[이태원 참사] Inauguration of Citizens’ Countermeasures Committee…”We will stand in solidarity with the victims”

[서울=뉴스핌] Reporter Choi Ah-yeong = About 40 days have passed since the Itaewon disaster, and civil society has formed a joint group to support bereaved families and victims and to urge the government to find out the truth.

The ’10/29 Itaewon Disaster Citizen Countermeasures Meeting’, which included 175 civic, labor and religious groups, held a launch press conference at the Korean Christian Church Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul on the morning of the 7th and said, “A month has passed since the disaster happened, but the government and the ruling party are responding to the demands of the victims. “Civil society wants to respond to the desperate demands expressed by the families in bereavement,” he said, explaining the purpose of the launch.

Before that, the ‘Preparatory Meeting for Families of Itaewon Tragedy Victims (tentative name)’, which included 87 bereaved families of Itaewon Tragedy victims, held its first press conference on the 22nd and issued six calls to the government.

In response, the Citizens’ Countermeasures Council intends to carry out activities in the future in accordance with the six demands of the bereaved families. They ▲ recognized the state’s responsibility and an official apology ▲ memory of the Itaewon disaster and commemorations of the victims ▲ preparation of support measures focusing on the rights of the victims ▲ thorough investigation of the truth and accountability without sanctuary ▲ prevention of recurrence and basic measures for a safe society as the basis of their response. .

On this day, they explained the response strategy and criticized the slow investigation of the National Police Agency’s Special Investigation Headquarters (special edition), which is investigating the Itaewon disaster, and the government’s inadequate response to the families and r bereaved victims.

Kim Hye-jin, co-representative of Life Safety Net, said, “Right now, the investigation is focused on the people who were sent to the scene that day.”

Human Rights Center activist Lala Dasan said, “After the disaster, the state did not properly communicate the progress and reason of the incident, so the bereaved families visit the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency or the National Assembly. ” They ignore their rights.”

For future activities, it was announced that they had formed organizations such as the Victims’ Rights Committee, the Media Monitoring Committee, and the Citizen Participation Committee for Truth Investigation. In addition to activities to support victims, it is policy to monitor state affairs and investigations and request the disclosure of information.

In particular, he emphasized the seriousness of the secondary damage to bereaved families and victims, and predicted that legal action would be taken in the future through monitoring. Shin Mi-hee, secretary general of the Citizens Coalition for Democratic Media, said, “After the bereaved families reveal their views and reveal their faces and names, secondary damage appears seriously on social media as portal comments and YouTube.” requests immediate deletion/blocking, and if you do not respond, we will take legal action.”

They plan to hold a citizens memorial service in front of Itaewon Station together with a preparation meeting for the bereaved family council at 6:00pm on the 16th, the 49th day after the disaster.

youngar@newspim.com