Presidential T-shirts, caps honor victims of sunken Cheonan warship

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Presidential T-shirts, caps honor victims of sunken Cheonan warship

Published: 28 Aug. 2023, 15:56 Updated: 30 Aug. 2023, 17:48

SARAH KIM
kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr

President Yoon Suk Yeol, second from right, and first lady Kim Keon Hee, right, greet children at a family event at Yongsan Children's Garden in central Seoul wearing matching T-shirts commemorating the victims of the sunken Cheonan warship in 2010. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

President Yoon Suk Yeol's office designed and distributed to staff T-shirts and caps to commemorate the victims of the ROKS Cheonan, a South Korean warship torpedoed by North Korea in 2010.

The newly designed Cheonan T-shirts have been distributed to some senior presidential secretaries, secretaries and Presidential Security Service staffers, a presidential official said Monday. They are expected to be worn by presidential aides and staffers like a "group uniform" during related office events.

A prototype of the T-shirt was worn by President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee during a visit to the Yongsan Children's Garden on Saturday.

The T-shirt is emblazoned with the lettering, "PCC-772," the official designation of the torpedoed vessel, the official presidential logo and the Korean flag.

On March 26, 2010, the South Korean Navy corvette Cheonan sank in the Yellow Sea near South Korea's Baengnyeong Island following a North Korean torpedo attack, killing 46 sailors on board.

On Saturday, the presidential couple made a surprise appearance at a family event held near the recently opened fountain garden at the park, built on land returned from the U.S. Forces Korea adjacent to the Yongsan presidential office, greeting children sporting matching T-shirts.

Yoon wore a white version of the Cheonan shirt, and Kim a black version.

President Yoon Suk Yeol, accompanied by his pet dog, is seen wearing a T-shirt with the lettering, “PCC-772,″ the official name of the sunken South Korean Navy Cheonan warship, at Yongsan Children's Garden in central Seoul Saturday. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]

In the past, Yoon has made a number of gestures to commemorate the Cheonan sinking victims.

Coinciding with Memorial Day in June 2021, right ahead of his presidential bid announcement, Yoon met Jeon Joon-young, chairman of an association of Cheonan survivors, and bought a T-shirt and cap commemorating the incident.

When Yoon, a former prosecutor general, declared his presidential bid on June 29, 2021, he referred to the "anger" felt by Jeon over the Cheonan incident in his speech.

Yoon has been spotted wearing the black T-shirt and cap commemorating the 46 killed sailors from time to time, including when he took strolls in countries he visited during presidential tours, such as France in June and Lithuania in July.

The presidential office plans to produce the T-shirt in larger numbers and distribute them to more officials.

A presidential official said Monday the Cheonan apparel is to "spread the spirit of national security" following the sinking.

In March, Yoon attended a ceremony to mark the eighth anniversary of the West Sea Defense Day in Daejeon to commemorate South Koreans killed during North Korean attacks in the West Sea, including the Cheonan incident.

In the ceremony, Yoon stressed, "North Korea will surely pay a price for its reckless provocations," as he recalled the "dedication of our warriors who defended the West Sea against North Korea's armed provocation."

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]