Posted on 12/24/21
| News Source: i24
Park Geun-hye was sentenced to 22 years for bribery and abuse of power
South Korea's ex-president Park Geun-hye has received a pardon, cutting short a jail term of more than 20 years for corruption, the justice minister announced Friday, saying the reprieve was in the interests of national unity.
Park became South Korea's first female president in 2013, casting herself in the role of the daughter of the nation, incorruptible and beholden to none.
Less than four years later, she was impeached and ousted after a corruption scandal sparked huge street protests.
On Friday, Justice Minister Park Beom-kye told reporters the former leader was included in a list of people receiving "special amnesty", and was pardoned from "a perspective of national unity."
Park was impeached in 2017 and found guilty of corruption charges the following year.
The 69-year-old was serving a 20-year prison sentence for bribery and abuse of power, with another two years after that for election law violations.
Park was hospitalized several times this year, and South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported that her poor health was a factor in the decision to grant the pardon.
The episode exposed shady links between big businesses and politics in South Korea, with Park and her close friend Choi Soon-sil accused of taking bribes from conglomerates, including Samsung Electronics, in exchange for preferential treatment.
The resulting public backlash against Park and her conservative party helped propel the left-leaning Moon Jae-in into power.