Lee’s news conference followed a review by a
Samsung committee of external experts, led
by former South Korean Supreme Court justice
Kim Ji-hyung, of Samsung’s corporate behavior.
It concluded he should apologize over the graft
allegations and address problems with the
company’s labor policies.
“Samsung’s technologies and products are
continuously praised as top-rate, but people’s
views on Samsung remain critical. All this is
because of our shortcomings,” Lee said as cameras
flashed at a Samsung Electronics office in Seoul.
Lee said the company “at times” had failed to comply
with laws and ethics. After bowing in apology,
Lee vowed to ensure “there would no longer be
any controversy over the issue of management
succession.” He left without taking questions.
Lee stepped into his leadership role after his
father, Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Kun-
hee, fell ill in May 2014.
He is being tried on charges that he bribed
former President Park Geun-hye and her
confidant while seeking government support for
his control over the Samsung business empire.
The scandal ignited massive street protests
that toppled the presidency of Park. She was
formally removed from office in March 2017 and
is serving a decades-long term in prison.
Samsung’s union-busting practices have
been criticized by activists for decades. As Lee
spoke, former Samsung employee Kim Yong-
hee continued a near yearlong protest atop a
25-meter (82-feet) traffic camera tower nearby,
demanding his job back. Kim says he was fired in
1995 for trying to organize a labor union.