Park Won-soon

Park Won-soon (; February 11, 1955 or March 26, 1956 – July 9, 2020) was a South Korean politician, lawyer and activist who served as the mayor of Seoul from 2011 until his death in 2020. A member of the Democratic Party of Korea, he was the longest-serving mayor of Seoul. He died by suicide in July 2020 following allegations of sexual harassment.

Prior to being elected as mayor, Park was a community and social justice activist, serving as a member of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. He wrote many books on transitional justice as international human rights lawyer and worked as the chief prosecutor for both North and South Korea for the first time in The Women's International War Crimes Tribunal on Japan's Military Sexual Slavery accusing the Showa Emperor. A noted political donor in Seoul, Park contributed to political organizations and think tanks that advocated for grassroots solutions towards social, educational, environmental, and political issues. As a mayor of Seoul, he was awarded for the first time in South Korea, Gothenburg Award for Sustainable Development for 'sharing city' and Lee Kuan Yew World City Prize, Singapore for changing the city into an inclusive, socially stable and innovative city.

In July 2020, Park's former secretary accused him of four years of sexual harassment; Park died the next day, in an apparent suicide.

Early life Park Won-soon was born on February 11, 1955 or March 26, 1956, in Changnyeong, South Korea. He was enrolled at Kyunggi High School in 1971 and graduated in 1974. Beginning in 2005, Park served as part of South Korea's Truth and Reconciliation Commission to address the history of human rights violations in Korean history from Japan's rule of Korea in 1910, up until the end of authoritarian rule in South Korea with the election of President Kim Young-sam in 1993. In 2006, as an offshoot of The Beautiful Foundation, Park founded the Hope Institute, a think tank designed to promote solutions arising from grassroots suggestions for social, educational, environmental, and political problems.

As a lawyer, Park won several major cases, including South Korea's first sexual harassment conviction.

Mayor of Seoul (2011–2020)

2011 mayoral campaign

In the Seoul mayoral by-election on October 26, 2011, he was elected as an independent candidate with the support of the Democratic Party and Democratic Labor Party. However, the inability of the Democratic Party to present its own candidate, and Park's refusal to join it after he had received its endorsement, served to present Park as a candidate independent of the interests of both established parties.

Tenure

As mayor, Park suggested a friendly football match and an orchestra event between South Korea and North Korea. He also praised Japan's local government system during his disaster prevention training there.

Early in 2012, Park was accused of illegally manipulating the army draft health checkup to have his son sent to a favorable post. In February 2012, Park joined the Democratic United Party.

On September 20, 2012, under the leadership of Park, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced its plan to promote a sharing vision through the Sharing City Seoul Project. As a consequence of the successful implementation of the plan, Park was recognized in South Korea and internationally as a leader of the Sharing City concept.

On April 14, 2013, Line 9, part of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway, announced a sudden fare increase. Park objected to the fare being raised without negotiation and warned that if the corporation proceeded, Seoul would take over management of the corporation. Line 9 released an apology to the residents of Seoul. He was a vocal critic of then-President Park Geun-hye and participated in huge rallies against her in central Seoul that led to her impeachment and ousting on corruption charges in 2017. On June 13, 2018, Park was elected to his third and last term as Mayor of Seoul.

Personal life Park was married to Kang Nan-hee, with whom he had two children: a daughter, Park Da-in, and a son, Park Ju-sin.

He received the Ramon Magsaysay Award in 2006.

On July 8, 2020, one day before his disappearance, a former secretary filed a complaint against Park sexual harassment. She accused Park of physical and digital harassment over a period of four years until she transferred work departments to avoid the misconduct.

Sexual harassment The victim, who was employed as Park's secretary, was asked to take care of intimate aspects of Park's life, including handling his undergarments before and after he showered. Park also sent inappropriate texts and photos to the victim, including pictures of himself in his underwear as well as obscene late-night messages over the Telegram app. The independent National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRC) found that Park's words and actions toward his secretary constituted sexual harassment under the country's laws.

Death Park's funeral was held after a mourning period of five days. On July 9, 2020, the day after Park was accused of sexual harassment, Park's daughter reported him as missing after reportedly taking sick leave, alerting the National Police Agency at 5:17 pm KST. Park's cell phone was reported as turned off in the Seongbuk District of Seoul, with his daughter finding a will-like note. Authorities began using search dogs and drones in Seongbuk District. Around midnight, his body was found near Sukjeongmun on Bugak Mountain in northern Seoul. With no foul play found at the scene, it has been broadly reported that the death is considered a suicide.

Park's family accepted a state funeral, held at Seoul City Hall and streamed online on July 13, 2020. About 992,000 people have paid tribute to Park on an online city-run mourning site. Despite the controversy surrounding the sexual harassment, the funeral was paid for by the city using public funds.

Election results Mayor of Seoul Year Elections Constituency Political party Votes (%) Results 2011 2011 By-election Seoul(Mayoral Elections) Independent 2,158,476 (53.40%) Won 2014 6th Iocal Election Seoul(Mayoral Elections) NPAD 2,752,171 (56.12%) Won 2018 7th Iocal Election Seoul(Mayoral Elections) Democratic 2,619,497 (52.79%) Won