hankyoreh

Park Mirinae (right) and others conduct demonstrations in front of the Place du Trocadero in Paris

“I decided to picket in Paris to help Baek Minjuhwa in her one-person demonstration in the Netherlands.”

Solidarity from citizens in Paris was reported on Jan. 27 in response to a one-person demonstration in Rotterdam, the Netherlands by Baek Minjuhwa to demand an official apology from the Park Geun-hye administration for an incident that left her father critically injured. Baek, 30, is the daughter of Baek Nam-gi, 69, who has been in critical condition since being struck with a water cannon jet by police at a popular indignation rally last November.

Park Mirinae, a Korean who has lived in Paris for over two years, voiced displeasure with Seoul’s response in an online messenger interview with the Hankyoreh on Jan. 29.

“Baek Nam-gi is in a hospital bed right now after being victimized while standing up to state violence. It defies common sense that the state does not seem to value its citizens’ lives,” she said.

“I decided to do a one-person demonstration because I thought I ought to share this information with people,” she added.

Park Mirinae's handmade signs

Joining Park that day were Heo Yeon-jeong and Lee Ye-da, two friends she met in France. They chose to hold their picket signs in front of the Eiffel Tower, a spot heavily frequented by tourists.

“I denounce the violence of the South Korean government. This was attempted murder,” Park wrote on her handmade sign, along with a detailed account of the suffering experienced by Baek Nam-gi.

“If you are in South Korea, this is what could happen to you,” the text begins.

“You could have police water cannons pointed at you for taking part in a demonstration, and you could end up in a coma,” it continues. “Even when injured demonstrators are carried off in ambulances, the police water cannons will continue to shoot water toward the ambulances.”

The sign also said the police and government “will not apologize and will feel they bear no responsibility.”

“In South Korea, you could be risking your life when you demonstrate.”

According to Park, French passersby were shocked to read about the incident on the picket sign, but even more so to learn about ambulances being fired on with water cannons.

“There was a French police officer who just couldn’t believe it,” she said.

“Other foreign tourists seemed more astonished that this had happened in South Korea rather than North Korea.”

South Korean tourists who met Park said they had heard Baek was only slightly injured and were shocked to learn that he was still in a coma.

Park also decided to demonstrate in December after hearing that President Park Geun-hye was attending the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change in Paris. For that demonstration, she joined Japanese friends with small signs expressing opinions on the state issuance of history textbooks.

Park’s sign also included messages wishing Baek a swift recovery and calling for an investigation. As news spread on a Facebook page run by Baek Minjuhwa, the two became online friends.

“I’ve never met Baek Minjuhwa before, but we ended up in contact because we’re both here in Europe,” Park said.

“We shared information about things like one-person demonstrations and rally procedures, and we ended up holding demonstrations on the same day,” she explained.

According to Park, Baek asked for “moral support” after the demonstration.

“The two of us talked some more, and we’re now planning to have a round table with friends from South Korea, Japan, and France on the topic of police brutality,” she said.

To South Koreans, Park said she wants to send the message “that we should share a mind of solidarity and not disregard each other - when the weather is cold outside, it’s less cold when you embrace one another.”

“I’ve had a lot of people thanking me since posting on Facebook about the one-person demonstration, but it’s actually been an opportunity to for me learn a lot,” she added.

By Park Soo-jin, staff reporter

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]