A mourner passes by a memorial altar for late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon at City Hall Plaza in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, July 13, 2020. AP PHOTOSEOUL: The funeral service for Seoul mayor Park Won-soon, who took his own life after being accused of sexual harassment, was held on Monday despite a petition against the city-run ceremony signed by half a million people. Former human rights lawyer Park was a heavyweight figure in the ruling Democratic party and ran South Korea’s sprawling capital — home to almost a fifth of the country’s population — for nearly a decade. He was found dead on a mountain Friday, a day after his former secretary filed a police complaint against him that is widely reported to involve sexual harassment. Despite the controversy over his death, the Seoul City government organized a five-day funeral for Park — two days longer than the normal Korean ritual, which begins on the day of death — and set up a memorial altar outside City Hall. More than 20,000 people came to pay their respects during the mourning period.
