The Funeral Ceremony for Mayor Park Won-soon Begins at 8:30 AM
A Calm Farewell Ceremony... Citizens Cry at Seoul Plaza
Cremation at Seoul Memorial Park After the Funeral... Burial in Changnyeong, Gyeongnam
On the morning of the 13th, the funeral procession for the late Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul, was held at Seoul City Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul, where the deceased's memorial tablet and portrait were being carried to the funeral hall. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
[Asia Economy reporters Donghoon Jeong and Seungyoon Song] The funeral ceremony for the late Park Won-soon, former Mayor of Seoul, who passed away on the 10th, began on the morning of the 13th at Seoul City Hall.
Before the funeral ceremony, the departure rite for Mayor Park was held from around 7 a.m. at the funeral hall of Seoul National University Hospital. The departure ceremony started with the press barred from access. Despite the rainy and gloomy weather, mourners who wished to see the deceased off gathered at the site early in the morning. Funeral committee officials also entered the funeral hall one after another.
The departure ceremony proceeded in a solemn atmosphere with a relatively calm demeanor. The rite was conducted in the Buddhist tradition. After the ceremony, the process of moving the deceased’s coffin and portrait to the hearse was not made public. Once the hearse and funeral vehicles left the funeral hall after completing this process, only occasional quiet tears were seen from Mayor Park’s acquaintances and politicians following the hearse. Some citizens watching this sighed deeply or sobbed.
Except for Mayor Park’s son, Jushin, boarding the hearse, the bereaved family did not appear outside. The road in front of the funeral hall was briefly congested as funeral vehicles, mourners, and commuting cars became entangled.
The hearse carrying Mayor Park arrived at the plaza in front of Seoul City Hall at around 7:47 a.m. About 200 people, including family members and acquaintances, led by the portrait, passed the citizen memorial altar set up in front of City Hall and moved to the funeral hall inside the Seoul City Hall building. Unlike the relatively composed departure ceremony, dozens of citizens gathered at the memorial altar were wailing, and some showed tears.
Citizens who witnessed Mayor Park’s funeral procession could not hide their feelings of emptiness and sorrow. Sim Miseon (43), who paid respects at the citizen memorial altar set up in front of Seoul City Hall that day, said, “(Mayor Park) carefully nurtured Seoul’s administration for the past 10 years,” adding, “I wanted to offer at least one last flower, so I visited the memorial altar before going to work.”
Heo Suho (53), who watched the funeral procession, said, “I feel the futility of life and power,” adding, “At least today, we should mourn the deceased who lived dedicating himself to our society as a mayor and human rights activist.”
Mayor Park’s funeral ceremony has been held online since 8:30 a.m. that day at the multipurpose hall on the 8th floor of Seoul City Hall.
On the 13th, the hearse carrying the late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon's body moved from the funeral hall at Seoul National University Hospital in Jongno-gu, Seoul, to the memorial service venue at Seoul City Hall. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@
Only a limited number of about 100 people attended the on-site funeral ceremony, including family members, funeral committee chairpersons, provincial governors, Democratic Party leadership, Seoul city executives, and representatives of civil society. The entire funeral ceremony is being broadcast live on the Seoul City YouTube channel and the tbs Traffic Broadcasting YouTube channel.
The funeral ceremony began with the opening declaration, followed by the national flag salute, a moment of silence for the deceased, a memorial video screening, a memorial song performance, eulogies and flower offerings by three co-chairpersons of the funeral committee, and concluded with a greeting from the family representative.
The funeral committee announced that after the funeral ceremony, Mayor Park’s body will be cremated at Seoul Memorial Park and then moved to his ancestral burial site in Changnyeong, Gyeongnam, for interment.
The co-chairpersons of Mayor Park’s funeral committee were Honorary Professor Baek Nak-cheong of Seoul National University, Democratic Party leader Lee Hae-chan, and Acting Mayor of Seoul Seo Jeong-hyeop. The vice-chairpersons included Kim Tae-nyeon, floor leader of the Democratic Party, Choi Kang-wook, leader of the Open Democratic Party, Kwon Young-jin, chairman of the Jeonbuk Provincial Governors Association, Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, and Kim In-ho, chairman of the Seoul Metropolitan Council.
The advisory group consisted of seven members, including Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun, former National Assembly Speakers Kim Won-ki, Im Chae-jung, Moon Hee-sang, and former Board of Audit and Inspection Chairman Han Seung-heon. The standing executive director was Ahn Kyu-baek, chairman of the Democratic Party’s Seoul branch, and the co-executive directors were Lee Dong-jin, chairman of the Seoul City and District Mayors Association; Ha Seung-chan, former senior social innovation secretary of the Social University; and Park Hong-geun, Democratic Party lawmaker.
As of the previous day, about 8,500 people paid their respects at the funeral hall of Seoul National University Hospital, and about 20,380 people at the memorial altar in front of Seoul City Hall. More than one million people have also offered flowers at the online memorial altar operated by Seoul City.
Earlier, Mayor Park was reported missing at around 5:17 p.m. on the 9th. After a search by police and fire authorities, he was found deceased at 12:01 a.m. on the 10th in the mountains near the fortress wall trail of Bukaksan in Seoul. It was reported that at the time of discovery, Mayor Park appeared to have taken his own life.
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