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"Ex-president Lee Myung-bak returns home from the hospital after a special presidential pardon." With this news, Korea marked the turn of the year.
Hospitals and prisons may have some common characteristics, including the involvement of medical or legal experts in determining the date of release. There are, however, significant differences, not least of which, are the circumstances of premature departures. In the case of prisons, conditional freedom, "further home treatment" so to speak, is often granted when, for example, some 10 years of a 17-year sentence have passed, if the convict shows good prospects for social reintegration and if, especially, additional monetary fines have been fully paid. Very rarely, prisoners are set free after a retrial has been granted, which found them innocent or even more exceptionally, at the mercy of a head of state.
In the case of hospitals, inmates might be strongly advised to follow medical schedules, but they remain formally free to leave the institution's full-time care at a time of their choosing. Impatient patients may be warned of the risks, but certainly don't have to wait for a presidential pardon.
The recommendation, in contrast, to safely complete the recovery in a private home or, alternatively, in a public prison should always come from a doctor. It should be noted, additionally, that the public facility has even certain advantages for further supervision, including medical care.
Or do I simply misunderstand the logic of Korean politics as well as the authority of "independent" judicial decisions? Ex-presidents are almost expected to be put on trial when the opposite party takes over, to be sentenced to decades in prison after long legal battles, to then quickly fall seriously ill, and then, to finally be pardoned soon after their own camp returns to power. The saga then usually ends with the former leader's visible recovery, including a standardized "apology," typical of Korean politicians, expressing "regret for causing public concern."
It even seems to me that this tragicomedy needs to be perpetually replayed in order not to lose its "inevitability." When "all are corrupt" and no verdict can be trusted, all relative moral distinctions become meaningless. Is this why, according to media reports, a staggering 90 prosecutors are currently looking into the political and private life of the recently retired president Moon Jae-in?
Could Lee not have been found "fit for discharge" at least a certain grace period before or after the anticipated pardon? He could then either have returned home from prison, grateful for the clemency, or celebrate twice separately according to the different nature of the respective "release." No one expects perfect honesty in this world, but a little courtesy could still make the embarrassment more bearable for all involved.
Michael Bergmann (bergmann2473@yahoo.de) is a teacher in Seoul.
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