A memorial hall for late South Korean President Park Chung-hee opened Tuesday in Seoul after a decade of controversy over the project amid ongoing disputes over his influence on the country.

Park Chung-hee, also the father of ruling Saenuri Party leader Park Geun-hye, seized power in a military coup in 1961 and ruled as a military strongman until being formally elected as president in 1963. He held the post for 16 years until 1979 when he was assassinated by his top intelligence aide.

The late president’s legacy continues to be debated. Some accuse him of hindering democracy with his iron-fisted rule, while others praise him for laying the foundation for the country’s rapid economic development. 

According to the Park Chung-hee Memorial Association, which takes the lead on several memorial projects for the late Park, a ceremony to celebrate the opening of the memorial hall was held earlier in the day in Sangam-dong, western Seoul.

Exhibition halls in the three-story building, which covers 5,290 square meters, feature diverse historical materials that show the late president’s major feats and his possessions, the association said. A library within the building is set to open this summer, it added.

After the project to build a memorial hall was launched in 1999, the association secured 20 billion won ($17.7 million) from the government in 2001 and signed an agreement with the Seoul Metropolitan Government to donate the building to the city.

But construction was halted in 2005 when the liberal Roh Moo-hyun administration denied the public support for the project.

After a years-long legal battle, construction was restarted in 2009 and completed last November.

“We will make the memorial hall the venue for educating younger generations about how their predecessors strived to achieve modernization under the leadership of late President Park,” an association official said.

“My father had repeatedly stressed the importance of a life with composure and dignity, which should be enjoyed by every single person,” said Park Geun-hye while attending the opening ceremony.

“I think those are the spirits we still need to achieve the well-being of the people. I will do my best to create a community to unite the people.”

But criticism has mounted over the dedication of the hall.

“The association violates the contract with the city government, as it tries to fill the library built with taxpayers’ money with books and other materials related to dictator Park Chung-hee,” an association of civic groups said, calling on the city government to transform the building into a general public library. 

(Yonhap News)