Kumho chief Park, other business leaders granted presidential pardons

Park Chan-koo, honorary chairman of Kumho Petrochemical Co., and 11 other South Korean business leaders have been granted presidential pardons to commemorate the country's Aug. 15 Liberation Day.

Some of the pardoned business leaders are expected to return to work as the special amnesty by Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol also comes with the reinstatement of their rights and the removal of employment restrictions.

On Monday, the Ministry of Justice said 2,176 people, including politicians and ordinary citizens, were given special pardons in effect as of Tuesday, Korea's Liberation Day, which commemorates the end of Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.

Among the 12 pardoned business leaders are Lee Joong-keun, founder of construction conglomerate Booyoung Group; Lee Ho-jin, former chairman of Taekwang Group; Rhee Jang-han, chairman of Chong Kun Dang Pharmaceutical Corp.; Shin Young-ja, former chairman of the Lotte Scholarship Foundation; and Kang Jung-seok, former chairman of Dong-A Socio Holdings.

Former Finance Minister Kang Man-soo was also pardoned.

The latest pardon of more than two thousand people marks the third presidential amnesty since President Yook took office in May last year.

Those involved in the corruption scandal during the Park Geun-hye administration, such as former Samsung Electronics Co. executives Choi Ji-sung and Jang Chung-ki, were excluded from the special amnesty list.

“We took the current economic situation into consideration. The government hopes pardoned business leaders do their part in revitalizing the domestic economy,” said Justice Minister Han Dong-hoon.

LIKELY RETURN TO MANAGEMENT

Some of the pardoned business leaders are expected to return to management and resume their business activities.

Industry watchers said Booyoung’s Lee is the most likely candidate to return to work.

"We thank the government and citizens. We will put our utmost effort into ensuring the stability of people’s housing and revitalizing the economy,” said a Booyoung official.

Kumho Petrochemical’s Park was sentenced to three years in prison for misappropriation of business funds in 2018 – but his jail term was at the same time suspended for five years, meaning no prison time was served. He returned as Kumho’s chief executive in 2019 but stepped down from all his registered posts due to the government’s employment restrictions.

His eldest son, Park Joon-kyung, was then promoted to the CEO position.

Currently, the chairmanship of Kumho Petrochemical Group is vacant.

A Kumho spokesman said: “With Park’s pardon, we will focus on our core businesses and strive to contribute to the revival of the Korean economy.”

There’s also a high possibility of the return of Taekwang Group’s Lee, who is in his early 60s.

In a move seen to pave the way for his return, the business group last year announced a plan to invest 12 trillion won ($9 billion) and hire 7,000 new workers over the next decade.

BUSINESS LOBBY GROUPS WELCOME PARDONS

Korea’s leading business lobby group and economic organizations applauded the move. 

“We greatly welcome the presidential pardons, which have given many business leaders the opportunity to return to work for the country again. We will remember the mission of the business leaders to work for the nation and do our best to meet the expectations of the citizens,” said the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI).

Earlier this month, Jin Roy Ryu, chairman of Korea’s leading copper smelter and defense equipment maker PoongSan Corp., was chosen to lead the FKI as its new chairman.

Korea’s four largest business conglomerates – Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK and LG – are widely expected to return as members of the country’s top business lobby group soon.

Write to Jin-Seong Kim, Jae-Fu Kim and Jin-Woo Park at jskim1028@hankyung.com

In-Soo Nam edited this article.