The Funeral Ceremony of the Late Mayor Park Won-soon Held at Seoul City Hall and Online

The funeral procession of the late Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul, is heading to the funeral hall held at Seoul City Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 13th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] The funeral ceremony for the late Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul, was held on the 13th at the multipurpose hall on the 8th floor of Seoul City Hall as a Seoul Metropolitan Government official funeral (葬).

The late mayor's hearse departed from Seoul National University Hospital funeral hall at 7:20 a.m. and arrived at Seoul City Hall shortly after 8 a.m. To prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), only about 100 people including family members, provincial governors, Democratic Party leadership, Seoul city officials, and representatives of civil society attended the funeral in person. Instead, the entire ceremony was broadcast live on Seoul City's YouTube channel.

The funeral, hosted by Go Min-jung, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, proceeded with a salute to the national flag, a moment of silence for the deceased, a memorial video screening, a memorial song performance, and eulogies delivered by Professor Baek Nak-cheong of Seoul National University, co-chair of the funeral committee, Lee Hae-chan, leader of the Democratic Party, Seo Jeong-hyeop, acting mayor of Seoul and first deputy mayor, and citizen Hong Nam-sook.

Professor Baek said, "The reason why countless citizens, the public, and many overseas figures are deeply shocked by your death today is because you were a special person who accumulated extraordinary merits," adding, "You opened a new beginning for our civic movement and Seoul city administration." Leader Lee said, "Like the nickname 'Kind Won-soon,' he was a friend to the citizens as the head of Seoul and worked passionately for them like a humble neighbor uncle," and mourned, "Because he was a person as pure and modest as his passion, his final journey is deeply painful and sorrowful."

Following the eulogies, attendees of the funeral laid flowers one by one, and Park Da-in, the mayor's daughter, delivered a speech on behalf of the bereaved family. She said, "Every time I saw the face of each citizen who came to pay their respects, I saw my father," and added, "My father has gone on a path of no return, but now I hope all citizens become the mayor and protect a happy and safe Seoul."

After the approximately 1 hour and 10 minute funeral ceremony, the bereaved family and attendees moved to the Seoul Memorial Park in Wonji-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul. The late mayor will be cremated there and his ashes will be interred at his family burial site in Seonsan, Changnyeong, Gyeongnam.