May 18 Memorial Foundation Forms Committee to Recover Slush Funds of Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo

The May 18 Memorial Foundation recently filed a complaint with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office on October 14 last year against former President Roh Tae-woo's wife Kim Oksuk, son Roh Jaehun, and daughter Roh Soyoung regarding allegations of slush funds revealed in recent trials. They are accused of violating the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes and the Act on the Regulation and Punishment of Criminal Proceeds Concealment. Wonsun Seok (left), the chairman, and others are entering the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Civil Affairs Office to submit the complaint. Photo by Heo Younghan

The May 18 Memorial Foundation announced on the 9th that it has established the "Committee for the Recovery of Slush Funds and Illicitly Accumulated Assets of the New Military Regime, including Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo" (hereinafter referred to as the "Chun-Roh Slush Fund Recovery Committee") to reclaim the illegal slush funds of the new military regime.

The foundation decided to form the asset recovery committee during the second board meeting held the previous day. Although it is only natural to reclaim the slush funds and illicitly accumulated assets amassed by the new military regime, including Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, who seized power after the May 18, 1980 uprising, there has been little concrete information about the illicit assets of the new military regime, except for intermittent enforcement of the fines imposed on Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo following the Supreme Court’s final ruling in 1997.

Recently, during the divorce proceedings of Roh Tae-woo's children, a "memo" (amounting to 90.4 billion won) believed to have been written by Roh Tae-woo's wife regarding the creation of slush funds was submitted as evidence to the court. This demonstrates that illegally accumulated slush funds have been passed down to their descendants and families. In response, the foundation determined that action was needed to break the vicious cycle of illegal funds being inherited by descendants, leading to the formation of the "Chun-Roh Slush Fund Recovery Committee."

The Chun-Roh Slush Fund Recovery Committee will be led by the foundation's chairperson and composed of legal experts and other professionals. The committee plans to pursue activities such as proposing and revising laws related to the recovery of slush funds and illicit assets amassed by Chun Doo-hwan, Roh Tae-woo, and the new military regime, as well as tracking and reclaiming these assets, including those passed on to descendants.

Meanwhile, in October 2024, the foundation filed a complaint with the Supreme Prosecutors' Office against the Roh Tae-woo family for alleged violations of the Punishment of Tax Offenses Act, the Act on the Aggravated Punishment of Specific Crimes, and the Act on Regulation and Punishment of Concealment of Criminal Proceeds.