Reporting for Yeosun Incident Victims and Bereaved Families Extended Until the End of This Year

Partial Amendment to the Enforcement Decree of the Yeosun Incident Act Approved at the Cabinet Meeting

The reporting period for victims and bereaved families of the 'Yeosu·Suncheon 10·19 Incident' has been extended until December 31 of this year. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced that the amendment to the 'Enforcement Decree of the Special Act on the Investigation of the Truth and Restoration of Honor for Victims of the Yeosu·Suncheon 10·19 Incident' containing this content was approved at the Cabinet meeting on the 14th.

Originally, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety and the Yeosu-Suncheon Incident Committee set the reporting period for victims and bereaved families of the Yeosu·Suncheon 10·19 Incident from January 21 last year to January 20 this year and had been accepting applications. During the reporting period, there were 195 reports for truth investigation and 6,579 reports for victims and bereaved families, totaling 6,774 reports.

However, the number of reports was far insufficient compared to the 11,131 casualties announced by Jeonnam Province in 1949, the year following the Yeosu-Suncheon Incident. Additionally, even after the reporting period ended, there have been continuous demands for reporting and reception, and with the additional discovery of victim data such as prisoner lists and the transfer of cases received by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, new reporting demand is expected, leading to the extension of the reporting period.

Earlier, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced the legislative amendment containing this content and had given prior notice from the 5th of last month. Regarding this, Democratic Party lawmakers So Byung-chul (Suncheon-Gwangyang-Gokseong-Gurye Gap) and Kim Hoe-jae (Yeosu Eul), representing the affected eastern region, issued a joint welcoming statement.

For related reports, residents within Jeollanam-do can visit the nearest city/county or eup/myeon/dong civil service office or submit by mail, while those residing outside Jeollanam-do can visit or mail the report to the Yeosu-Suncheon Incident Support Group (located at Jeonnam Provincial Office).

Choi Hoon, Director of the Local Autonomy Balanced Development Office, said, “Through this amendment to the enforcement decree, we hope that victims and bereaved families will be able to report without omission, and that it will help in the investigation of the truth of the Yeosu-Suncheon Incident and the restoration of honor for victims and bereaved families.”

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