violence perpetrators and victims in the same space?"

Former President Park was sentenced to a total of 22 years for the state corruption scandal. Since she has been imprisoned for about four years, she is not eligible for parole. At a luncheon with Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon on April 21, President Moon said, when the topic of pardoning the two former presidents came up, "We cannot ignore public consensus, and it should act to help national unity." Earlier, at a New Year's press conference in January, he said, "I think now is not the time to talk about pardons."