Park Won-soon (born 26 March 1956) is a South Korean lawyer.

He was elected
as Mayor of Seoul, South Korea on October 26, 2011.[1] Elected as
an independent candidate with the support of the Democratic Partyand Democratic
Labor Party, Park's victory is seen as a blow in particular to the Grand National
Party and the prospective presidential candidacy ofPark Geun-hye, who had publicly
supported Park Won-soon's opponentNa Kyung-won, and a triumph for the
independent Ahn Cheol-Soo, whose support he received.[2] However, the inability of the
Democratic Party to present its own candidate, and Park's refusal to join it after he had
received its endorsement, has served to present Park as a candidate independent of
the interests of both established parties. [2][3]
Prior to his election, Park has had a thirty-year history as a social justice and human
rights activist dating to his time at Seoul National University in the 1970s when he was
expelled for protesting the policies of President Park Chung-hee and imprisoned for four
months.[4] In 1994, he was a principal founder of the nonprofit watchdog
organization People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy which monitors
government regulatory practices and fights political corruption. In 2002, Park stepped
down from PSPD to run The Beautiful Foundation, a philanthropic group that promotes
volunteerism and community service and addresses issues of income inequality.
[5]
Beginning in 2005, Park served as part of South Korea's Truth and Reconciliation
Commission to address the history of human rights violations in Korean history from
Japan's rule of Korea in 1910 up until the end of Authoritarian Rule in Korea with the
election of President Kim Young-sam in 1993.[6] In 2006, as an offshoot of The Beautiful
Foundation, he founded the Hope Institute, a think tank designed to promote solutions
arising from grass roots suggestions for social, educational, environmental, and political
problems.[7]
He once suggested a friendly soccer match and an orchestra event between South
Korea and North Korea.[8]
He praised the Japanese local self-government system during his disaster prevention
training in Japan.[9]
Early in 2012, Park was accused of illegally manipulating the army draft health checkup
to have his son sent to a favorable post. However, after his son completed a public
health checkup, Park and his son were declared innocent and received apologies from
his accusers. Park has since said that he would forgive the accusers. [10] In February 23,
2012, Park joined the Democratic United Party.

On April 14, 2013, Line 9, part of the Seoul Metropolitan Subway, announced a sudden
fare increase.[11] But Park objected to the fare being raised without negotiation, and
warned that if the corporation proceeded, Seoul would take over management of the
corporation.[12] Finally, Line 9 released an apology to the residents of Seoul.
On November 2, 2013, Park visited Seoul youth festival at the city hall square. Also, he
looked around the booths that youth has designed plans all by their own. [13]
On June 4, 2014, Park was elected to his second term as Mayor of Seoul.