Victim of Park Won-soon Demands Human Rights Commission's Ex Officio Investigation... Will the Truth Behind Sexual Harassment Allegations Emerge? (Comprehensive)

Representatives from women's organizations such as the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center and Korea Women's Hotline held a joint action on the 28th in front of Seoul City Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul, calling for the National Human Rights Commission to conduct an ex officio investigation into the sexual violence case involving the power of the Mayor of Seoul. They marched from City Hall to the Human Rights Commission and held a press conference in front of the commission urging an ex officio investigation. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporters Seungyoon Song and Donghoon Jung] Women's organizations supporting former secretary A, who accused former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon of sexual harassment, have demanded that the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) conduct an ex officio investigation.

On the morning of the 28th, eight women's organizations including the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center, Korea Women's Hotline, Korean Women Workers Association, and Korean Women's Association United urged the NHRCK to launch an ex officio investigation into the sexual harassment allegations against former Mayor Park. They stated, "In the 20 days since the allegations surfaced on the 8th of this month, there has been no respect shown to the living victim, while respect was demanded for the deceased perpetrator. The inappropriate five-day funeral for the Seoul Mayor reaffirmed the abuse of power." They added, "This case must begin with fact-finding by the Human Rights Commission and conclude with the creation of a safe working environment where women can work without disadvantage."

◆ "Guarantee Safe Workplaces for Women" Request for NHRCK Ex Officio Investigation = Through the 'Request for the National Human Rights Commission to Launch an Ex Officio Investigation into the Sexual Violence Case by the Seoul Mayor,' they demanded eight items from the NHRCK. These included ▲ identifying and improving gender-discriminatory elements in the hiring criteria for secretaries to heads of institutions in Seoul City and public organizations ▲ confirming the continuous sexual harassment and sexual misconduct by Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon against his official secretary and taking appropriate measures for victim relief ▲ investigating the circumstances under which the victim's request for personnel transfer was ignored, holding related parties accountable, and implementing measures to prevent recurrence.

About 100 activists and protesters affiliated with these organizations marched from City Hall to the NHRCK at 10 a.m. and held a press conference in front of the commission demanding an ex officio investigation into the sexual harassment allegations against the late Mayor Park. Participants gathered at the plaza in front of City Hall wearing purple clothes or carrying purple umbrellas symbolizing women's rights. They held placards with slogans such as "The absence of prosecution rights does not erase the perpetrator's facts" and "Guarantee the right of female workers to work safely."

They said, "Voices of solidarity with the victim regarding the sexual violence by the Seoul Mayor's abuse of power are turning into a wave of solidarity calling for organizational and cultural change," and appealed, "Please join the citizens' support and encouragement toward a gender-equal society, a society where women's rights are realized, and a society where victims can return to their daily lives and workplaces."

At the press conference held in front of the NHRCK that day, Kim Jaeryun, the lawyer representing the victim, said, "The National Human Rights Commission has a method for victims to file complaints, and regardless of whether a complaint is filed, there is a provision allowing the commission to conduct an ex officio investigation if there is a human rights violation related to gender discrimination." She added, "The reason for requesting an ex officio investigation (rather than a complaint) is that the commission can actively investigate beyond the scope of the victim's claims and recommend institutional improvements."

Regarding the victim's request for an ex officio investigation, the NHRCK stated, "The request for an ex officio investigation will be received in the form of a civil petition," and "Whether to conduct an ex officio investigation will be reviewed and decided by holding a subcommittee, standing committee, or plenary committee." The schedule for the committee meeting to decide on the ex officio investigation has not yet been determined.

Representatives from women's organizations such as the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center and Korea Women's Hotline held a joint action on the 28th in front of Seoul Library in Jung-gu, Seoul, demanding a special investigation by the National Human Rights Commission into the sexual violence case involving the power of the Seoul Mayor. They marched from City Hall to the Human Rights Commission and held a press conference in front of the commission urging a special investigation. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

◆ Seoul City Officials Summoned One After Another... Police Investigation Accelerates = The police investigation is also gaining momentum. Police investigating allegations of aiding and abetting sexual harassment by the late Mayor Park Won-soon have been summoning Seoul City officials one after another for questioning. So far, the police have called about ten related personnel, including employees who worked in the mayor's secretariat, as witnesses to investigate whether they were aware of A's victimization. The police plan to continue summoning related individuals for questioning this week. Once witness questioning is completed, they will also investigate those accused of aiding and abetting sexual harassment, including former and current secretariat chiefs. Former Secretariat Chief Ko Han-seok and Gender Special Advisor Lim Sun-young, who have already been questioned once, are likely to be investigated again.

The investigation into neglect allegations is expected to focus on proving whether Seoul City officials were aware of the sexual harassment by the late Mayor Park and yet ignored or aided it. The circumstances under which the victim's request for personnel transfer was dismissed will also be a key focus of the investigation. However, whether charges will be applied remains uncertain. No individuals have been formally registered as suspects yet, and those accused of aiding and abetting are actively presenting defense arguments. Particularly, since the late Mayor Park passed away, it is difficult to even establish whether sexual harassment occurred. A search warrant application for evidence seizure at Seoul City Hall, requested by the police, was already rejected once.

Meanwhile, the police initially planned to send the main case of sexual harassment accusations against the late Mayor Park to the prosecution with a "no prosecution" disposition, but due to the intertwined allegations of neglect and other complaints and accusations, the transfer is expected to be delayed beyond initial expectations.

Initially, victim support organizations held a press conference on the 22nd and announced their intention to file a complaint requesting the NHRCK to investigate the sexual harassment allegations against former Mayor Park within the week. However, judging that the problematic points were multifaceted, they changed their stance to request an ex officio investigation to point out structural issues as well. An ex officio investigation by the NHRCK is a measure where the commission initiates an investigation on its own authority into cases involving serious harm. It has the same effect as a complaint investigation but can have a broader scope depending on the commission's judgment.

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