Lee attends Sewol memorial: "I fully recognize my heavy responsibility as President"

According to The Financial News, President Lee Jae-myung attended the 12th anniversary memorial for the Sewol ferry disaster on the 16th and stated, "I fully recognize my heavy responsibility as President of the Republic of Korea."
In his memorial address at the ceremony held at Hwarang Amusement Park in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, President Lee said, "Once again, April 16 has come," adding, "Twelve years have passed, but the memories of that day remain etched in our minds as vividly as if it were yesterday."
He continued, "Even while enduring the profound sorrow of losing your loved ones, you, the bereaved families, have devoted yourselves to building a safer society by recording every painful detail," and added, "It is hard to even begin to fathom how much pain and longing you have had to bear every single day over these long years."
President Lee said, "We all clearly witnessed what can happen when the state, which must protect the lives and safety of its people, fails to fulfill its role," and added, "We also felt, to the core, how harsh the price of that failure was."
He went on, "I will never, even for a moment, forget the mistakes of that day and the grave lessons they taught us, and I pledge to make sure that such a tragedy is never repeated." He further stressed, "The very reason the state exists is to protect the lives and safety of its people, and when it comes to life and safety, I will not allow even the slightest gap."
President Lee also said, "I will build a country that protects its people under any circumstances, a country that you can fully trust and rely on," and pledged, "We will bring about tangible, concrete changes that the people can truly feel in their daily lives."
He added, "As long as we remember, record, honor, and renew our commitment, the names of each of the 304 victims and the 304 dreams they were unable to fulfill will never be forgotten," and concluded, "Once again, I offer my deepest condolences. We will remember. We will not forget."
west@fnnews.com Seong Seok-woo Reporter