Samsung Celebrates 83rd Anniversary Amid Series of Setbacks Including Chairman's Arrest and Emergency Surgery

Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong Undergoes Emergency Surgery for Burst Appendix at Samsung Hospital Over the Weekend
Expected to Spend Time Quietly Without Separate Group Events

Samsung Electronics Seocho Building [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Heung-soon] Samsung Group celebrated its 83rd anniversary on the 22nd. The group’s head, Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong of Samsung Electronics, is currently hospitalized after undergoing emergency surgery for appendicitis while in custody, compounding the group’s difficulties. As a result, this year’s anniversary is expected to pass quietly without any special events.

Since the dissolution of the Future Strategy Office in February 2017, Samsung has omitted group-level anniversary celebrations. Samsung’s founding date was originally based on March 1, 1938, when the late founder Lee Byung-chul started his business in Daegu and established Samsung Sanghoe (now Samsung C&T). However, on March 22, 1988, Chairman Lee Kun-hee declared a “second founding” on the 50th anniversary, changing the anniversary date to March 22.

This year’s anniversary comes amid the absence of Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong. Earlier, in January, Lee was sentenced to two and a half years in prison and detained following the retrial of the political scandal case. According to the Ministry of Justice and medical sources, on the 19th, Lee was transferred from Seoul Detention Center to Samsung Medical Center due to appendicitis and underwent emergency surgery. Appendicitis, better known as inflammation of the appendix, refers to inflammation of the appendix at the end of the cecum. It causes severe pain in the right side of the abdomen, and if the appendix ruptures, foreign substances can spread to the peritoneum, potentially leading to peritonitis.

The appearance of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong hospitalized at Samsung Seoul Hospital in Gangnam-gu, Seoul [Image source=Yonhap News]

Initially, Vice Chairman Lee began experiencing abdominal pain from the afternoon of Friday the 19th and underwent basic examinations at the detention center. At that time, it was judged to be simple abdominal pain, and despite recommendations from the detention center, he reportedly endured the pain without going to the hospital. It is said that he wanted to avoid public attention or misunderstandings related to external medical treatment and decided to “not receive special treatment and monitor the situation until the weekend.”

However, around 9 p.m., the pain worsened significantly, and he was transferred to Hallym University Sacred Heart Hospital in Pyeongchon, Gyeonggi Province, a hospital designated by the Ministry of Justice near the detention center. Medical staff there confirmed that the appendix had already ruptured and foreign substances had spread to the peritoneum. Judging that Lee’s condition was serious, they decided to transfer him again to Samsung Medical Center.

Vice Chairman Lee has now completed surgery and is resting in the recovery room. The first trial related to the Samsung C&T merger is scheduled for the 25th, but it is unlikely that Lee will be able to attend. Medical experts generally expect about a week for recovery after appendicitis surgery, but since Lee’s appendix ruptured and foreign substances spread to the peritoneum, the recovery period may be longer. If Lee cannot attend, the trial may proceed with only the other Samsung officials who were indicted attending, or the trial date may be postponed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.