[Sewol Ferry 9th Anniversary] "Even After 9 Years, Memories and Pain Remain"

[At Paengmok Port and Mokpo New Port]

Memorial Visits Continue with Families and Friends Gathered

Bright Yellow Ribbons "We Will Never Forget"

"I hope this is recognized not just as a sad event but as a serious matter... Even after 9 years, the memories and pain remain unchanged."

On April 16, 2023, at Paengmok Port in Jindo, Jeollanam-do. Although 9 years have passed since the Sewol ferry sank on April 16, 2014, a tragedy that shocked South Korea, this place still feels like "that day."

On the afternoon of the 16th, marking the 9th anniversary of the Sewol ferry disaster, visitors continued to pay their respects to the 304 victims at Paengmok Port in Jindo-gun, Jeollanam-do.
[Photo by Min Hyun-gi]

Here and there, bright yellow ribbons that seemed recently hung caught the eye, but the barbed wire was rusted as if telling the story of the years gone by. The ribbons had faded so much that one could only feel that they were once yellow.

Although 9 years?a time that could gradually fade from memory?have passed, despite the gloomy weather and the strong winds here, visitors paying tribute continued to come, just as in 2022, 2021, and 2020.

Visitors who stopped by the “Memory Hall,” made from a lone container, sometimes closed their eyes as if lost in thought, and sometimes lifted their heads as if trying to hide their tears.

Those honoring the souls of the 304 victims either hung new ribbons or stood silently gazing at the sea, each mourning in their own way.

Kim Seonnam (58), who lives in Gangjin, volunteers every April 16 by coming down to Paengmok Port with her daughter to hand out coffee to visitors. This year, she came without fail again.

She said, “We cannot turn back time, but I came to Paengmok Port with the heart that we cannot just let it pass. We must keep reflecting on how cold the children who were lost must have been.”

This year, the “Sewol Memory Wall” was under repair, causing visitors to pause their steps. The Children and Youth Book Authors’ Association was engraving the initials of the 304 victims’ names on the wall, expressing a wish to remember the tragedy and hope for a safe society.

The initials were said to symbolize that any one of us could be a victim.

The initials of the victims' names are being filled in on the 'Sewol Ferry Memory Wall' at Paengmok Port.
[Photo by Min Hyun-gi]

On the same day, a procession of memorial visitors continued at Mokpo New Port, where the Sewol ferry hull is docked. Bright yellow ribbons that looked newly hung fluttered in the sea breeze along the barbed wire from the port entrance to the hull.

The ribbons bore messages such as “Go to a better place,” “May you be remembered more clearly as time flows,” and “We have not forgotten and will never forget.”

Visitors comforted the victims in their own ways by wearing yellow memorial badges or yellow clothing.

Those who saw the large Sewol ferry up close sighed deeply and stood still for a while, bowing their heads.

A child who had been excited while visiting the sea with family straightened up and showed a serious demeanor when the parents explained the Sewol tragedy.

Im Sujeong (26), who had come from Gwangju on a trip to Sinan and stopped by Mokpo New Port on the way back, reflected that she had practically forgotten the Sewol tragedy while living a busy life.

Im said, “I went on a school trip a week before the Sewol tragedy 9 years ago, and at that time, watching the news in the classroom, I was shocked and vowed never to forget. But as I got caught up in work, I unknowingly erased the Sewol tragedy from my mind. Facing the Sewol ferry directly like this makes me reflect again.”