[Itaewon Tragedy] Yoon Orders "Crowd Accident Management System Applicable Even to Voluntary Events"

President Yoon's Directive at Expanded Weekly Meeting... Ministers of Interior and Welfare Also Attend
"As President, I Feel Sorrow and Responsibility... Young People Tragically Lost Without Even Realizing Their Dreams, Deeply Saddened"
"Repeated Emphasis on Ensuring No Shortage in Funeral Support and Treatment for the Injured"
Presidential Office Refutes "No One-Way Traffic Was Implemented at Past Events"
"Restaurants Could Only Be Used if QR Codes Were Scanned on Both Sides of the Street, Making It Appear as One-Way Traffic"

President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee are moving to pay their respects at the joint memorial altar set up at Seoul Plaza in Jung-gu, Seoul, for the victims of the Itaewon tragedy on the 31st. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 31st, President Yoon Seok-yeol ordered that "a crowd accident management system applicable even to spontaneous group events without organizers, like the Itaewon Halloween disaster, must be established."

President Yoon gave this directive during an expanded weekly meeting with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo that morning, according to a briefing by presidential spokesperson Lee Jae-myung.

The weekly meeting, usually held every Monday, is a forum where President Yoon and Prime Minister Han discuss policies. To respond to the Itaewon disaster, Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min and Minister of Health and Welfare Cho Kyu-hong also attended, making it an expanded weekly meeting.

President Yoon instructed a thorough investigation into the cause of the accident and transparent disclosure to prepare fundamental measures to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

Unlike events with organizers, where the organizers establish safety management plans and receive review and approval from local governments, police, and fire departments under current laws, it was judged that proactive safety management is difficult in cases like the Itaewon Halloween event without an organizer.

Spokesperson Lee explained, "Even if the event is not hosted by local governments, local authorities can request police cooperation for vehicle or personnel control to ensure minimum safety measures based on their judgment. Likewise, if the police determine that a safety accident could occur, they notify the local government and implement emergency control measures. These matters are expected to be discussed going forward."

President Yoon expressed deep sorrow and responsibility as the president responsible for the lives and safety of the people, saying, "Thinking of those who lost their lives and their bereaved families, I feel indescribable sadness and responsibility." He reiterated his grief, stating, "It is especially heartbreaking that many young people in the prime of their lives suffered a tragic fate without having the chance to realize their dreams."

He continued, "There must be no shortcomings in funeral support and medical assistance for the injured," and urged, "Please take special care to ensure that necessary support is provided by reflecting the opinions of the bereaved families as much as possible."

Additionally, President Yoon expressed gratitude to the heroes of Itaewon, including citizens, medical staff, firefighters, and police officers who worked hard for emergency care and transport, including cardiopulmonary resuscitation, saying, "I thank all the people who shared in the sorrow," according to spokesperson Lee.

In response to a reporter's point that in past cases without organizers, the police installed police lines and controlled one-way traffic, a presidential office official rebutted, "The claim that one-way traffic was enforced in the past is not true. The main reason police officers were deployed at that time was for quarantine control."

He added, "Therefore, at that time, as far as I know, restaurants did not check QR codes individually on Halloween Day. Instead, QR code authentication was required at both ends of the alley entrance, allowing free movement among restaurants. As a result, all citizens came to that area to authenticate their QR codes, which appeared as if one-way traffic was being enforced," he emphasized.

He further stated, "The police did not induce or forcibly implement one-way traffic. In that regard, as I mentioned earlier, under the current system, the police lack legal and institutional grounds to control ordinary citizens. Therefore, we will carefully examine the risks that can arise when large crowds gather, as in this accident, and thoroughly prepare measures to prevent recurrence of such incidents," he added.

President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee are paying their respects by offering flowers at the joint memorial altar set up at Seoul Plaza in Jung-gu, Seoul, on the 31st for the victims of the Itaewon tragedy. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

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