Spotlight: Samsung heir's detention to help enhance transparency of S.Korean conglomerates

The South Korean court's first determination to detain the chief of Samsung Group, the country's most powerful business empire, would help enhance transparency and reliability of other conglomerates as it serves to sever the deep-rooted corrupt ties between business tycoons and politicians.

Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, the third-generation leader of South Korea's biggest family-run conglomerate, faced an immediate incarceration early Friday after having awaited the decision to arrest him made by a judge at the Seoul Central District Court.

It was the first time in Samsung's 79-year history that its chief was taken into custody.

The vice chairman has run the conglomerate since his father Chairman Lee Kun-hee was incapacitated in May 2014 for heart attack. He was named as a board member of Samsung Electronics, the group's crown jewel, following the recall of Galaxy Note 7 smartphone last year.

Samsung's founder Lee Byung-chull was not punished though he was investigated in 1996 for smuggling charges.

Lee Kun-hee, the second-generation leader, was convicted twice on bribery and tax evasion in 1996 and 2008, but he received only suspended prison terms before getting pardoned by the country's presidents.

The Samsung heir's detention would have repercussions beyond Samsung itself, sending shockwaves through the entire South Korean business community as it sends chaebol heads a signal that even the richest family's heir will be arrested for wrongdoings.

The Samsung vice chairman was charged with paying 43 billion won (38 million U.S. dollars) in bribes to President Park Geun-hye and her confidante Choi Soon-sil, who is at the center of the corruption scandal that led to Park's impeachment, in return for political favors in the controversial 2015 merger of two Samsung affiliates.

The national pension fund, to which almost half of the country's 50 million population are subscribers, was forced to vote in favor of the merger of Samsung C&T and Cheil Industries, inflicting damages estimated at hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars. Many investors opposed the merger on undervalued shares of Samsung C&T.

High-level government officials and state agencies were mobilized to help Vice Chairman Lee inherit management control from his ailing father. The merger was extremely crucial to the smooth power transfer to the Samsung heir. The former health and welfare minister has been detained for his involvement.

The origin of collusive ties between businessmen and politicians may date back to the military dictatorships in the 1960s and even to the 1910-45 Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula, under which pro-Japanese tycoons collaborated with the colonial ruler.

Even under the democratized governments since late 1980s, all of the presidents saw themselves or their relatives implicated in corruption scandals linked to conglomerates, called chaebol here.

The Samsung heir's detention would help cut off the distorted link between chaebol and politicians by confirming a basic principle that all are equal before law.

The severed, or at least loosened link between them, would lead to improved transparency and reliability of South Korean conglomerates.

The business community expressed worry that Lee's arrest can hurt the already struggling South Korean economy, which has long been dominated by large corporations.

But, Samsung is a gigantic corporation that is managed by professional executives and staff, meaning its normal operation would scarcely be affected without him.

Protesters, who gathered every Saturday night for candlelit vigils, clamored for the detention of chaebol heads as well as the impeached president's permanent removal from office. Enditem