More Than an Eighth of All Candidates Suspected of Criminal Past

The ever-busy Central Election Management Committee is to release information exposing some election candidates having criminal records. Preliminary rumors have 15 percent of the total 1,040 candidates with criminal pasts.

The Public Prosecutors Office has on record 54 to 57 candidates with "serious criminal offences" from the areas of Pusan, Kwangju, Inchon, Taejon, Ulsan, Changwon, Suwon, and Cheju. Of the list of convictions include violation of National Security laws, illegal "assembly or demenstrations". In addition to these convictions which are not surpising considering the politically oppresive pre-1980s, there are surpisingly numerous convictions for bribery, slander, and "adultery".

It is suspected that 3 or 4 of the candidates for the Pusan ridings have criminal histories. In Kwangju, 11 of the total 46 candidates have checkered pasts. Similarly, 10 of the 48 Inchon candidates and 3 out of the 32 Taejon candidates have criminal records over-shadowing them. Four candidates in Ulsan, 10 candidates from the Changwon area and 12 candidates in the Suwon ridings hold criminal records. Also, Korea's largest island is not unmarked by the fallout with one candidate suspected of a criminal past.

Seoul City's Prosecutors Office have been looking into the histories of 73 candidates in the city's 13 election ridings. However, investigations are far from complete with 60 Seoul riding candidates still being carried out. Their results are expected to be released around April 5.

A high-ranking official at the Prosecutors Office expects that candidates with previous criminal records consist account for "10 to 20 percent of all candidates for Seoul's congressional seats. This makes approximately 15 percent of all candidates throughout the nation marred by criminal records." Also, this percentage rises to 15 to 20 percent if only the northern ridings are taken into account of which Seoul is a major part.

Each district's prosecutors office has or is presently checking their records as well as those of local tribunals. Their completion date has been delayed until April 8 in order to search records dating from the 1980s.

General Elections are on April 13 leaving only 5 days after the criminal reports are released on April 8. With this new twist to the elections and the damage this will do, there will be little time left for any meaningful damage-control by the candidates effected.

The sources at the prosecutors office commented that only the criminal record "with charges requiring imprisonment" would be released. If the crime records were also to cover lesser charges involving fines or penalties, the number of the candidates listed "would certainly surpass the present 15 percent."

by Lee Sang-un