South Korea pardoned disgraced former president Park Geun-hye. This was announced by the South Korean Minister of Justice. The former president was sentenced to 20 years in prison for corruption.
Park Geun-hye was pardoned with a special amnesty in “a perspective of national unity,” Minister Park Beom-kye told reporters. Park became the first female president of South Korea in 2013, stepping into the role of the nation’s daughter, incorruptible and unrelated to anyone.
Less than four years later, she was indicted with a corruption scandal that sparked huge street protests. The 69-year-old was serving a prison sentence of over 20 years for corruption, abuse of power and violation of electoral law. The corruption scandal exposed shady links between big business and politics in South Korea. The resulting public backlash helped push leftist Moon Jae-in to power.