Justice delayed is justice denied

By the time the Supreme Court finally upheld the lower court’s ruling, Youn had safely completed her term, enjoying all the perks as a lawmaker.

The belated top court’s ruling finalizing a jail term for former lawmaker Youn Mee-hyang exemplified the maxim that justice delayed is justice denied. The Supreme Court last Thursday upheld a lower court’s ruling of a one-and-a-half-year prison sentence suspended for three years for Youn, more than four years after her indictment for embezzling donations and funds to help victims of the imperial Japanese military’s wartime sexual slavery.

It was May 2020 when Lee Yong-soo, a victim and survivor, publicly questioned Youn for misappropriating the funds at the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance that she headed. She opposed Youn’s nomination as a proportional lawmaker for the Democratic Party until her liability for misappropriation was answered.

Youn’s conviction stretches to more than 10 counts, mostly involving aberrations in using state subsidies and civilian donations. Tracking the funds was not that complicated, yet it took 29 months for the first ruling to be delivered. She was found guilty only for transferring some donations into her personal account and taking out 59 million won ($42,263) from the charity fund’s account for personal use to receive a relatively light fine of 15 million won. But a high court handed down a suspended jail sentence that could cost her legislative seat upon finding her guilty of unregistered collection of donations for the funeral of comfort woman Kim Bok-dong in 2019. By the time the Supreme Court finally upheld the lower court’s ruling, Youn had safely completed her term, enjoying all the perks as a lawmaker.

Other examples of legal delays are abundant. Former Ulsan Mayor Song Cheol-ho, accused of getting elected with the help of the presidential office thanks to his friendship with former President Moon Jae-in, got his first jail sentence of near four years in prison only after he completed his term. Hwang Un-ha, then chief of the Ulsan police who helped Song win the mayoral election, moved to Cho Kuk’s new party and got re-elected. Does it make sense if court rulings come after they finished their service? The presumption of innocence must be valued, but the principle can have meaning only if it’s backed by a timely trial process.

Youn’s trials underscored her greed of exploiting victims to expand her political influence. She dug into donations as if it was her piggy bank. Youn must live in atonement for what she did to survivors and donators. But she appears to be unremorseful as she has launched a foundation for Kim Bok-dong as soon as she finished her term as a lawmaker. She is collecting donations to build a memorial center for the iconic symbol of comfort women. If Youn has any conscience left and sympathy for the survivors, she must sincerely repent and surrender all public offices.