Joo Ho-young Acting Authority and Over 20 Others
Participate in Official Memorial Ceremony After 5 Years
Express Determination to "Change"
On March 22, officials from the 4.16 Solidarity held a press conference to declare the Month of Remembrance and Promise for the 7th anniversary of the Sewol Ferry disaster in front of the Blue House Fountain in Jongno-gu, Seoul. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] The leadership of the People Power Party will attend the '7th Anniversary Memorial Ceremony of the Sewol Ferry Disaster' held on the 16th at Hwarang Recreation Area in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province.
Kim Seong-won, the senior deputy floor leader of the People Power Party, told this outlet on the 13th, "We plan to pray for the repose of the souls of those who passed away to prevent such social tragedies from recurring," revealing this schedule.
According to Deputy Floor Leader Kim, about 20 members of the leadership, including Joo Ho-young, the acting party leader, are expected to attend. He explained, "In fact, I understand that we have rarely attended the memorial ceremony before," adding, "This is to show the changed image of our party."
This marks the first time in five years that the People Power Party leadership will attend the memorial ceremony hosted by the 4·16 Sewol Ferry Disaster Families Association and government bodies such as the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Ministry of Education. The only previous attendance was by Won Yoo-chul, then floor leader of the Saenuri Party, who was appointed emergency committee chairman at the 2nd anniversary event in 2016. Later, at the 5th anniversary memorial in 2019, Hwang Kyo-ahn, then leader of the Liberty Korea Party, attended the '5th Anniversary Memorial for Ordinary Victims of the Sewol Ferry Disaster' held at Incheon Family Park.
Meanwhile, regarding the allegations of 'evidence fabrication and editing' related to the Sewol Ferry disaster case, the People Power Party has recommended attorney Gu Chung-seo, CEO of the law firm J&C, and Professor Han Seok-hoon of Sungkyunkwan University Law School as members of the Special Prosecutor Candidate Recommendation Committee. Attorney Gu previously served as chief judge at the Gwangju District Court and Suwon District Court. Professor Han has served as chief prosecutor at the Gwangju High Prosecutors' Office.
Earlier, on December 10 last year, the National Assembly passed the 'Request for Appointment of Special Prosecutor for the Sewol Ferry Disaster Truth Investigation' in a plenary session. According to the Special Prosecutor Act, the special prosecutor can officially begin once the Speaker of the National Assembly forms a Special Prosecutor Candidate Recommendation Committee composed of four external experts recommended by the National Assembly.
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