[Jangan-gu] Residents' Autonomous Council Tours Haewoojae

On the 6th, before the start of its monthly meeting, Jangan-gu had the chairpersons of each dong's residents' autonomous committee within the Jangan-gu Residents' Autonomous Council tour 'Haewoojae,' a toilet-bowl-shaped house located in Imok-dong, Jangan-gu.

The event was intended to allow the group leaders to experience a landmark of the region and to instill pride and self-esteem as community leaders.

'Haewoojae,' which originates from 'haewooso' meaning 'a house that relieves worries,' was donated by the late former Suwon Mayor Sim Jae-deok, who led the toilet culture movement, after he remodeled his lifetime residence into an exhibition hall. It is the world's first and only toilet-shaped structure. Registered with the Korea Records Institute in 2007 and opened to the public for free since last October, it has been drawing attention as a landmark of Suwon.

Yeom Sang-jo, the council chairman who attended the tour, said, "Touring a landmark of our region gave me a renewed sense of pride and self-esteem in the city," adding, "Just as the toilet, which tends to be regarded as a dirty place, was transformed into a new culture, I truly felt that a shift in thinking can bring about development."

Meanwhile, the district plans to continue implementing the local landmark tour program for group leaders to restore love for the hometown and a sense of community, and further to explore various measures to promote regional development.