"Divided Presidential Election Landscape, Park's Suspension of Sentence Needed for National Unity"
Former President Park Geun-hye is entering Seoul St. Mary's Hospital in Seocho-gu, Seoul on July 20th to be hospitalized for treatment of a chronic illness. / Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate of the People’s Party, stated that former President Park Geun-hye’s health condition is "so poor that she should be granted a suspension of sentence immediately."
In an interview on the 20th with CBS Radio’s 'Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show,' when the host asked about the reason for urging the suspension of sentence for former President Park, Ahn explained, "The conditions for suspension of sentence are stipulated by law," adding, "There are several applicable criteria such as being over 70 years old and having health issues. Upon checking, both former Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye are in poor health."
Earlier, Dong-A Ilbo reported, citing legal and medical sources, that former President Park has been complaining of persistent pain due to shoulder and back ailments for which she underwent surgery. The media also reported that she is mentally unstable due to the prolonged incarceration.
When the host asked if he was aware of these details, Ahn replied, "I have confirmed those aspects," and said he heard that former President Park’s health is currently so poor that she should be granted a suspension of sentence immediately.
Ahn continued, "In 1997, when Kim Dae-jung was president-elect, he proposed to President Kim Young-sam the pardon of former Presidents Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo who were in prison, and President Kim Young-sam accepted and pardoned them," emphasizing, "Although their crimes were serious, both decided that forgiveness was right for national unity. Similarly, both former Presidents Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye are elderly and it is necessary for national unity."
Regarding why he proposed suspension of sentence instead of a pardon, he said, "A pardon is something for the next president to decide under public consensus, so I suggested suspension of sentence as a solution. A pardon might be a political burden," adding, "There is no other purpose, but since the current presidential race is causing national division, granting suspension of sentence could help reverse this atmosphere and steer the country back toward national unity."
Meanwhile, former President Park underwent shoulder surgery at Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital in September 2019 and was hospitalized for 78 days before being discharged. She has continued to receive outpatient treatment for a herniated disc and was hospitalized at the same hospital for a month in July this year. On the 22nd of last month, she was admitted to Samsung Seoul Hospital, not Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital where she had been treated, and has been receiving treatment there since.
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