Ex-president Park's new residence in Daegu draws large crowds

People walk and look around the country house in Daegu known to be ex-president Park Geun-hye's residence, Sunday, after she is released from hospital. A police officer directs traffic as visitors' cars congested traffic on the one-lane road in the area. Yonhap

By Lee Hae-rin

Over a thousand supporters of former President Park Geun-hye, along with tourists, showed up in a small town in Daegu where her new residence is located, according to police on Sunday.

Banners supporting Park were hung at the entrance to the village. Three of them read, “Welcome back home Ms. President,” “Please stay healthy President Park,” and, “We call upon President Park to form a party.”

Hundreds of visitors toured around the residence, taking selfies in front of the closed gate and stepping on a guardrail surrounding the mansion trying to catch a glimpse of the inside from over the fence, while some even streamed their visit live on YouTube, according to the local reports.

The residence was reportedly purchased by Park's lawyer under her name last month.

The 1,676-square-meter residence is known to cost 2.5 billion won ($1.67 million). The two-story house with a basement and an elevator is located on a hillside. The house also has three attached buildings and a garden with several CCTVs, surrounded by a wall that is 2 to 7 meters high.

Dalseong, Daegu is Park's political hometown, as she started her career as a politician there. She ran in the National Assembly election in 1998 and was elected four times.

Some speculate that Dalseong could be the next Bongha Village, the town in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, where former President Roh Moo-hyun built his residence after his term ended. The presence of Roh's residence contributed to a tourism boom in the local area.

Park was impeached and sentenced in March 2017 to 22 years in prison, after being found guilty of 16 charges of corruption, but was pardoned in December of last year.

Since her release from prison, she has been hospitalized at Samsung Medical Center in central Seoul to undergo treatment for multiple illnesses, including shoulder and back pain. The date of her discharge from the hospital is yet to be known.