Mayor Park's Human Rights Commission Investigation Report to Extend Beyond the Year

The ex officio investigation report has not been approved yet
It seems possible only after January next year

= Kim Jae-ryeon, representative lawyer of Onsesang Law Firm, and members of women's organizations submitted a request for the National Human Rights Commission to conduct an ex officio investigation into the sexual harassment allegations against former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon on the morning of July 28 at the National Human Rights Commission in Jung-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] The National Human Rights Commission of Korea's (NHRCK) ex officio investigation into the sexual harassment allegations against former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon is expected to extend beyond this year.

According to an NHRCK official on the 29th, the ex officio investigation related to former Mayor Park's allegations has completed interviews with the parties involved and related persons, document reviews, and on-site investigations, and is currently in the final stages of report preparation. However, the resolutions by the Discrimination Remedy Committee and the Plenary Committee, which must be passed before the official report can be published, have not yet been finalized. The NHRCK official stated, "It seems that the announcement will only be possible after January next year."

The ex officio investigation report is reviewed and resolved by the Discrimination Remedy Committee, a subcommittee under the NHRCK. However, within the NHRCK, considering the gravity and ripple effects of the case, it is widely known that the matter is likely to be referred from the subcommittee to the Plenary Committee. The Plenary Committee is the highest decision-making body, holding regular meetings twice a month, attended by the chairperson and all members. Agendas submitted to the Plenary Committee are resolved by dismissal, acceptance, or rejection. After the final resolution, the investigation results are disclosed externally in the form of a decision document. Although sexual harassment and assault cases typically do not have their results publicly announced to protect victims, since the victims in former Mayor Park's case have requested related institutional improvements, the related results are expected to be disclosed.

The last Plenary Committee meeting of this year was held on the 28th, but the agenda related to Mayor Park's sexual harassment was not submitted. The Discrimination Remedy Committee will convene on the afternoon of the 29th, but the NHRCK plans to keep the agenda submission status confidential.

In July, the NHRCK announced plans to complete the investigation within the year by forming a nine-member "Ex Officio Investigation Team on Sexual Harassment by Former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon," led by the Director of the Discrimination Remedy Bureau. The NHRCK conducted a comprehensive investigation and reviewed improvement measures regarding ▲ sexual harassment and related acts by the former mayor, ▲ the Seoul Metropolitan Government's tolerance and complicity of the sexual harassment damage and the structural factors that made it possible, and ▲ the overall institutional aspects related to sexual harassment cases. They also announced plans to examine procedures for handling sexual harassment cases involving elected officials.

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