Amid the Park Geun-hye Pardon Typhoon... 75 Days Left Until the Presidential Election 'Into the Turmoil'

President Moon pardons former President Park Geun-hye... Opposition welcomes but fears 'political intrigue'

[Asia Economy reporters Ryu Jeong-min and Naju-seok] President Moon Jae-in's sudden decision on the 24th to grant a special pardon to former President Park Geun-hye has plunged the presidential election landscape into turmoil.

Attention is focused on the political aftermath intertwined with the background behind President Moon's choice to shake up the election flow. It is also noteworthy that Yoon Seok-youl, the current opposition presidential candidate, is a figure with a 'bad history' as the former Prosecutor General who investigated former President Park's 'state manipulation' case.

The apparent reason for including former President Park, born in 1952, in the pardon is health issues. The Blue House has been highly sensitive to the fact that former President Park is elderly and has been imprisoned for a long time.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, this trend does not easily explain the exclusion of former President Lee Myung-bak, born in 1941, from the pardon. The political background draws attention, especially as former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook was reinstated and former Unified Progressive Party lawmaker Lee Seok-ki was released on parole.

There is also an assessment that President Moon took the step of 'tying up loose ends' under the pretext of political harmony. Although President Moon cited 'national unity' as the rationale, the general view is that this choice politically affects progressives, conservatives, and centrists evenly. In fact, it had been widely speculated that the biggest card the ruling party could play ahead of the election would be the pardon of former President Park.

The issue of pardoning former President Park affects his political hometown of Daegu-Gyeongbuk (TK) and the traditional conservative base. While the ruling party's supporters have a considerable number of negative views on pardoning former President Park, there is also a perspective that if President Moon chooses it, it must be accepted.

The People Power Party, while wary of the Blue House's political intentions, finds itself in a position where it cannot but support the pardon of former President Park. Through a statement by senior spokesperson Lee Yang-su, the People Power Party expressed a welcoming stance on the pardon and conveyed their intention to "make further efforts for national unity."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Although the People Power Party officially delivered a message of welcome, their inner feelings are complicated. This is because Yoon Seok-youl, the presidential candidate, has a bad history with former President Park as he was the head of the special prosecution team during his time as prosecutor. From Yoon's perspective, the pardon of former President Park could have been used as a card to rally conservative votes just before the election, but President Moon's decision has removed that option.

There is also a possibility that former President Park may directly intervene in politics. If former President Park expresses discomfort toward candidate Yoon, either directly or indirectly, Yoon's position within the conservative camp could be affected. Similar to how the opposition views the decision not to pardon former President Lee as a 'divide and conquer' tactic, there is suspicion of a political ploy to release former President Park, who has a bad history with candidate Yoon, at this point.

This is also why the opposition questions President Moon's choice. People Power Party lawmaker Hong Joon-pyo pointed out on social media (SNS), "By making a 'divide and conquer' pardon excluding former President Lee Myung-bak, they schemed to split the opposing camp," adding, "The tactic of dividing the opposition's presidential front through sowing discord is truly astonishing."

While Song Young-gil, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated, "The Democratic Party respects the (pardon) decision," critical voices are spreading among party members, making the ruling party's situation complex as well. Democratic presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung is also expected to face deepening concerns, caught between being conscious of the pardon’s impact on public opinion and having to respect the judgment of the sitting president as a ruling party candidate.

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