The chairwoman of the main opposition Grand National Party was in a stable condition Sunday, one day after she was assaulted by two men, hospital officials said.
GNP Chairwoman Park Geun-hye suffered an 11-centimeter-long cut to her face from ear to jaw Saturday night when a man, identified only by his surname Ji, slashed her with a box cutter.
The cut required over 60 stitches, according to officials at Yonsei University Hospital in Seoul.
Hospital officials said the opposition leader's life was "no way in danger," adding that a complete recovery would takes weeks if not months as the cut caused extensive damage to her jaw muscles.
The officials refused to clarify how deep Park's wound was, but earlier reports put it at 1cm to 3 cm deep.
Another man, identified by his surname Park, was placed in custody along with Ji after he hit the opposition leader in the face. The two were at first believed to be accomplices, but police later said they seemed to have little connection. Investigators were still trying to find out whether they had conspired over the attack.
The opposition leader was walking onto a makeshift podium in a college district in northwestern Seoul when she was approached by Ji, who appeared to be requesting a handshake then whipped out a utility knife to slash the right side of her face.
The GNP leader was canvassing on behalf of her party's candidate for Seoul mayor, Oh Se-hoon, when she was attacked by the two men.
Both of the suspects were earlier believed to be drunk, but tests later showed that only Park, 54, was intoxicated.
The opposition party claimed the earlier announcement by the police that both of the suspects were heavily under the influence of alcohol showed its intention to belittle, if not distort, the incident, and called on National Police Chief Lee Taek-soon to take responsibility and step down.
"The police are showing signs of attempts to make it look like an accidental act by drunkards," GNP floor leader Lee Jae-oh said at a party meeting.
Lee Q-taek, a standing committee member of the party, called for a joint investigation of the incident between the police and prosecution, saying the police investigation cannot be trusted.
"The national police commissioner general must take responsibility for his remarks that (both) suspects were talking gibberish out of drunkenness and step down," Lee said at the meeting.
The governing Uri Party, apparently alarmed by the possibility of public blame being directed toward its candidates in the upcoming local elections, agreed with the need to launch a joint investigation by the police and the prosecution.
"Violence cannot be tolerated under any circumstances and the facts of this incident must be revealed as clear as daylight," Uri Party Chairman Chung Dong-young said in an emergency meeting of party officials Sunday.
The national police chief failed to make any direct response to the GNP's calls for his resignation, only instructing his agency to reinforce its protection of key political figures.
The investigation continued overnight, but the suspects were not cooperating. Ji, 50, repeatedly said he was motivated by the desire to safeguard the country and democracy.
A daughter of late South Korean President Park Chung-hee, the GNP leader is often criticized for her links to her father's dictatorial government, which lasted nearly 19 years following a 1960 military coup.
The opposition leader is one of the leading prospective candidates for the presidential election next year. Seoul, May 21 (Yonhap News)
Opposition leader in stable condition after assault |
