hankyoreh

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon pays tribute to the victims of the Sewol ferry sinking during an official government memorial at Hwarang Public Garden in Ansan

“Our beloved sons and daughters, we are deeply sorry we were unable to protect you. . . . May you become clouds and wind and travel to the places you dreamed of. When the wind brushes by our ears, we will know that you are there with us.” – 4/16 Sewol Families for Truth and a Safer Society steering committee chairperson Jeon Myeong-seon

“The children will visit as the wind, holding the hands of the mothers and fathers who miss them so much. When the spring wind blows, I hope you show bright smiles instead of tears.” – President Moon Jae-in

The South Korean government’s first farewell and memorial ceremony for the 304 victims of the Sewol ferry sinking was held at 3 pm on Apr. 16 at an official government memorial at Hwarang Public Garden in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province. President Moon Jae-in delivered an address to the nation promising to “remember the Sewol and make a safe Republic of Korea,” while eulogies by figures from various walks of life prompted family members of the victims and many of the 7,000 gathered mourners to shed the tears they had been holding back.

The suppressed grief reached its peak during a mourning and resolution period after the religious service.

Gyeonggi Province on Apr. 16. (Photo Pool)

“They say it get better as time goes by, but I think that’s all lies,” wrote Nam Seo-hyeon, whose younger sister Ji-hyeon was among the victims from Ansan’s Danwon High School, in a letter of mourning. “For four years, you were my whole world. Would I have felt less sorry if I had lived that way for the 17 years we were together?”

“I miss you so much,” she tearfully continued, bringing a lump to many attendees’ throats.

At the farewell and memorial ceremony that day, the service conductor read off the names of the victims, dedicating a flower and burning incense for each one. Family members stood before funeral portraits of their smiling loved ones, engraving the final image on their hearts.

Earlier that morning, another ceremony was held to soothe the spirits of the Sewol victims. Family members sobbed as the funeral portraits and tablets that had honored the young victims at the memorial for four years were relocated to the farewell ceremony site. One mother sank to the ground before the portrait of her son, shown dressed neatly in school uniform. “How can I face you after failing to protect you?” she cried, moving many around her to sadness.

At Danwon High School in Ansan, where 261 students and teachers lost their lives traveling on a field trip to Jeju Island onboard the Sewol, a memorial service was held for the departed. The auditorium was a sea of tears, swelling with yellow paper airplanes bearing memorial messages from current students, including promises to “achieve the dreams and hopes you could not.” At Incheon Family Park, eleven of 43 victims who did not receive farewell ceremonies in 2014 were sent on their final journey.

In a meeting of senior secretaries and aides at the Blue House the same day, President Moon Jae-in stressed that “the way to truly remember the Sewol victims is by making a safe Republic of Korea.”

“The reason I have designated today as Citizen Safety Day is as a way for the nation to apologize to the children of the Sewol and to honor our promise not to forget and to make the Republic of Korea a safe country,” he added.

Portraits of the Sewol ferry victims are arranged next to flowers and incense prior to at a government memorial at Hwarang Public Garden in Ansan

Meanwhile, some family members and members of the public complained about Moon’s absence from the Apr. 16 event, with Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon attending in his stead.

“It feels like a President who came to power through the candlelight revolution touched off by efforts to investigate the Sewol tragedy is now disregarding the victims’ final journey,” lamented one family member.

By Kim Gi-seong, South Gyeonggi correspondent and Lee Jung-ha and Seong Yeon-chol, staff reporters

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