by Hyonhee Shin
SEOUL (Reuters) – Former South Korean President Park Geun-hye was released from prison on Friday, nearly five years after her corruption conviction, as the election campaign is in full swing ahead of the presidential election in March.
The first woman elected to the presidency of South Korea, Park Geun-hye was impeached in 2017 – a first in the country – following a corruption scandal that also resulted in prison sentences for the leaders of two conglomerates, including Samsung Electronics.
She was convicted of colluding with a confidante to collect tens of billions of won from conglomerates and sentenced to 20 years in prison, upheld by the Supreme Court last January.
President Moon Jae-in pardoned her on Friday, a move prompted in part by the former leader’s state of health and intended to “overcome an unfortunate past, achieve the unity of the people and enable a new step to be taken. forward to the future “.
Park Geun-hye, 69, did not make a statement, but her lawyer said she apologized for causing public concern and thanked President Moon Jae-in for making a “decision difficult”.
Hundreds of people have flocked to the hospital where Park Geun-hye was receiving treatment on Thursday evening to celebrate his release. About 200 opponents of this release demonstrated in central Seoul, according to the Yonhap news agency.
The candidate of Park Geun-hye’s former party, the People’s Power Party (PPP), and that of the ruling Democratic Party are currently engaged in a tight presidential campaign.
Park Geun-hye did not say whether she planned to resume public activity but said in briefs released Thursday that her sentence was “political” and expressed hope that one day she “will meet the people again”.
(Hyonhee Shin report, French version Valentine Baldassari, edited by Tangi Salaün)
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