Already the Third Passport... Why Are Local Government Heads Facing Consecutive 'Me Too' Allegations?

Entrenched Top-Down Culture Among Secretaries and Public Officials
Complex Interaction of Absolute Authority Including Personnel Rights

Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon was found dead near Sukjeongmun in Jongno-gu, Seoul, early on the 10th. On the same day, reporters gathered in front of Seoul City Hall. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy reporters Jo In-kyung and Yoo Byung-don] Park Won-soon, the Mayor of Seoul, who was found dead about seven hours after being reported missing, was recently confirmed to have been accused of sexual harassment by a former secretary. He is the third metropolitan government head involved in the #MeToo movement, following former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung and former Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don.

The exact reason behind Mayor Park's extreme decision has not yet been confirmed, but considering there were no notable issues in his administrative activities or public appearances, it is presumed that this accusation triggered a change in his state of mind.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, on the day before his disappearance, the 8th, Mayor Park was accused of sexual harassment by a former secretary, Ms. A. During the police investigation, Ms. A testified that she was frequently sexually harassed while working as Mayor Park's secretary in 2017. It was also reported that Mayor Park sent personal photos multiple times via Telegram and other platforms, and the conversation records were submitted as evidence.

Previously, the sexual violence by former Governor Ahn Hee-jung was revealed on March 5, 2018, when his secretary, Ms. Kim Ji-eun, publicly exposed it to the media. Although Ahn was acquitted in the first trial in August 2018 and released, he was sentenced to prison in the appeal trial in February last year and was taken into custody. In September last year, the Supreme Court confirmed his sentence of three years and six months, and he is currently serving his term at Gwangju Prison.

Former Mayor Oh Keo-don admitted to sexually harassing a female public official on April 23 and abruptly resigned. On May 28, the Busan District Prosecutors' Office requested an arrest warrant for Oh on charges of forcible molestation, but the Busan District Court dismissed it, and Oh is currently under investigation without detention.

As these high-profile politicians are consecutively embroiled in sexual scandals, attention is focused on the underlying causes. The political world is deeply rooted in a strict hierarchical culture, and due to employment conditions, lower-ranking individuals inevitably find themselves in a thoroughly subordinate position.

Especially, the stronger the political standing and authority of local government heads, the more concentrated powers such as personnel authority combine to make it difficult for victims of sexual crimes to defend themselves. The fact that all three sexual crime cases were committed by 'high-profile politicians' attests to this. Both Ms. A and Ms. Kim Ji-eun testified that they found it difficult to resist the authority and therefore could not refuse the sexual assaults.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.