Lee Hae-chan (Yonhap)
Lee Hae-chan (Yonhap)

The funeral of late former prime minister and seven-term lawmaker Lee Hae-chan will be held for five days at Seoul National University Hospital’s funeral home.

Upon the arrival of his body from Vietnam to South Korea Tuesday morning, the funeral will be jointly hosted by the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea through Saturday. The service is formally known as both an "institutional funeral" and a "societal funeral."

According to the advisory council, further details about the funeral were being coordinated with authorities.

Earlier on Sunday, the Democratic Party said its members nationwide will observe a mourning period during the funeral.

Among the figures for whom societal funerals have been held are Lee Hee-ho, former first lady and wife of late former President Kim Dae-jung, democracy activist-turned-lawmaker Kim Geun-tae, and former Prime Minister Shin Hyun-hwak.

Lee Hae-chan, himself a democracy activist before entering politics, was serving as the executive vice chair of the presidential Peaceful Unification Advisory Council until he died at the age of 73 on Sunday during an official trip to Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.

Prior to Monday's announcement, there had been media speculation that he might receive a state funeral as an influential figure in liberal politics.

A state funeral must be proposed by the Interior Ministry and approved by the Cabinet. Former presidents Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun were among the most recent to be given state funerals.


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