Special Envoy Kim Tae-woo Faces Unified Criticism from Opposition: "Undermining the Judiciary"

Lee Won-wook "Presidential Pardon Power Is a Symbol of Privilege"
Kim Tae-woo "Finally Regained Honor Today"

Former Seoul Gangseo District Mayor Kim Tae-woo, who was convicted for leaking secrets learned in the course of official duties to the media during the exposure of allegations of cover-up by the Blue House Special Inspection Team under the Moon Jae-in administration, was pardoned three months after his conviction was finalized.

The opposition parties immediately criticized the move as "the incapacitation of the judiciary." As former Mayor Kim, who lost his position due to the guilty verdict, expressed his intention to return to Gangseo District, the ruling party is closely monitoring the situation, concerned about potential backlash.

Lee Won-wook, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated on his social media (SNS) on the 14th, "With the pardon of former Mayor Kim, the public now views the presidential pardon power as a symbol of double standards (Naerona-mulbul: 'If I do it, it's romance; if others do it, it's an affair') and privilege," adding, "This has become a stain in the history of special pardons." He also pointed out, "Moreover, pardoning just three months after the final verdict disregards the judiciary's authority," and criticized, "Even though the pardon power belongs to the president, this has gone too far."

Kwon Chil-seung, the senior spokesperson for the Democratic Party, also said, "President Yoon Seok-yeol pardoned and reinstated former Mayor Kim just three months after the confirmation of the original verdict under the pretext of resolving political conflicts. This has fully opened the path for him to run in the (by-)election," calling it "an abuse of the pardon power and a direct challenge by the president to the judiciary."

Spokesperson Park Sung-jun, in a written briefing, questioned, "Is President Yoon Seok-yeol's sense of fairness and common sense pardoning and reinstating a person accused of corruption?" He criticized, "While outwardly advocating the rule of law, President Yoon's pardon, which thoroughly disregards legal order, will remain a blot in constitutional history."

The Justice Party and the New Party also raised their voices in criticism. Lee Jeong-mi, leader of the Justice Party, said, "No matter how imperial the presidential system is, it does not grant the authority to do anything," and criticized it as "the incapacitation of the judiciary." The New Party, led by former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop, stated on SNS, "The president exercising the pardon power just three months after the final judgment for a lawbreaker and opening the way for re-election is a declaration of war to mock the people and trample on liberal democracy."

The government carried out a 'Liberation Day Special Pardon' on the 15th for 2,176 people, including small and medium-sized business owners, small merchants, general criminal offenders, businesspeople, and politicians. In the case of former Mayor Kim, he was prosecuted for leaking secrets learned in the course of official duties to the media after exposing allegations related to the Blue House Civil Affairs Office Special Inspection Team in 2018. In May of this year, the Supreme Court confirmed a sentence of one year imprisonment with two years probation, resulting in the loss of his mayoral position.

With this pardon, former Mayor Kim will be able to run in the Gangseo District mayoral by-election scheduled for October. After the pardon was announced, he released a statement expressing his intention to run, saying, "I will return to Gangseo."

Former Mayor Kim stated, "I was the first to expose the corruption of the Moon Jae-in administration, and after four years and eight months, I have finally fully restored my honor today. If Cho Kuk is guilty, then Kim Tae-woo is innocent," and claimed, "The political prosecution by the Moon Jae-in prosecution against me, a 'whistleblower,' was a political suppression to cover up the criminal acts of former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk and others."

The ruling party appears to be monitoring the situation carefully, considering the political repercussions of former Mayor Kim's pardon. Yoo Sang-beom, senior spokesperson for the People Power Party, said on MBC's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' program, "There is a question about whether the judicial judgment on the nature of the public interest whistleblowing that exposed the previous administration's corruption is legitimate. However, regardless of that, the fact remains that a judicial decision was made recently resulting in a guilty verdict, so there is controversy over whether the swift pardon and reinstatement are appropriate." He added, "We are also closely watching various situations and need to conduct a thorough review."

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