"Relentless Perpetrator-Centered Approach" Kim Jaeryeon Criticizes by Revealing Texts of Park Wonsoon's Female Secretary

Attorney Kim Jaeryeon, Legal Representative of Former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon's Secretary A
"Final Analysis of Testimony Concludes 'National Human Rights Commission Sexual Harassment' Decision"

On July 13, 2020, at the Korea Women's Hotline in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, Kim Jae-ryeon, representative lawyer of the law firm On·Sesang, is revealing the secret chat room invitation message sent by Mayor Park Won-soon to the accuser A during the press conference on the "Power Sexual Harassment Case by the Seoul Mayor." Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] Lawyer Jeong Cheol-seung, who served as the legal representative of the bereaved family of the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, disclosed text messages exchanged between Park and secretary A. Kim Jae-ryeon, the legal representative of A, criticized this, calling it "a vicious perpetrator-centered approach."

On the 25th, Lawyer Kim released a statement titled "Let's End It! Perpetrator-Centered Approach," saying, "Thanks to the solid 'perpetrator-centered approach,' the burden of explaining and clarifying always falls on the victim. Shouldn't we be asking the perpetrator?"

He continued, "Why did the mayor, who was known for his strong gender sensitivity, invite a female employee to a secret Telegram chat room in the middle of the night? Why did he send a message asking, 'Are you alone now? Should I come over?' to a subordinate who lives alone? Why did he send a message saying, 'In dreams, anything goes lol' to a subordinate?" he repeatedly pointed out.

Lawyer Kim stated, "Forensic results confirmed that these messages were sent by former Mayor Park to the victim," adding, "He disappeared without any explanation. The victim quietly filed a complaint without informing anyone." He also mentioned that he had requested a forensic examination of Park’s mobile phone, but "regrettably, the perpetrator’s phone was returned to the family without forensic analysis because he had passed away."

Kim questioned, "Who should be questioned? Who should explain? Who should be criticized? Who evaded due process? Who shirked responsibility?" emphasizing, "The final result, which thoroughly analyzed the victim’s complaint, submitted materials, and witness statements, was the 'National Human Rights Commission's sexual harassment decision.'"

On the 17th, Lawyer Jeong posted on his Facebook page some of the text conversations recovered through forensics between former Mayor Park and A. According to the disclosed content, A sent messages such as "I love you" and "See you in my dreams" to Park. Park replied, "Anyway, you should get married soon lol, I feel like a dad," and A responded, "Haha, yes, you are like our dad."

Lawyer Jeong argued, "A female employee who crosses boundaries with her superior should be kept at a distance no matter how diligent she is," adding, "Since former Mayor Park had only been active in civic groups for a long time, he probably had never experienced a female subordinate crossing boundaries before this incident. I think it was a fatal mistake by Park."

In response, Lawyer Kim posted a brief message on the 20th, saying, "Despite the harsh comments, the truth will remain in its place, and I will just fulfill my given duty."

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