Family members of the victims of last year's deadly ferry sinking called on the government Tuesday to make a decision on the recovery of the submerged ship before the first anniversary of the tragedy.
In one of the nation's worst maritime disasters, the 6,825-ton ferry Sewol sank in waters off the nation's southwestern tip on April 16, killing more than 300 passengers, mostly teenagers on a school trip to the southernmost resort island of Jeju. Nine people remain unaccounted for.
The government said it has finished evaluating how and when the ferry would be lifted from the ocean in May. But it has yet to announce whether it will actually go ahead with the plan. The recovery process has been estimated to cost 620 billion won ($560 million).
The associations of the victims' families said the government shouldn't wait any longer and urged it to promptly raise the ship.
"There are nine bodies that are waiting to be returned to their family members," the associations said in a statement.
Family members are planning to hold a variety of programs to mark the disaster's one-year anniversary coming up next month.
Starting Monday, they will stage a 416-hour sit-in at Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul.
For two days starting April 4, they said they will march from a joint altar set up in Ansan, south of Seoul, to Gwanghwamun Square.
In early November, the government officially terminated the search for the missing from the sunken ferry, citing inclement weather and safety risks for divers.
Tuesday 24 March 2015
http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20150324001218
0 comments:
Post a Comment