South Korea to Disband Coast

Guard, Leader Says

By CHOE SANG-HUN MAY 19, 2014
SEOUL, South Korea President Park Geun-hye of South Korea vowed on Monday to
disband her countrys coast uard, sayin that South Korea owed !refor" and a
reat transfor"ation# to hundreds of hih schoo$ students who died in a ferry disaster
$ast "onth%
&owin dee'$y, Ms% Park offered a !heartfe$t a'o$oy# for havin fai$ed to 'revent
the sinkin of the ferry, the Sewo$, on ('ri$ )* and for the coast uards bun$in of
rescue o'erations%
!+he u$ti"ate res'onsibi$ity $ies with "e, the 'resident,# she said%
($thouh she had a'o$oi,ed a few ti"es over the sinkin, Ms% Parks nationa$$y
te$evised s'eech on Monday was her c$earest e-'ression of 'ub$ic contrition% (s of
Monday, ./* 'eo'$e had been confir"ed dead, with )/ "issin, "akin the e'isode one of
the countrys worst 'eaceti"e disasters% 0t has a$so deve$o'ed into Ms% Parks
biest 'o$itica$ crisis1 over the weekend, the 'o$ice detained "ore than .22 'eo'$e who
had tried to "arch on her office, ca$$in on her to ste' down%
On Monday, the "ain o''osition 'arty, the 3ew Po$itics ($$iance for 4e"ocracy,
described Ms% Parks decision to dis"ant$e the coast uard as !shock thera'y#
desined to divert attention fro" her offices fai$ure to dea$ effective$y with the
disaster% 0t de"anded the a''oint"ent of inde'endent investiators to $ook "ore broad$y
into her overn"ents fai$ures%
Ms% Park defended her reorani,ation '$an% !5e fai$ed to save those students who
shou$d have been saved,# she said% !0 wi$$ "ake this an o''ortunity for South Korea to
be born aain%#
She 'ro"ised to disband the coast uard and overhau$ her overn"ent to he$' it dea$
"ore efficient$y with disasters% +he vast "a6ority of the dead and "issin were students
tra''ed in the danerous$y $istin ferry after its crew re'eated$y ured the" to stay
'ut%
(ccordin to the transcri'ts of coast uard radio co""unications re$eased over the
weekend, the first coast uard boats to arrive at the scene on ('ri$ )* were
re'eated$y ordered to try to reach the 'asseners tra''ed inside% &ut they res'onded
that the ferry was too heavi$y ti$ted for their officers to board it% +hey on$y saved the
shi's ca'tain and other crew "e"bers who were desertin the shi', and those
'asseners who f$ed the shi' on their own%
+he coast uard !didnt do its duty,# Ms% Park said% !0f it had tried to rescue
'eo'$e "ore swift$y and "ore active$y riht after the accident, it cou$d have reat$y
reduced the casua$ties%#
+he duties of the coast uard wi$$ be absorbed into the nationa$ 'o$ice force or into a
new safety aency that Ms% Park said she wou$d create to ensure that disasters are
hand$ed better% +he new aency wi$$ a$so incor'orate disaster res'onse duties current$y
scattered throuhout various overn"ent aencies%
+oward the end of the s'eech, Ms% Park turned e"otiona$, stru$in to fiht back
tears, as she cited the na"es of those she ca$$ed !true heroes#7 students, crew
"e"bers and teachers who survivors said he$'ed 'asseners esca'e but did not "ake it
out the"se$ves%
!+he sinkin of the Sewo$ wi$$ stay as a hard-to-erase scar in our history,# Ms% Park
said% !0ts the duty of the $ivin to "ake refor" and a reat transfor"ation for the
country so that the sacrifices of the dead were not wasted% 0f we cannot refor"
ourse$ves in a situation $ike this, we wi$$ beco"e a nation that wi$$ never be ab$e to
achieve refor"%#
5ith that, she dec$ared a war aainst what she ca$$ed her countrys dee'$y entrenched
cu$ture of !kkiri kkiri,# or co$$usive ties between businesses and overn"ent reu$ators,
that she said had $ed to $a- reu$atory enforce"ent and an easy acce'tance of 'oor
safety standards throuhout society%
0nvestiators of the ferry sinkin say that a cu$ture of corru'tion contributed to the
disaster% +he o'erator of the ferry renovated the o$d shi' to increase its 'assener
ca'acity% +he ferry was over$oaded with caro that was 'oor$y secured, and officia$s
$ied about it in its de'arture re'ort% 8et it was ru$ed safe to sai$ by the Korea Shi''in
(ssociation, a $obby rou' for the industry that was a$so in chare of ins'ectin shi's
for safety% 9entra$ overn"ent officia$s were accused of fai$in to su'ervise the
association, where their for"er co$$eaues and bosses found hih-rankin 6obs%
9ritics have said that virtua$$y a$$ industries in the country are '$aued by what Ms% Park
ca$$ed a !bureaucratic "afia#7 overn"ent officia$s takin cushy 6obs in the industries
they used to reu$ate% :etirin overn"ent officia$s have traditiona$$y considered such
6obs their rihtfu$ 'erks and often worked to shie$d the industries fro" reu$ators% +o
break the co$$usive $inks, Ms% Park said she wou$d revise $aws to tihten the screenin of
officia$s $ookin for industry-affi$iated 6obs after retire"ent%
She a$so ca$$ed for the revision of the cri"ina$ code to drastica$$y increase 'unish"ents
for those who endaner the $ives of "any 'eo'$e% She said the decision by the Sewo$s
ca'tain and crew to f$ee ahead of 'asseners was !$ike an act of "urder%#
Ms% Park said she wou$d send bi$$s to the 3ationa$ (sse"b$y to "ake the chanes she
'ro'osed%
+he "ain o''osition said it wou$d se$ective$y su''ort Ms% Parks 'ro'osed $aws,
inc$udin a bi$$ on conf$ict of interest for overn"ent officia$s that wou$d, a"on other
thins, crack down on their 'ractice of takin ifts% &usinesses have $on abused the
countrys tradition of e-chanin ifts durin ho$idays and anniversaries to bribe
overn"ent officia$s and 'o$iticians%
Ms% Park a$so 'ro'osed a s'ecia$ $aw to a$$ow the overn"ent to search and confiscate
the assets of 9honhae6in Marine 9o"'any, the o'erator of the ferry, and the fa"i$y
that ho$ds stakes in it% 0n "e"ory of the dead, she said she wou$d desinate ('ri$ )* as
3ationa$ Safety 4ay%