On Monday, the government held an extraordinary Cabinet meeting to announce the Liberation Day special pardons, which included both economic offenders and politicians. As expected, the ruling camp's list featured former Rebuilding Korea Party leader Cho Kuk and his wife, as well as former lawmakers Yoon Mee-hyang and Choi Kang-wook. On the opposition side, former lawmakers Hong Moon-jong and Chung Chan-min were pardoned. The government framed the move as an effort to end political division and achieve national unity. But granting pardons to politicians only two months into the administration is questionable.

Cho was sentenced to two years in prison by the Supreme Court last December for involvement in his children's college admission fraud and for interfering with a presidential office inspection. He has served only about a third of his term and has not acknowledged wrongdoing in the admissions case, yet he now regains full political rights. Critics call this a reward for his party's decision not to field a candidate in the last presidential election. While some argue that prosecutorial overreach marked the Cho scandal, the Supreme Court upheld most of the convictions related to admissions fraud. The evidence does not suggest fabrication or excessive indictment by prosecutors. Cho, once a Seoul National University professor who championed fairness, became a symbol of hypocrisy and double standards as a senior public official. The phrase "River of Cho Kuk" was coined to describe how the Democratic Party (DP) became mired in defending him, risking public backlash - a danger that could now resurface.

Even within the progressive camp, criticism of Cho's pardon has emerged. Justice Party leader Kwon Young-guk noted that the case concerned fairness in admissions, yet Cho offered neither apology nor acknowledgment. Kwon warned that the decision undermines core societal values of fairness and responsibility and could hinder, rather than promote, social unity. For the ruling bloc, it is a step back into a river it had struggled to cross.

Also pardoned was former lawmaker Yoon Mee-hyang, convicted of violating the Donations Act, despite her lack of acknowledgment or remorse. Granting pardons to corrupt politicians demanded by the People Power Party is equally troubling. President Lee Jae Myung has repeatedly vowed to hold people strictly accountable for wrongdoing, but decisions like this dilute that resolve and invite disputes over fairness.

A Realmeter poll released Monday put the president's approval rating at 56.5 percent, the lowest since his inauguration and down 6.8 points from the previous week - the sharpest drop to date. The decline appears linked to the scandal involving independent lawmaker Lee Choon-suak, who left the DP after allegations of proxy trading surfaced, as well as the political pardons. The administration should recognize that a sustained slide in approval could burden its broader governance agenda.

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom staff.