[Itaewon Tragedy] "Stop Political Strife"... Growing Voices Within the Ruling Party

Hong Jun-pyo "Tragic Disaster, Please Do Not Use for Political Strife"
Kim Ki-hyun "Let's Stop Political Strife for Quick Accident Resolution"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] As it has been reported that more than 150 people died in the Itaewon Halloween accident, voices calling to "stop political strife" are emerging, mainly among ruling party politicians.

Hong Joon-pyo, mayor of Daegu and member of the People Power Party, said on his social network service (SNS) on the 30th, "I mourn the sacrifice of the young people who flocked to the first no-mask (Halloween) festival, and I ask the government to make every effort in the aftermath."

He also requested the government to work hard to prevent similar accidents and said, "I ask political parties not to use this tragic disaster for political strife."

Kim Ki-hyun, a member of the People Power Party, also said on SNS, "To mourn the victims and quickly handle the accident, the political circle should stop political strife," adding, "I will refrain as much as possible from expressing opinions on political issues during the mourning period and will do my part in preparing follow-up measures such as identifying the cause of the accident, determining responsibility, and preventing recurrence."

He added, "Now is the time to unite our efforts to mourn the victims and quickly handle the accident."

Meanwhile, on the same day, the leadership of both the ruling and opposition parties held emergency meetings and agreed to cooperate across party lines in handling the accident.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.