Pardons for National Unity

It is right to exclude corrupt politicians, businesspeople

President Moon Jae-in granted special pardons to 4,378 people, mostly those convicted of minor crimes for the sake of their livelihood, Tuesday on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement of 1919. The amnesty beneficiaries included 107 offenders found guilty of having engaged in illegal protests against previous governments.

The presidential pardon and reinstatement of ex-convicts were good enough to meet the public's expectations as the beneficiaries are mostly those who violated laws in relation to activities to earn their bread and butter That's why Moon excluded those who were convicted of five grave charges, including bribery, influence-peddling, dereliction of duty and embezzlement.

The government appeared to have racked its brains over the scope of the presidential pardons in order to promote national unity in celebration of the independence movement.

It was right to exclude some high-profile politicians such as former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook, former Gangwon Province Governor Lee Kwang-jae and Lee Seok-ki, former lawmaker of the disbanded Unified Progressive Party, who were often mentioned as possible candidates for the special...