Busan Mayor's Bold Head-Shaving Protest: Will It Unlock the Global Hub City Special Law?

[The Public = Reporter Yoo Su-jin] Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon reportedly shaved his head at the National Assembly on March 23 to press lawmakers to pass the Busan Global Hub City Special Act.

Long opposed to extreme protests such as head-shaving and hunger strikes, he set aside those reservations and risked his personal well-being to draw attention to Busan’s future.

The bill is designed to transform Busan into an international business hub comparable to Singapore, Hong Kong or Dubai. Government ministries have completed consultations, and roughly 1.6 million Busan residents personally signed the petition. Yet the National Assembly has left the measure dormant for two years, approving special legislation for North Jeolla and Gangwon provinces while overlooking Busan.

Mayor Park publicly named Democratic Party leader Jeong Cheong-rae, Yoon Geon-young (chair of the Public Administration and Security Committee’s first bill-review subcommittee), and Rep. Jeon Jae-soo, challenging them on why they would block a matter he said affects both the nation’s and Busan’s future. When a typically procedural administrator shaved his head, the city’s 1.6 million residents moved with him.

The mayor’s action appears to have jolted the Assembly. Co-sponsor Rep. Jeon Jae-soo said, “We have a meeting with the party leadership at 9:10 a.m. on the 24th,” and pledged to press for the bill’s passage. The mayor’s tearful head-shaving effectively knocked on a door in the National Assembly that had been closed.