Seoul holds late Seoul mayor's funeral online amid virus concerns
- 4 years ago
오늘 故 박원순 시장의 영결식 엄수
Over the weekend, large numbers of South Koreans paid a visit to Seoul Plaza, downtown, to pay their respects to the city's late mayor Park Won-soon... who apparently took his own life last week.
And today, the city hosted a funeral for him, attended by a limited number of people because of the coronavirus, but also streamed online.
Choi Won-jong has the details.
The city of Seoul's online funeral for its former mayor Park Won-soon started at 8:30 AM, Korea time, on Monday at Seoul's City Hall.
Due to COVID-19, the city limited the number of in-person attendees to fewer than 100.
They included the city officials, political figures and Park's family.
"Now is the time for mourning. The reason why many Seoul citizens and foreign residents were shocked to hear of your sudden death is because you are a special person and you earned special merit."
Park's family was also in attendance... his daughter said her father is now on a path from which he cannot return.
"Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon is no longer with us. Citizens are now in the position where they are the mayor of Seoul."
To give the public an opportunity to pay their respects to Mayor Park, the city set up a special memorial altar at Seoul Plaza on Saturday.
Officials say it attracted more than 20-thousand people.
Through the online platform for those who couldn't visit, more than a million people visited the website to express their condolences.
Park, Seoul's longest-serving mayor, was hailed as a progressive political leader who focused on social issues like climate change and was praised for his handling of the COVID-19 outbreak.
After the funeral service, Park's body was taken to a crematorium in Seoul Memorial Park.
He will be laid to rest in his hometown of Changnyeong , Gyeongsangnam-do Province.
Choi Won-jong, Arirang News
Over the weekend, large numbers of South Koreans paid a visit to Seoul Plaza, downtown, to pay their respects to the city's late mayor Park Won-soon... who apparently took his own life last week.
And today, the city hosted a funeral for him, attended by a limited number of people because of the coronavirus, but also streamed online.
Choi Won-jong has the details.
The city of Seoul's online funeral for its former mayor Park Won-soon started at 8:30 AM, Korea time, on Monday at Seoul's City Hall.
Due to COVID-19, the city limited the number of in-person attendees to fewer than 100.
They included the city officials, political figures and Park's family.
"Now is the time for mourning. The reason why many Seoul citizens and foreign residents were shocked to hear of your sudden death is because you are a special person and you earned special merit."
Park's family was also in attendance... his daughter said her father is now on a path from which he cannot return.
"Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon is no longer with us. Citizens are now in the position where they are the mayor of Seoul."
To give the public an opportunity to pay their respects to Mayor Park, the city set up a special memorial altar at Seoul Plaza on Saturday.
Officials say it attracted more than 20-thousand people.
Through the online platform for those who couldn't visit, more than a million people visited the website to express their condolences.
Park, Seoul's longest-serving mayor, was hailed as a progressive political leader who focused on social issues like climate change and was praised for his handling of the COVID-19 outbreak.
After the funeral service, Park's body was taken to a crematorium in Seoul Memorial Park.
He will be laid to rest in his hometown of Changnyeong , Gyeongsangnam-do Province.
Choi Won-jong, Arirang News