'Itaewon Tragedy' Park Hee-young, Yongsan District Mayor, Controversy Over 'Safety Duty and Lack of Prior Preparation'

It is expected that whether Park Hee-young, the mayor of Yongsan District, who is suspected of inadequate response to the ‘Itaewon disaster,’ had an obligation to implement safety measures on Halloween Day and whether the preparations were more negligent compared to previous years will become key issues later on.

Park Hee-young, the mayor of Yongsan District, who is accused of professional negligence causing death and injury related to the Itaewon disaster, is attending the pre-arrest detention hearing at the Seoul Western District Court in Mapo-gu, Seoul, on December 26 last year. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The Criminal Division 11 of the Seoul Western District Court (Chief Judge Bae Seong-jung) held the second pretrial hearing at 2:30 p.m. on the 17th for Park, the mayor, and four other Yongsan District officials, who were indicted on charges including professional negligence resulting in death and injury. The court summarized the issues of the case as whether there is an obligation to take safety measures for local festivals without an organizer and whether the preparations for the Halloween festival were insufficient compared to previous years.

Park’s defense team reportedly stated that in cases like Halloween Day, where there is no organizer, the Disaster and Safety Act does not apply, and that the 2020 and 2021 public-private joint exercise meetings were aimed at preventing the spread of COVID-19, so they should not be compared to last year.

In response, the court said, "After this incident, a bill including events without organizers has been proposed in the National Assembly," and added, "The prosecution must verify whether the basis for the defendant’s duty of care arises from the Disaster and Safety Act or other laws." Furthermore, the court noted, "It is necessary to review the pre-event preparations by Gangnam District Office and Mapo District Office for areas such as Gangnam Station and Hongdae Street, where many people gather outside of Itaewon, related to Halloween Day 2022."

Mayor Park is accused of failing to establish and implement an effective safety management plan for the Itaewon area during the Halloween festival period as the local government head and the head of the relevant department primarily responsible for disaster and safety. He is also charged with not properly operating the permanent disaster safety situation room and failing to establish a cooperative system with related agencies such as the police and fire departments.

The first trial for these individuals will be held at 2:30 p.m. on the 15th of next month.

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