President Lee Raises Concerns About 'Third-Party Bribery' in Corporate CSR... Orders Review of Prosecutorial Stance

President Lee Jae-myung raised the need to review the current legal enforcement regarding 'third-party bribery' charges on the 21st, noting that such charges could apply when encouraging corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities. The current prosecutorial stance is that if there is a connection to official duties, donations made by companies to third-party public interest organizations are considered bribes.

President Lee stated, "Doesn't the prosecution currently hold the view that if there is an official connection, donations to third-party public interest organizations, even if discussed, are all guilty?" He pointed out, "In that situation, if each ministry communicates with relevant companies that have even a slight connection to their administrative duties and encourages donations to public interest organizations, this constitutes third-party bribery under the current definition."

Furthermore, he criticized the situation where donation acts are restricted solely on the grounds of a connection, stating, "If it is just claimed that administrative duties or pending issues are involved, everyone gets caught."