Oh Se-hoon: “No one should be unable to mourn the deceased because of funeral costs” — Public funeral support to expand

[Financial News] Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon called for a stronger public role in funeral support so that no residents are unable to properly mourn the deceased because of the cost. In response to the growing number of funerals without a viewing room, the city is considering expanding small funeral spaces at Seoul Memorial Park and municipal hospitals, as well as broadening public funeral services, which have traditionally focused on unclaimed deceased people. 
The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Oh received a briefing on the rise in funerals without a viewing room at a senior officials’ meeting on the 28th and instructed officials to draw up plans to expand public funeral facilities to ease residents’ funeral costs.
Oh explained, “Funerals without a viewing room are continuing to increase as various factors come into play, including rising funeral costs, a shift in attitudes toward greater economic pragmatism, and shrinking family sizes. In some districts, they account for nearly half of all funerals.”
He added, “Among residents who choose funerals without a viewing room amid these changes, some may have no choice but to simplify funeral procedures because of financial hardship or their family circumstances. The public sector needs to ease residents’ burden so that no one is unable to properly mourn the deceased because of funeral costs.”
A funeral without a viewing room is a type of funeral held without setting up a separate viewing room, and focuses on necessary procedures such as placing the deceased in a coffin, the funeral procession, and cremation. The number of people choosing simple funerals has been increasing recently amid the growth in single-person households, an aging population, and shrinking family sizes.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government will first consider expanding small funeral spaces at municipal hospitals, with a focus on family funerals. Eunpyeong Hospital, Boramae Hospital, and Dongbu Hospital currently operate “Seoul-Style Good Funeral Homes” to reduce funeral costs. Boramae Hospital and Dongbu Hospital each have one small funeral space measuring 12 pyeong.
The city is also pursuing plans to create additional spaces at Seoul Memorial Park where funerals can be held simply. 
Oh called for officials to “operate funeral spaces tailored to municipal hospitals and centered on family funerals, in response to the growth in single-person households and an aging population, and actively study ways to expand spaces at Seoul Memorial Park where funerals can be held simply, given the limitations of existing facilities alone.”
The city is also considering expanding public funeral services, which primarily serve unclaimed deceased people, to meet changing public demand. The specific scale of facility expansion and the implementation timeline have not yet been decided.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government has also been expanding facilities to meet growing demand for cremation. In August last year, it increased the number of cremators at Seoul Memorial Park from 11 to 15, raising daily cremation capacity from 59 to 85. It also increased the number of family waiting rooms from 10 to 14 and parking spaces from 128 to 178.
In late September, the city completed the conversion of all 23 cremators at Seoul Municipal Crematorium to smart cremators.
Oh said, “Changes in funeral culture are not a temporary phenomenon but a long-term trend stemming from changes in the population structure and family relationships. I ask you to make proactive investments and take administrative action in preparation for future demand, so that everyone can ease the financial burden and mourn the deceased with dignity.”
[email protected] Seong Cho-rong Reporter