"Seoul City to Explore Supportive Measures with Bereaved Families and Citizens Until Responsible Alternatives Are Established"

Seoul City Council Democratic Party Issues Statement on 27th Expressing Deep Regret Over Mayor Oh Se-hoon's Repeated Communication Failures and Convenience-Oriented Administration... "We Will Strive to Make Gwanghwamun Square a Space Reflecting Democracy and Life Safety"

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] The Democratic Party of Korea in the Seoul Metropolitan Council (Representative Jo Sang-ho · photo, Seodaemun 4) stated on the 27th that they cannot help but repeatedly express deep regret over Mayor Oh Se-hoon's and Seoul City's repeated communication failures and convenience-oriented administration, following the voluntary dismantling of the Sewol ferry victims' families' Sewol ferry memorial space and the establishment of a temporary space at the Seoul Metropolitan Council.

Song Myung-hwa, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea in the Seoul Metropolitan Council, issued a statement on the same day, saying that the Democratic Party of Korea in the Seoul Metropolitan Council has formed a task force to prepare countermeasures for relocating the Sewol ferry disaster memorial space and held several meetings with the families of the Sewol ferry disaster victims. They have made multifaceted efforts to find alternatives due to the inevitable temporary relocation of the memorial space caused by the restructuring of Gwanghwamun.

First, they cannot help but repeatedly express deep regret over Mayor Oh Se-hoon and Seoul City's repeated communication failures and convenience-oriented administration, who should be leading the projects to establish a memorial space for the Sewol ferry victims and to enhance citizens' safety awareness more than anyone else.

The Democratic Party of Korea in the Seoul Metropolitan Council stated that, according to the Special Act on Relief and Support for the Victims of the April 16 Sewol Ferry Disaster and the Seoul Metropolitan Ordinance on the Memorial for the Victims of the April 16 Sewol Ferry Disaster, they will actively strive to ensure that the memorial for the Sewol ferry disaster victims, the creation of memorial spaces, and projects to promote safety awareness continue without interruption.

Furthermore, since these efforts are defined as the responsibility of the Mayor of Seoul, they will continuously and actively persuade the Mayor and seek various ways to support at the Seoul Metropolitan Council level until responsible alternatives from Seoul City are prepared.

Going forward, the Democratic Party of Korea in the Seoul Metropolitan Council said they will continue to work together with the victims' families and Seoul citizens to ensure smooth consultations with Seoul City regarding the memorial for the Sewol ferry disaster victims and the establishment of memorial spaces.

Representative Jo Sang-ho also emphasized on the same day, "The Sewol ferry disaster is a pain of the era that all citizens must embrace, and it has become an important opportunity that sounded an alarm for our society to move toward a society centered on respect for human dignity and life safety." He added, "We will actively strive to make Gwanghwamun Square a space that fully embodies the history of democratization and citizens' safety awareness, which emerged in the process from the Sewol ferry disaster to the Candlelight Revolution."