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Apologize and take follow-up actions

Published: 01 Oct. 2024, 20:03

The Seoul Western District Court handed down a ruling on three defendants, including Lee Im-jae, the former Yongsan Police Station chief who had been on trial on the charge of involuntary manslaughter in the 2022 Itaewon disaster. The court sentenced Lee to three years in prison and also found the head of the situation room at the police station and another senior officer at the station guilty of their dereliction of duty. But the court said that the responsibility for the tragedy is not confined to the three defendants.

Judges said the Itaewon disaster resulted from a critical lack of safety awareness inside the government. On the evening of Oct. 29 two years ago, 159 young people enjoying the Halloween festival in Itaewon lost their lives in the deadly crowd crush. And yet, the government responded to the disaster with no sense of responsibility since 2022.

As the festival took place shortly after the government lifted its ban on social gatherings, a massive crowd was anticipated. A number of citizens made emergency calls to the police to warn about the possibility of a deadly crowd crush. Yet the police and the government ignored their repeated warnings. Many people deplored the loss of young lives in the hip district of Seoul.

Many expected stern punishment on any officials accountable for the mishap. Lee Jae-oh — a former lawmaker and the minister for special affairs in the Lee Myung-bak administration — even demanded the simultaneous resignations of the minister of the interior and safety, the head of the National Police Agency and the chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. But President Yoon Suk Yeol brushed off the demand. “Putting the blame on the government without finding who must take responsibility doesn’t make sense,” he said.

That was a perception totally detached from reality. In fact, no one came forward to take responsibility. Interior and Safety Minister Lee Sang-min still keeps his position. National Police Agency Commissioner Yoon Hee-geun retired in August after “successfully” finishing his two-year term. Kim Kwang-ho stepped down as head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in January after becoming a defendant in a case filed by the prosecution.

The district court’s ruling has reaffirmed the government’s laid-back attitude toward the disaster. Despite repeated warnings about an upcoming disaster, the police didn’t send any intelligence officer to the spot. Instead, the police leadership deployed thousands of policemen to Gwanghwamun Square to control anti-government rallies. The court stipulated that the Itaewon tragedy was a manmade disaster. The government must apologize for the calamity and take responsible measures before it’s too late.