current event update: friday, july 9th

By Andrew Shi

Seoul’s Mayor Park Won-soon was found on the morning of Friday, 7/9, near the presidential office. A recent prominent political contender for the South Korean presidency, Mayor Park has recently come under scrutiny due to a recent police investigation stemming from a sexual harassment allegation from a municipal employee. This comes as a great surprise to many as he, through this career as both a lawyer and a public servant has had a proven track record of support for the MeToo movement in South Korea. 

Early in his legal career, Park found himself defending many women in sexual assault cases, and would be a front runner on gender equality through career. 
Since graduating from university, he was a notable human rights advocate, and was known for his demands as a student against inequality and was an avid critique of Japanese mistreatment of women during the second world war. More recently, he was a preeminent member of the block of politicians calling for accountability and the later ousting of the president.

Recently, however, he has become a prominent member of the South Korean political system and was poised to be one of the many candidates to run for the presidential office. As Mayor Park was expected to become a more liberal voice in a conservative state, his passing will likely be a great loss to Korean politics for years to come; nonetheless, his legacy of activism and controversy will live on.