Royce Hall protestors call for South Korean president to resign

Korean students waved signs and chanted in front of Royce Hall in protest of the South Korean president.

About 20 international and Korean-American students demanded on Wednesday president Park Geun-hye resign. Demonstrators in South Korea protested against Park in recent weeks after documents revealed she shared political speeches and information with her childhood friend and confidante.

The signs, which were written in Korean, translated to “Fair investigation, president included,” “Resign, Park!” and “Approval rating 5 percent, can you hear the people?”

Jennifer Jung-Kim, an Asian languages and cultures lecturer and assistant director of the Center for Buddhist Studies, said Park took money from two nonprofit organizations for her retirement and her confidante Choi Soon-sil’s personal use.

There were claims that there were copies of Park’s speeches on Choi’s Galaxy Tab, Jung-Kim said.

“There were allegations that Park had shared a lot of materials with her even though she doesn’t have a political background or any political experience,” Jung-Kim said.

Yiseul Kang, a third-year global studies student and protest organizer, said the protest called for a fair investigation of Park’s financial relationships and her resignation.

“People were not charged for what they did … and got away because of political power and influence,” Kang said.

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Seunghwan Hyun, a third-year statistics student and protester, said students signed a petition calling for Park’s resignation.

“We’re hoping to gather as many Korean signatures as possible so we can send it to the embassy and Korean news and tell the Korean people and government that (even) people outside of Korea care about this issue,” Hyun added.

Jung-Kim said Park Chung-hee, Park’s father and a former president of South Korea, has a mixed legacy.

“There are people who say he was a dictator with a very harsh role and harsh oppression of human rights, while others say what he did economically was great for Korea,” Jung-Kim said.

Choi’s father was a cult leader, Jung-Kim said.

Jung Won Kim, a graduate student in education, said she thinks South Koreans are nostalgic about the country’s previous economic progress, and accepted Park as a symbol of revival.

Kim added she thinks Park is scandalous because of her association with a cult and use of authority for personal benefit.

“I felt today’s protest was very important, not only for those of Korean nationality but for Korean-Americans who support democracy,” she said. “This is not just an issue on college campuses either, it’s global, widespread.”

Contributing reports from Jintak Han, Daily Bruin senior staff