Isam Association Issues Statement: "Let Us Act with Righteous Anger Against the Special Pardon for Cho Kuk"

On August 8, the Isam Association, a conservative political group chaired by Junbae Lee, who also serves as the head of the People Power Party's Sejong City branch, issued a statement strongly criticizing the Lee Jaemyung administration over the pardon of Cho Kuk and Chung Kyungshim.

Junbae Lee, Chairman of the Isam Association, a conservative political group.

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The Isam Association stated, "The pardon of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk and his wife, just before Liberation Day, is a direct challenge to South Korea's judicial system and the public's sense of justice. It is an event that starkly exposes the true face of a government engaged in political retaliation."

They pointed out, "The Cho couple epitomize privilege and unfairness, being involved in certificate forgery, admissions fraud, and private equity fund allegations. They are remembered as symbols of hypocrisy in politics who deceived the public." They argued that the justice remembered by the people is being ignored, while judicial procedures are being mocked according to the needs of those in power.

The couple, Cho Kuk and Chung Kyungshim, have been included on the special Liberation Day pardon list by the pardon review committee, with only the approval of the cabinet meeting remaining.

They also reminded the public that there are still many criminal offenders serving sentences who are far less unscrupulous than Cho Kuk, Chung Kyungshim, or former Democratic Party lawmaker Yoon Meehyang.

They stated, "Equality before the law has disappeared, and fairness in the face of crime has been trampled. This pardon, which lacks any public consensus, is ultimately nothing more than a political reward for the Lee Jaemyung administration and its supporters."

They further argued, "A pardon should be premised on genuine remorse and public acceptance, but what we have seen from Cho Kuk and Chung Kyungshim is not repentance, but sophistry disguised as a sense of injustice. Far from reflecting, they are arrogantly preparing for a political comeback as if they were victims."

The special pardon for Cho Kuk and Chung Kyungshim, they said, "is a betrayal of justice and an insult to the people. The law is being manipulated and the public deceived for the sake of a handful of power. We must not remain silent any longer. The pardon of the Cho couple must be stopped. Blocking this pardon is not merely a political opposition, but the final struggle to defend the rule of law in South Korea."

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