SEOUL, – President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday praised late President Park Chung-hee as he met with Park’s daughter at a memorial ceremony, a symbolic gesture amid calls for more unity among conservatives ahead of next year’s general elections.
It marked the first time that a sitting president attended the memorial ceremony for Park Chung-hee, whose legacy remains a subject of controversy in South Korea.
Yoon said that former President Park is recorded as promoting industrialization and rallying the nation under the slogan “it can be done.”
“He achieved a historic global accomplishment known as the miracle on the Han River,” Yoon said in his address at the ceremony at Seoul National Cemetery in southern Seoul, referring to South Korea’s economic rise from the ashes of the 1950-53 Korean War.
“In the current global multifaceted crisis, we must rekindle the spirit and achievements of former President Park Chung-hee and use them as a stepping stone to lead the Republic of Korea forward,” Yoon said, referring to South Korea by its formal name.
After seizing power in a military coup in 1961, Park ruled South Korea for 18 years until he was shot dead by his intelligence chief in 1979.
Some accused him of stifling democracy with his authoritarian rule, while others praise him for laying the foundation for the country’s rapid economic development.
South Korea has since become an economic powerhouse in Asia from the ashes of the 1950-53 Korean War that ended in a cease-fire, not a peace treaty.
Yoon, who has expressed admiration for the late President Park, attended the event immediately upon his return from an overseas trip to the Middle East.
“The attendance at the commemoration ceremony underscores the commitment to upholding the essence of politics, as embodied by former President Park Chung-hee,” a presidential official said, speaking on the condition of anonymity.
Yoon and Park’s daughter — ousted former President Park Geun-hye — met for the first time in approximately 17 months, following Yoon’s inauguration ceremony last May. They have met three times.
The relationship between the two dates back to 2016 when Yoon led an investigation team into Park’s corruption scandal that led to her impeachment, ouster from office and subsequent imprisonment. Park was pardoned in 2021 after spending four years and nine months in prison.
During their meeting in the southeastern city of Daegu in last April, before taking office, Yoon told Park that he was sorry over their relationship surrounding the probe and invited her to his inauguration ceremony.
Their meeting also comes amid calls for more unity from the so-called “TK region,” referring to Daegu and the Gyeongsang area, a conservative stronghold, in anticipation of the upcoming general elections in April.
High-profile participants at the annual event included Rep. Kim Gi-hyeon, the leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP), and Ihn Yohan, the chief of the PPP’s new innovation committee.
Source: Yonhap News Agency