Itaewon Tragedy: 2,000 to Attend 4th-Anniversary Memorial at Seoul Plaza on the 24th

[Financial News]  A citizens’ memorial gathering honoring the 160 victims will be held at Seoul Plaza on the 24th to mark the fourth anniversary of the Itaewon Tragedy. Some 2,000 people, including Prime Minister Han Seong-sook, bereaved families and members of the public, are expected to attend. Around 30 family members of foreign victims will also come to Korea at the government’s invitation.
The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said on the 22nd that it would hold the citizens’ memorial gathering at Seoul Plaza at 5:30 p.m. on the 24th, jointly with the Itaewon Tragedy Bereaved Families Association, the Citizens' Countermeasures Committee and the Seoul Metropolitan Government.
The memorial events will begin at 1 p.m. that day with a prayer service held by religious groups at the Itaewon Tragedy site. Bereaved families and members of the public will then continue in a memorial march to Seoul Plaza.
At the citizens’ memorial gathering, which begins at 5:30 p.m., the names of the 160 victims will be called one by one. This will be followed by a moment of silence, a memorial address by the prime minister, the screening of a memorial video and remarks by family members of foreign victims.
As at last year’s third-anniversary event, family members of foreign victims will attend this year at the government’s invitation. Around 30 family members from 10 countries are expected to take part not only in the memorial gathering but also in meetings with bereaved families in Korea, visits to memorial spaces including the victims’ alma maters, and a press conference.
A space will also be set up where members of the public can take part in the memorial activities. From 2 p.m. on the 24th, an interactive area at Seoul Plaza will let visitors leave messages of remembrance or make purple, star-shaped memorial symbols.
The government’s official memorial ceremony, the “Fourth-Anniversary Remembrance Ceremony,” will be held separately at Gwanghwamun Square at 10:29 a.m. on the 29th, the date of the tragedy.
The minister’s remarks at the end of the article will be presented below, preserving the original wording.
Minister of the Interior and Safety Yun Ho-jung said, “The presence and heartfelt sentiments of each and every citizen will be the greatest comfort to the bereaved families and a light of hope that will make our society safer,” and added, “I ask many citizens to join us at the site and offer warm words of comfort and remembrance, so that together we can move beyond grief and open a path of solidarity and hope.”


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