Hong Joon-pyo "Park Won-soon, Seoul Special Mayor (Funeral) I Don't Understand... Truly a Strange Country"

"Park Won-soon’s Death, I Don’t Understand the Praise or Claims of Continuing His Legacy"

Independent lawmaker Hong Jun-pyo is delivering a congratulatory speech at the special lecture commemorating the opening of the 21st National Assembly, held at the National Assembly Members' Office Building in June. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] Independent lawmaker Hong Joon-pyo criticized the funeral arrangements for the late Park Won-soon, former Mayor of Seoul, saying, "I do not understand on what grounds a former mayor who committed suicide is given a Seoul Special Mayor’s Funeral (葬)."

On the 12th, Hong posted on his Facebook, "In the case of former President Roh Moo-hyun, there is a law concerning the treatment of former presidents, so a state funeral was held and posthumous honors were given," he said.

Hong pointed out, "While we can accept the part where he atoned for his mistakes through death, it is difficult to readily understand the glorification of this or the claim that his intentions are being carried on."

He continued, "It would have been better to quietly cremate the deceased according to his wishes and end it, but the fact that the two political camps are divided and fighting over a suicide is just not right," adding, "This country is becoming very strange."

Earlier, Mayor Park left his official residence on the 9th and was out of contact until he was found dead near Sukjeongmun Gate in Bukaksan Mountain early on the 10th.

According to the police, Park was reportedly accused of sexual harassment by a former Seoul city employee, Mr. A, shortly before his death. However, since Park was found dead, the case was closed due to 'lack of prosecutorial rights.'

Subsequently, the funeral committee for Mayor Park decided to hold a Seoul Special Mayor’s Funeral (葬), but this decision sparked strong opposition.

On the Blue House’s public petition board, a petition titled "Opposing a five-day funeral and Seoul Special Mayor’s Funeral (葬) for Park Won-soon" was posted and gained 500,000 signatures within two days.

Meanwhile, the YouTube channel Garosero Research Institute (Gaseyeon) filed for an injunction on the 11th to prohibit the execution of the Seoul Special Mayor’s Funeral (葬) against Acting Mayor Seo Jeong-hyeop, but the court dismissed the request.

The court ruled that Gaseyeon did not properly follow the procedures stipulated by the Local Autonomy Act, so the application could not be considered valid.

The court explained, "The Local Autonomy Act stipulates that only residents who have requested an audit can file a resident lawsuit," and "At the time of this application, an audit request according to the prescribed procedures must be made to the Minister of the Interior and Safety, the competent minister under the Local Autonomy Act, but there is no evidence that such a request was made."

Earlier, Gaseyeon stated in their injunction application, "A Seoul Special Mayor’s Funeral (葬) can be considered a government funeral if the deceased was serving at a ministerial level," and "In the case of a government funeral, the head of the affiliated agency must consult with the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Blue House Secretariat, and then proceed with the president’s approval upon the agency head’s recommendation."

They added, "Acting Mayor Seo Jeong-hyeop set the funeral for Park Won-soon as a five-day Seoul Special Mayor’s Funeral (葬) without following any procedures, making it the first of its kind," and "It is estimated that more than 1 billion won will be spent on the funeral."

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