THE KOREA TIMES, THE KOREA HERALD (South Korea), REUTERS
SEOUL – Park Geun-hye was sworn in on Monday as South Korea’s first female president ; she began her five-year term by urging an increasingly hostile North Korea to drop its nuclear ambitions.
“North Korea’s recent nuclear test is a challenge to the survival and future of the Korean people, and there should be no mistake that the biggest victim will be none other than North Korea itself,” Park was quoted as saying by Reuters.
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South Korea’s new leader Park Geun-hye – Wikimedia
Taking over from former President Lee Myung-bak, Park also promised in her inauguration address to introduce a new era of hope by invigorating the economy, boosting people’s happiness and promoting culture, The Korea Times reports.
Park, 61, is the daughter of South Korea’s former military strongman Park Chung-hee, one of the founders of modern Korea who took power after a military coup that set the stage for 18 years of authoritarian rule – before he was assassinated in 1979.
According to The Korea Herald, a record 70,000 people are said to have attended Park Geun-hye’s swearing-in ceremony outside Seoul’s parliament, which began by a performance of global hit “Gangnam Style” by South Korean pop sensation Psy.
