President Park Geun-hye met with family members of victims who were onboard the sunken passenger ship Sewol on May 16 at Cheong Wa Dae. She vowed to reform the nation's safety standards and procedures.

During the face-to-face talks, she apologized again for the government's botched response to the disaster. "I will push for fundamental reform of the nation's safety system. I will consider it as a realignment of the whole nation. Getting back to basics is what we need to do," she said.


President Park said, "I believe we need to establish a special law and special prosecution powers to reveal the truth of the ferry disaster. I will soon come up with a plan."

She continued, "In addition to the special law, we will strive to pass the Public Servant's Ethics and Corruption Prevention Act, which is currently pending, to stand against every possible illegality and act of corruption. We will soon publicly release all of these results."

One of the family members said, "I believe it is the responsibility of the president and the government to help the victims be remembered and to keep their memory alive." The statement was followed by an inquiry into how the government is preparing for that.

As President Park wrote down what she was asked, she explained, "The nation, before the Sewol disaster on April 16, and after the accident, will be totally different." President Park pledged to gather opinions from the families of the victims about what is required and to reflect on their suggestions.



By Wi Tack-whan, Lee Seung-ah
Korea.net Staff Writers
whan23@korea.kr