The Late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon Finds Eternal Rest in His Hometown, Changnyeong, Gyeongnam

Mayor Heo Seong-mu of Changwon and Others Pay Consecutive Condolences at Jangga 1-gu, Jangma-myeon, Changnyeong
Changnyeong Residents "Hope for Regional Development Possibility if He Becomes President" Somber

The bereaved family and supporters are heading together to the ancestral burial site in Changnyeong, the hometown of the late Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Hwang Choi Hyun-joo] The hometown of the late Park Won-soon, former Mayor of Seoul, Gyeongnam Changnyeong, where he was born and spent his childhood, is also unable to hide its grief. The late Mayor Park, who was found dead by the police on Bukaksan Mountain on the 10th, left a will requesting that his remains be scattered at the family burial site in Jangga 1-gu, Jangma-myeon, Changnyeong-gun, where his father is also buried.

The remains of the late Mayor Park left Seoul National University Hospital at 6 a.m. on the 13th and arrived at Jangga 1-gu around 5 p.m. Born in Changnyeong in 1956, the late Mayor Park graduated from Jangga Elementary School and Yeongsan Middle School, and often spoke of his childhood poverty, as his parents were tenant farmers.

The late Mayor Park always considered his hometown a place he wanted to return to and missed, even after leaving for Seoul to attend Gyeonggi High School.

Citizens are joining together at the burial site of the late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon.

Jangma-myeon, where he will rest, was visited by numerous press vehicles and citizens paying their respects.

Residents remembered him as a righteous and kind person. They highly valued the fact that he was always mentioned as a candidate during presidential elections and that he raised his voice for the underprivileged while working as a human rights lawyer.

A resident who waited to see the late Mayor Park’s hearse said, “He often said that if he became president, Changnyeong would develop,” adding, “Isn’t it thanks to former President Roh that Kimhae, his hometown, also developed? To the residents, he was more than just the Mayor of Seoul; he was a great star of Changnyeong.”

On this day, Changnyeong County Governor Han Jung-woo, Changwon Mayor Heo Seong-moo, National Assembly member Kim Jeong-ho, and Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon also joined to pay their final respects.

Mayor Heo, who arrived first, said, “The grief is beyond words,” and Assemblyman Kim said, “He was a comrade with whom I shared ideals since his days as a human rights lawyer,” expressing his deep sorrow, “My heartfelt condolences are beyond words.”