"Park Geun-hye Pardon, Surprising Announcement... Major Foreign Media Also Urgently Report It as a Move Targeting Next Year's Presidential Election"

Former President Park Geun-hye, who is incarcerated at Seoul Detention Center, is entering Seoul St. Mary's Hospital in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of July 20th for treatment of a chronic illness. 2021.7.20 [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Joselgina] On the 24th, ahead of the 2022 presidential election, former President Park Geun-hye was unexpectedly pardoned, and major foreign media outlets reported the details extensively, paying close attention to the potential impact on the upcoming election.

AP News reported immediately after the Ministry of Justice's announcement, "Former President Park, who has been imprisoned for a long time on charges including bribery, has been specially pardoned." It added, "She is the daughter of the late President Park Chung-hee and was elected with the support of conservatives who honor Park Chung-hee as a hero who lifted the country out of poverty despite criticism of dictatorship, but was impeached and imprisoned due to the state affairs manipulation scandal, bribery, and extortion."

The agency conveyed President Moon Jae-in's stance that "we must overcome the pains of the past era and move forward to a new era," adding that the pardon decision reflected factors such as Park's nearly five years of imprisonment and significant health deterioration.

US CNN also reported the pardon news, stating, "Park, South Korea's first female president, was impeached after millions of South Koreans took to the streets following the 2017 state affairs manipulation scandal revelations, and was subsequently put on trial." The economic media CNBC broadcasted the pardon news as a 'breaking news' immediately after the announcement.

UK's BBC described Park as "the first president in South Korea to be democratically elected and then impeached," and called the decision "a surprising announcement" since President Moon had previously ruled out a pardon.

These media outlets detailed the pardon news, its background, and the past impeachment scandal and trial outcomes. They mentioned that during Park's approximately five years of imprisonment, her health worsened due to chronic shoulder and back conditions, and recently, she has been reported to be mentally unstable.

In particular, major foreign media emphasized the significance of the pardon decision being made ahead of the March presidential election next year.

The daily Guardian analyzed, "This special pardon, just three months before the election, could influence voters," and "Considering Park's influence among conservative supporters expected to back opposition candidates such as the People Power Party, it will likely have repercussions in the March election." The outlet also added that "ruling party lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Korea justified the pardon on the grounds of 'national unity.'"

Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun conveyed the Blue House's official announcement hoping the pardon would be "an opportunity for integration, harmony, and the opening of a new era," interpreting it as "a pardon by the left-leaning Moon administration aimed at the March election next year." Japan's public broadcaster NHK reported that "Korean media are paying close attention to how Park's pardon will affect public opinion ahead of the election," reflecting the atmosphere in Korea immediately after the announcement. The far-right Sankei Shimbun reported that "there is strong opposition to the pardon, mainly from the ruling party."

The fact that former South Korean presidents such as Chun Doo-hwan, Roh Tae-woo, and Lee Myung-bak have also faced imprisonment after leaving office was mentioned. Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported, "In the past, former presidents who were imprisoned were pardoned," noting that Chun Doo-hwan, sentenced to life imprisonment, and Roh Tae-woo, sentenced to 17 years, were pardoned during the Kim Young-sam administration in 1997. Additionally, major foreign media pointed out that former President Lee Myung-bak, who is currently imprisoned, was not included in this pardon.

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