[Photo by Yoo Dae-gil = dbeorlf123@ajunews.com]
SEOUL, Feb. 06 (Aju News) -- A wave of contrasted reactions struck South Korea after the virtual head of South Korea's largest conglomerate, Samsung, was released with a suspended jail sentence that ceased a year-long state of leadership vacuum.
South Korea's business community heaved a sigh of relief, hailing the release of Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Jay Y. Lee as a wise decision that would help the industrial leader of Asia's fourth-largest economy restore its global credibility at a time when group patriarch Lee Kun-hee has been bed-ridden.
The high-profile trial has been a matter of great public interest as it was closely related to a corruption scandal that sparked widespread public fury and street demonstrations, leading to the ouster of ex-president Park Geun-hye.
Since Lee, 49, was arrested in February last year, Samsung and other business bodies have appealed for mercy, citing the gravity of its impact on South Korea's economy. They argued Lee was forced to make cash contributions under "irresistible" pressure.
In its ruling on Monday, the appeals court in Seoul sided with business groups and sentenced Lee to two years and six months in jail with a stay of execution for four years, saying he was not a leading character in the scandal and was coerced to provide bribes.
The verdict, however, sparked cynical and angry comments from some users of South Korea's online communities such as "Clien". In their posts, they used "▶◀", a symbol which represents a black funeral ribbon as a prefix to mock Samsung and the judicial system.
"The ruling is humiliating and disgraceful," wrote "knect", a Clien user. "The roots of evil have bored deep into our justice system."
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
