SK Group striving to soothe public after chairman's prison release

SEOUL, Aug. 19 (Yonhap) -- SK Group, South Korea's No. 3 conglomerate, is scurrying to extend its support for the socially vulnerable and social enterprises, industry sources said Wednesday, amid the public's rising anger over the release of its chairman from prison. Chairman Chey Tae-won had been serving a prison sentence since 2013 for embezzlement, but he was freed last week in a special presidential pardon marking Liberation Day. While the government claims the pardon will help vitalize the sagging local economy, public reaction was mixed, with some pointing out the irony of releasing a man imprisoned for committing a business-related crime to boost the economy. Chey had met the heads of group affiliates to discuss ways to expand support for social enterprises, which refer to businesses that not only strive to generate profits but also contribute to their communities by hiring the needy and working toward shared growth. "We will seek to develop social enterprises and help revitalize the local economy by generating jobs and stabilizing the livelihoods of those in the low-income bracket," said Lee Moon-suk, who is in charge of SK Group's charity projects. "Although nothing has been decided, it is believed that SK Group will roll out incentive programs for social enterprises," another SK official said. Chey claims to be an advocate of social enterprises, as he believes getting the handicapped and low-income people to stand on their own feet is beneficial for the national economy. Last year, Chey made a venture fund by donating 10 billion won (US$8.47 million) to help startups run by young adults. In 2013, Chey also donated 18.7 billion won -- his paycheck for that year, while he was imprisoned -- to social enterprises. SK Group also said earlier in the day that it will donate 100 billion won to improve the housing environment for senior citizens over the next three years, continuing its efforts to appease the public. The donation will be given to charities designated by the government through 2017 colin@yna.co.kr (END