Parole or Pardon... All Eyes on Kim Kyung-soo's Fate

Parole Review Committee on the 5th... Speculation on Using National Unity and Opposition Check Cards

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] Ahead of the special pardon and parole review for Liberation Day on August 15, the legal community is focusing on the whereabouts of former Gyeongnam Governor Kim Kyung-soo.

Kim is likely to be released ahead of Liberation Day. Only the method remains to be decided. Kim will be reviewed as a candidate at the parole review committee meeting held by the Ministry of Justice on the 5th. Last July, the Supreme Court confirmed his two-year prison sentence as the main culprit in the ‘Druking comment manipulation case,’ and he has served about 60% of his sentence, meeting the requirement for parole eligibility (one-third of the sentence).

The reason Kim is drawing attention is due to external factors arising in the political sphere. First, there is analysis that President Yoon Suk-yeol, whose approval rating has recently dropped sharply, might take the bold step of granting Kim a special pardon as a breakthrough. If he wants to raise his approval rating, pardoning former Governor Kim is expected to have a greater impact than pardoning others. Kim is one of the ‘pro-Moon’ figures close to former President Moon Jae-in. If President Yoon pardons Kim, it could be interpreted as a message of ‘national unity’ and cooperation beyond political factions. The opposition also emphasizes this point and continues to urge President Yoon to make a decision. President Yoon might make a political choice. If he judges that pardoning Kim would shake up the recently intensified three-way race for the Democratic Party leadership election, he could decide on a special pardon. In politics, with all ‘pro-Moon’ figures having been eliminated in the leadership race, Kim’s return could become a new rallying point for the pro-Moon faction, drastically changing the election dynamics.

Public opinion on Kim’s pardon is sharply divided. Supporters argue for the necessity of the pardon on social media and in the press, but there are strong opposing voices in the political and legal communities. Ahn Cheol-soo, a member of the People Power Party, said, “We should not give a pardon to the main culprit of state manipulation,” adding, “The accomplice (‘Druking’ Kim Dong-won) has completed his sentence, so pardoning or paroling the main culprit (Kim Kyung-soo) halfway violates fairness and equity.” The conservative lawyer group ‘Lawyers for Human Rights and Unification of Korea (Hanbyun)’ also called Kim a “destroyer of constitutional order,” stating, “He has damaged the election system, which is the foundation of the liberal democratic system, and shows no sign of remorse.”

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice is known to hold the pardon review committee meeting on the 9th or 10th following the parole review committee on the 5th. Candidates for parole include Kim Kyung-soo, former Environment Minister Kim Eun-kyung, and former National Intelligence Service Director Lee Byung-ho. Former President Lee Myung-bak is considered a likely candidate for special pardon in the political sphere, while in the business world, Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong of Samsung Electronics and Chairman Shin Dong-bin of Lotte Group are mentioned..

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