hankyoreh

calling for the legislation of the special Sewol Law

By Park Ki-yong, staff reporter

Aug. 24 marked the 42nd day of the hunger strike of Kim Young-oh, father of a high school girl who died in the Sewol tragedy, who is now in the hospital. It was also the third day that around thirty victims’ family members were holding a protest in front of Cheongwoon Hyojadong Community Service Center near the Blue House, demanding a meeting with President Park Geun-hye. Online and offline, more than 3,000 people are taking part in a sympathy hunger strike to support and encourage the bereaved family members.

On Sunday, the Sewol Victims’ Family Committee held a press conference on the third day of demanding a meeting with President Park in the parking lot in front of Cheongwoon Hyojadong Community Service Center. The families have been there for three days since Aug. 22, when Kim Young-oh was taken to the hospital.

“The hardest thing to understand is how the president could have gone back on her word and refused to act after crying and promising to uncover the truth about the Sewol tragedy as the bereaved families and the public have wanted. Generally, one can trust what people say when they are crying, but apparently this doesn’t apply to the president,” the families said during the press conference.

Since Aug. 22, the police have been surrounding the residents’ center with seven or eight buses and strictly controlling who enters and exits the area. There have also been sporadic clashes between the police and civilians trying to visit the families’ tents.

Kim’s hunger strike is gradually becoming a social phenomenon. On Sunday, the Sewol Family Medical Support Team held a press conference at the tents located in Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul. The team, which is largely composed of Korean traditional doctors from the Association of Korea Doctors for Health Rights and the Association of Korean Doctors without Thresholds, has taken care of the families since the first day of the hunger strike.

“As medical professionals, we are unable to endorse a method of struggle that endangers life, but as we watched the bereaved families choose a hunger strike as a last resort and collapse one after the other, we had no choice but to join them,” the group said as it announced its intention to join the hunger strike. They also promised to provide medical support for citizens who join in a sympathy hunger strike.

The Catholic Priests Association for Justice have decided to join the hunger strike on Aug. 25 along with holding mass every evening.

In addition to these, the heads of the Public Committee for the Sewol Tragedy; veteran figures from various fields including religion, film, theatre, and the media; students; comic artists; and professors are all taking part in the sympathy hunger strike at the tents in Gwanghwamun Square.

More and more ordinary people are voluntarily joining the sympathy hunger strike. On Aug. 23, around 460 people visited the tents at Gwanghwamun and announced they would be fasting for a day. As of Aug. 24, a total of 2,900 had participated in sympathy hunger strikes. Online, around 23,000 netizens indicate they plan to go on a sympathy hunger strike.

The outpouring of solidarity and support for the bereaved families from various groups continued as well. Members of the online community Mom’s Yellow Handkerchief visited Cheongwoon Hyojadong Community Service Center and handed out fruit and rice cakes, while Christian ministers distributed blankets and sleeping bags. One individual who only identified himself as “a Cheongwoon resident” brought enough noodles, bread, and candy to feed thirty people. Members of the online community Gangnam Candle sent seventy bag lunches.

Kim Young-oh, who was taken to Seoul Metropolitan Dongbu Hospital on Aug. 22, is in stable condition, but he is still refusing to eat. “According to the doctor who examined him, Kim’s condition has stabilized, with an average heart rate of 60, but he continues to get headaches and muscle cramps, and he has trouble getting around. He is still refusing to eat as well,” said Yoo Kyung-geun, spokesperson for the Family Committee.

“The families are not sure what to do, since Kim is insisting on returning to Gwanghwamun Square right away, as early as tomorrow. If only there were some kind of progress, we could persuade him not to, but things aren‘t looking good,” Yoo added.

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