President Park Geun-hye’s surprising decision to free CJ Group chairman Lee Jay-hyun on Friday is expected to clear hurdles for the group’s struggling strategy to go global.

Chairman Lee also apologized to the people for causing concerns and vowed he would devote his life to the country.

Workers walk from CJ Group`s office in Seoul on Friday. (Yonhap)

“I thank the president and the people for giving me a chance to receive treatment and to return (to business),” he said in a statement.

“I will recover as soon as possible by concentrating on treatment and will make contributions to the country and the people through business as the ultimate goal of my life.”

CJ Group also welcomed the president’s leniency and said it would step up its global expansion.

CJ aims to generate 100 trillion won ($90.8 billion) in sales by 2020, targeting 70 percent of revenue from overseas markets. The group has been seeking opportunities for mergers and acquisitions in food, entertainment and bio drugs in and out of the country.

But officials have been citing difficulties in making elaborate decisions due to management vacuum created by Lee’s imprisonment.



In 2014, the owner of the nation’s food and entertainment giant was found guilty by a lower court of misappropriating 165.7 billion won in company assets to offshore slush funds and dodging taxes in the process. The Seoul High Court sentenced him to 2 1/2 years in jail and a fine of 25.2 billion won late last year.

Last month, Lee surprisingly dropped appeals to the Supreme Court in hopes of a presidential pardon. To be on the list, Lee had to start serving the prison term, but requested the prosecution to postpone his imprisonment citing difficulties of continuing treatments in jail. He suffers from Charcot Marie Tooth Disease, an inherited neurological disorder. In 2013, the chairman also received a kidney transplant.

Lee was the only conglomerate owner released in the round of presidential pardons. Other chaebol members including Hanwha Group chairman Kim Seung-youn and SK Group executive vice chairman Chey Jae-won were excluded.

Expectations were high for the president to issue pardons ahead of the Aug. 15 Liberation Day holiday as she said she would to overcome the economic crisis last month.

South Korean presidents can exercise pardons without seeking parliamentary endorsement.

The nation’s business circles also welcomed Park’s decision.

“Taking the presidential pardon as an opportunity, we hope businessmen to show entrepreneurship and fulfill their social responsibility to revive the nation’s economy,” said Korea International Trade Association in a statement.

By Cho Chung-un (christory@heraldcorp.com)