hankyoreh

Kwon Mi-hwa

After the proceedings had ended during the third hearing of the Special Sewol Investigative Commission on Sept. 2, Park Bo-na stepped onto the stage to share her feelings.

“It’s dreadful and terrifying to think that the special commission will end and that they’ll stop raising the ship. I’m asking you all to please ensure that this hearing will not be the last,” said Park, who is the older sister of Park Seong-ho, one of the victims of the Sewol accident. As Park was speaking, weeping could be heard throughout the room.

“Since the Sewol accident caused so much suffering, I’m still dealing with feelings of guilt and blame. The special commission had brought some measure of hope, and it’s such a shame that it’s being shut down before it can complete its investigation,” said Hwang Byeong-ju, a civilian diver who was involved in searching for the bodies of the missing.

While Special Commission Chair Lee Seok-tae was listening to these remarks, he continually wiped tears from his eyes.

The commission’s third hearing was held despite various difficulties, with a large number of the witnesses refusing to attend and the reservation for the original venue of the hearing being canceled under suspicious circumstances.

The commission’s previous hearings had brought to light evidence indicating that Chonghaejin Marine, the company that operated the Sewol ferry, had ordered the crew to instruct passengers over the intercom to remain in their seats during the accident and that Gil Hwan-yeong, former president of KBS, had meddled in reports about the accident.

But the government’s announcement that the commission would be forced to conclude its activities has placed the commission in danger of being dismantled by the end of this month. There is also an increasing likelihood that this hearing will be the commission’s last.

Government funding has been cut off since July, and the commission has continued to lose employees. One by one, staff have been parting ways with the commission. Without proof of employment, they cannot receive bank loans, and they are finding it hard to support themselves after going for two months without a salary.

At the end of June, 58 government officials had been working for the commission, but thus far 12 of them have resigned. “It’s possible that some of the employees who had been holding out until the end of the hearing may resign as well,” said an official with the commission.

Moving forward, the commission plans to organize the findings of the investigation that it has carried out thus far. “We’re not sorting our findings to produce the white paper and final report the government mentioned but rather to continue our investigation,” an official at the commission said.

The relay hunger strike that is being held at Gwanghwamun Square, Seoul, will also continue. Sept. 2 marked the hunger strike’s 39th day.

“The results of the special commission’s hearing confirmed once more that there are still so many things that need to be investigated. The Sewol Special Act needs to be revised to prolong the commission’s mandate so that we can get to the bottom of this and prevent a tragedy like the Sewol from happening again,” said Park Rae-gun, cochair of the April 16 Alliance.

By Kim Mi-young and Park Soo-jin, staff reporters

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