"Is This Really Hangang Park?" Outrage as 'Space-Hogging' Parking Villain Shouts While Reserving Spots with Items

No Explicit Punishment Regulation
'Obstruction of Business' May Apply If Staff Instructions Are Ignored

Items occupying the parking lot at Hangang Park. Screenshot from an online community

A photo showing items placed in every parking space at Hangang Park's parking lot has sparked public outrage among netizens.

On the 19th, a post titled "Current Situation at Hangang Park Parking Lot" was uploaded to an online community along with a photo. The photo showed a total of four parking spaces, each occupied by camping chairs, bags, baskets, and other items.

The poster reported witnessing the scene while looking for a parking spot at Hangang Park on Friday afternoon. According to the post, the owner of the SUV on the far left placed one of his belongings in each of the four adjacent spaces and was leisurely waiting for acquaintances while sitting in a camping chair to the right.

The poster commented, "Even in China, this would be hard to understand, but to do this on a crowded Friday is outrageous," and added, "When cars tried to park, he would get up aggressively and loudly shout that a car was coming."

No explicit penalty regulations... 'Obstruction of business' charges possible if parking attendant's instructions are ignored

Reserving parking spaces in public lots by placing objects or having people stand in them frequently causes conflict among citizens. However, current laws do not include direct regulations to penalize such actions. As a result, disputes over reserving parking spots often end with simple complaints or moral criticism rather than legal sanctions.

However, if there is a parking attendant present and their instructions are ignored, or if objects are continuously used to block vehicle entry and disrupt traffic flow, criminal charges may exceptionally apply. Under the Criminal Act, "obstruction of business" charges can result in up to five years in prison or a fine of up to 15 million won. Depending on the situation, "obstruction of general traffic" charges could lead to a prison sentence of up to ten years.

An expert emphasized, "Cases like this can escalate beyond simple etiquette issues into legal disputes," and added, "Institutional reforms and improvements in civic awareness are both necessary."