Memorial Ceremony for Itaewon Tragedy 1st Anniversary at Seoul Plaza... Seoul City "Usage Approval"

Held at 5 PM on the 29th

The first anniversary memorial ceremony for the Itaewon disaster will be held on the 29th at Seoul Plaza, where the memorial altar is located.

According to Seoul City on the 25th, the city approved the use of Seoul Plaza for the first anniversary memorial event on the 29th, respecting the wishes of the bereaved families of the October 29 disaster to hold the memorial ceremony at Seoul Plaza.

On the 16th, marking the start of the focused memorial period ahead of the first anniversary of the Itaewon tragedy, foreigners are seen looking at the portraits of the victims at the altar in front of Seoul City Hall Plaza. Photo by Heo Younghan younghan@

Earlier, the October 29 Itaewon Disaster Bereaved Families Association and the Citizens' Countermeasure Committee announced that they would hold a first anniversary citizen memorial event at 5 p.m. on the 29th at Seoul Plaza in Jung-gu, Seoul.

Following Seoul City's approval, the "Reading Seoul Plaza" event originally scheduled for the 29th will be relocated to part of Seoul Plaza and the Cheonggyecheon and Cheonggyecheon Plaza areas, and will be held as the "Reading by the Clear Stream" event.

Meanwhile, the October 29 Itaewon Disaster Citizens' Countermeasure Committee paid the compensation fee imposed and notified by Seoul City last May on the 22nd. Earlier, in February this year, the Citizens' Countermeasure Committee installed a memorial altar for the Itaewon disaster at Seoul Plaza and reported the use of Seoul Plaza to Seoul City. However, Seoul City, amid conflicts with the bereaved families over the removal of the altar, notified a compensation fee of about 29 million won, including the usage fee for the altar at Seoul Plaza for 62 days and late charges last May.

However, Seoul City is requesting the voluntary removal of the joint memorial altar installed by the Itaewon Disaster Bereaved Families Association near City Hall Station at Seoul Plaza, calling it an "illegal structure." At the National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee's audit, Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said regarding the removal of the altar, "We intend to encourage (the bereaved families) to voluntarily remove it, but it cannot remain for one or two years," and added, "At least until the first anniversary, I hope the citizens of Seoul will understand," expressing this position.

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