Former lawmaker Yoon Mi-hyang (60) did not accept the court's reconciliation recommendation to return the donations received by the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Japanese Military Comfort Women (Korean Council, the precursor to the Justice Memory Solidarity).
On the 6th, according to the legal community, Yoon's side filed an objection to the reconciliation recommendation made by Judge Joo Han-gil of the 36th Civil Division of the Seoul Western District Court on Jan. 31.
Previously, some donors filed a lawsuit in September 2020 demanding the return of 4.85 million won in donations from former lawmaker Yoon and the Korean Council and Justice Memory Solidarity.
The panel of the Seoul Western District Court issued a reconciliation recommendation on Jan. 15, ordering Yoon's side to return all donations claimed by the plaintiffs. A reconciliation recommendation is a decision by the court, made ex officio, advising a settlement by considering the interests of the parties and various circumstances to ensure a fair resolution of the case before a ruling is made. If a reconciliation is reached, it has the same effect as a final judgment.
However, on Jan. 31, Yoon's side submitted an objection to this decision. If the court accepts the objection, the trial proceedings will begin in earnest. The first hearing for the donation return lawsuit is scheduled for April 24.
Yoon was indicted in September 2020 for embezzlement and other charges for misusing 1.05 billion won raised to assist comfort women victims from 2011 to 2020. Additionally, Yoon faces charges of violating the Donation Law for raising approximately 4.2 billion won through unregistered accounts, including 2.68 billion won with the Korean Council, 1.32 billion won with the Justice Memory Solidarity, 100 million won with Kim Bok-dong Hope, and 170 million won in personal accounts, as well as illegally receiving subsidies of 367.5 million won.
The first trial court acknowledged only some of Yoon's charges and sentenced her to a fine of 15 million won, but the appeals court expanded the scope of the guilty verdict, sentencing her to 1 year and 6 months in prison with a 3-year probation. At that time, the court determined that the amount of embezzlement of donations was 79.58 million won, which was more than the first trial, and judged that the embezzlement of condolence money for Grandmother Kim Bok-dong and the illegal receipt of government subsidies were also guilty.
The Supreme Court upheld the original sentence of 1 year and 6 months in prison with a 3-year probation in the appeals case concerning Yoon on Nov. 14 last year. The court noted, "Yoon Mi-hyang knew better than anyone that she must thoroughly manage this money and use it for its intended purpose, yet she committed the crime, undermining expectations," and stated that it caused great harm not only to citizens who supported and sponsored the Korean Council but also to the organization's stature.