'Let’s express our own condolences quietly'

An online media outlet in Korea came under fire after publishing the names of the victims of the Itaewon crowd crush. They released the list on their website, claiming that the government and ruling party are trying to minimize the aftermath of the accident.

The online media outlet Mindle is now facing backlash as it disclosed the list without the victims’ families permission.

Regarding this, Mindle said that their action is not problematic.

Some of the names on the list have been removed due to requests from the families of the victims. The remainder remain online.

Two People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers accused Mindle and another outlet of violation of the Personal Information Protection Act.

The police assigned the case to the Anti-Corruption and Public Crime Investigation Division and plan to launch an investigation.

#against_their_wishes
“Do we need to know the victims’ names to mourn them? Let’s express our own condolences quietly.”
“The victims’ families didn’t want the names to be published. The outlets’ action is wrong.”

#take_responsibility
“Who will be responsible for the second victimization caused by their publishing the list?”
“The vast of the majority of the people are against the disclosure. For whom did they do so?”

#investigate_the_outlets
“The police should investigate how they get the list.”
“Punish them appropriately. There have been so many people who cause trouble without thinking of the consequences of what they’re doing.”

#not_a_problem
“Names have always been disclosed when an accident takes place.”
“The government is reluctant to release related information. That’s why people are pointing out these issues.”
“You cannot identify someone only with their names. The list does not include their addresses or ages. People are being oversensitive.”

BY KIM EUN-SONG, BY HAN HYE-RIM [han.hyerim1@joongang.co.kr]