A video showing a man clearing away a cardboard box left to hold a spot in an empty parking space—an act dubbed "parking lot squatting"—and then parking there himself is drawing attention online.
On the 4th, a video spread on social media and online communities showing a man kicking aside a cardboard box placed in an empty parking space and then parking his own car.
Tipster A, who released the video, introduced the situation at the time, calling the man a "tough guy who got rid of a parking lot villain."
In the released photo, a handwritten note reading "I'm going to eat with my son, so please park elsewhere" was attached to a cardboard box left in an empty parking space. It is interpreted as a request not to park there while the driver temporarily moved the car and went to eat.
According to A, the man in the video checked the note, then kicked the box aside and parked his car in the space.
The video spread quickly online and drew sympathy. Internet users reacted by saying, "I can't understand the idea of using a parking lot like a private spot," "Do they think putting down a box makes a reservation?" and "That was a refreshing response."
Debate over the so-called "holding a spot," preemptively securing a parking space with objects or people, has flared repeatedly. Earlier, at a public parking lot in Seoul, a video surfaced of a woman blocking another car from parking, saying "our car is coming soon," drawing criticism.