Seoul City Attempts to Organize Sewol Ferry Memorial Items... Withdraws After Families' Opposition

On the afternoon of the 23rd, Seoul city employees who visited the Sewol Ferry Gwanghwamun Memory Space to organize the exhibits were leaving the site after loading boxes prepared to contain the exhibits. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Seoul city officials attempting to organize items at the Sewol Ferry Memorial Space in Gwanghwamun Square withdrew after clashing with protesting bereaved families.

On the 23rd, Seoul city officials visited the office of the April 16th Promise National Solidarity (4·16 Solidarity) and conveyed their final stance rejecting the families' demand to preserve the Sewol Ferry Memorial Space in Gwanghwamun Square in any form.

The Families' Council explained that when the city officials delivered their final position, they announced, "We will start organizing the memorial space items from now," which forced the families to rush to Gwanghwamun Square urgently.

City employees arrived at the memorial space with boxes, but before the full-scale organizing work began, the bereaved families arrived on site and were able to block the operation. The standoff between city officials trying to enter the memorial space and the families blocking the entrance continued from around 4 p.m. until about 5:30 p.m., when the city officials withdrew, ending the confrontation.

The Families' Council stated that even after the city officials left, they would not leave the memorial space because they do not know when the removal might happen again.

Yoo Kyung-geun, executive committee member of the Families' Council and father of second-year Danwon High School student Ye-eun, revealed that he obtained an internal Seoul city meeting document regarding the removal operation and disclosed its contents. He said, "There are instructions not to allow reporters, citizens, or even bereaved families to enter inside the fences," adding, "What is particularly outrageous is a separate note stating that opposition to the removal of the Sewol Ferry Memorial Space is not the opinion of all bereaved families. We need to investigate what this means."

Additionally, Yoo stated, "Seoul city intends to complete the removal before the end of July," and added, "You can consider that the removal has effectively started from now." It is known that Seoul city informed the families that "photos and items will be moved to the Seoul Archives after organizing."

A city official said, "The removal has been planned for some time," and clarified, "(Today) we came not for removal but to organize the exhibits."