[Independence Day Pardon] Yoon Administration's First Pardon... Lee Jae-yong Restored Rights

"Focus on Livelihood and Economic Recovery"
Excluding Politicians like MB

Lee Jae-yong, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, who was referred to prosecution on charges including accounting fraud and unfair merger, is attending the continuation of the first trial held at the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 12th. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporters Baek Kyunghwan and Kim Hyungmin] Lee Jae-yong, Vice Chairman of Samsung Electronics, who was sentenced to 2 years and 6 months in prison for the 'National Power Abuse Scandal,' has been reinstated. Vice Chairman Lee, who was granted parole in August last year, completed his sentence on the 29th of last month but had been subject to a five-year employment restriction. Accordingly, Vice Chairman Lee is now able to engage in normal management activities such as overseas business trips. In addition to Vice Chairman Lee, Shin Dong-bin, Chairman of Lotte Group, who is currently on probation, was also granted a special pardon and reinstatement, and Jang Se-ju, Chairman of Dongkuk Steel, and Kang Deok-su, former Chairman of STX Group, were included in the pardon list. Politicians such as former President Lee Myung-bak and former Governor of Gyeongnam Kim Kyung-soo were excluded from this pardon and reinstatement list.

On the 12th, the government held a briefing at the Government Complex Seoul to announce the first 'August 15 Special Pardon and Reinstatement' recipients since the launch of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. A total of 1,693 individuals, including small and medium-sized business owners, small merchants, and criminal offenders related to livelihood, major business figures, and labor-management relations, were granted special pardons. A total of 593,509 individuals subject to administrative sanctions such as construction industry workers, private cargo vehicle operators, livelihood fishermen, and driver's license holders received special reductions, and 649 model prisoners were granted parole.

Han Dong-hoon, Minister of Justice, explained at the briefing, "Considering the urgent need to overcome the current nationwide economic crisis, we carefully selected major business figures who lead the nation's growth engine through active technology investment and job creation to be included in the pardon list," adding, "To enhance national competitiveness in the economic sector and maximize the latent potential for social development through labor-management integration, key labor-management figures were included in the target group." Minister Han continued, "We also implemented various administrative sanction reductions to invigorate the grassroots economy," and added, "Through this, we aimed to unify national strength and use it as a turning point to overcome the economic crisis with united power."

Earlier, President Yoon Suk-yeol said during a door-stepping Q&A on his way to the Yongsan Presidential Office in the morning, "This pardon focuses primarily on people's livelihood and economic recovery." President Yoon stated, "Globally, economic instability and volatility are increasing," and added, "The most important thing is people's livelihood, which the government must take care of, but when the economy is active, it provides a lifeline, so the emphasis was placed there."