S. Koreans bid farewell to former culture minister

South Koreans bid a final farewell to late former culture minister Lee O-young on Wednesday, in a funeral ceremony led by the culture ministry for one of South Korea's most revered literary critics and novelists.

His family, friends and figures from the culture and art scenes paid their respects to Lee at the National Library of Korea in southern Seoul.

The library is a symbolic venue for him as he laid the foundation for cultural policy for developing libraries across the country during his term as the nation's first culture minister between 1990 and 1991 under the Roh Tae-woo administration.

Lee died of cancer at his home at age 89 on Saturday.

After departing from Seoul National University Hospital, where his memorial altar was set up, a funeral car carrying his body made brief stops at Young-in Literary House, a private Korean literary museum founded by Lee and his wife in Pyeongchang-dong in the capital, and at the National Museum of Korean Contemporary History, the former site of the culture ministry building in central Seoul.

On the exterior of the history museum was a supersize media art mural where messages left by him, such as "Believe that humans are good. I share my heart and say goodbye to you" and "I'm going to return the shining gift I received. I'm going back to where I was," were on display.

The funeral procession then headed for the National Library of Korea.

"The late minister opened a new era of culture on the barren land of culture by laying the foundation for cultural policies as the country's first culture minister," Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee said in a eulogy. "We'll engrave the legacy that he left behind deep in our hearts and continue it."

Born in 1933 in Asan, South Chungcheong Province, Lee debuted as a literary critic in 1956, causing stir by criticizing veteran writers for their authoritarianism. He then worked as a literary writer, journalist, cultural official and scholar, being respected as one of the most prominent "intellectuals of this era" in South Korea.

He also taught Korean literature at Ewha Womans University in Seoul and became an honorary professor in 2011.

He had undergone cancer surgery twice since 2017 but later refused to receive anticancer treatment to instead focus on completing his writing projects.

In October 2021, Lee was awarded an order of cultural merit for his contribution to the development of the country's literature.

About 250 people attended the funeral ceremony as it was held under strict COVID-19 distancing rules. Also among the participants were seven former culture ministers, lawmakers, chiefs of government agencies affiliated with the ministry.

Hundreds of mourners, including President Moon Jae-in and ruling and opposition presidential candidates Lee Jae-myung, Yoon Suk-yeol and Ahn Cheol-soo, as well as prominent figures from the culture, art, academic and media scenes, visited the funeral home at the hospital to pay tribute over the past five days.

The late culture minister was to be buried at a cemetery park in Cheonan, 92 kilometers south of Seoul. (Yonhap)