Victim of Japan's sexual slavery among New Year bell strikers
By Kim Bo-eun
Ten Seoul citizens including former sex slave Lee Yong-soo and Korean-Nigerian model Han Hyun-min will take part in a bell-striking ceremony welcoming 2018 at the bell pavilion Bosingak in central Seoul, Sunday.
The selected citizens will strike the bell 33 times, along with Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon and chiefs of the Seoul Metropolitan Council, Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency and Jongno-gu Office.
The 10 citizens are those who made achievements in various sectors this year. Seoul citizens nominated candidates and the city government selected the final representatives after review.
“We selected people who endeavor to make our society just and safe and those who overcame difficult circumstances to achieve prominence in their professions,” the city government said.
Former sex slave Lee, 89, made known the Japanese military’s atrocities. She was the protagonist in the movie “I can Speak” released in September.
Model Han was listed as one of Time magazine’s 30 most influential teenagers in the world.
Park Eun-jeong, 50, became a notable scientist after years out of the workforce. She has been recognized as being among the world’s top 1 percent of researchers.
Kwak Kyung-bae, 41, saved a citizen from a random assault at Nakseongdae Station in April.
Na Ho-seon, 60, a mechanic who has worked in Sewoon Shopping Mall since 1996, is assisting startups by teaching young people his skills and know-how.
Kang Hyung-wook, 33, a professional dog trainer, has informed the public how people and animals can happily coexist through a TV program.
Park Moo-jin, 26, provided elderly citizens collecting wastepaper with handcarts as well as advertising earnings.
Seo Eun-song, 20, an honorary youth mayor of the city, is making the voices of 1.7 million young people in Seoul heard by taking part in establishing related policies.
Shin Jong-kyun, 61, has run a small grocery store behind Bosingak for the past 37 years.
Kim Hye-yeon, widow of a late diver who searched for missing passengers of the sunken Sewol ferry, will also take part.
The two mascots for the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, white tiger Soohorang and Asiatic black bear Bandabi will also be present.
Around 100,000 citizens are expected to attend the ceremony.
The city will extend public transportation hours for Sunday night. Subways will run until 2 a.m. and the number of trains will be increased. Thirty-nine buses passing Bosingak will run until 1 a.m.
Traffic will be controlled in the area Sunday 11 p.m. to Monday 1:30 a.m.
The city government will place 25 ambulance vehicles and fire engines on standby along with 254 safety personnel.