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Statement of Korean Church about the Ferry Disaster
First of all, we offer our deepest prayer of contritionto the victims of the ferry disaster. We have encouraged a society wheremoneymaking is much more important than life. This disaster is ourresponsibility. We are deeply sorry. We will take the initiative to fix thissociety.
Looking at the reaction of the incompetentgovernment, it is beyond deplorable. There is not only doubt about thecompetence, but also doubt about the truth. We are not just feeling sad, we arealso full of anger about the reaction of the government.
The nation has full responsibility and obligation toprotect its people, and the president is its representative. All 476 passengersof the ferry and their families are people of the Republic of Korea. Butthe country didn’t protect their people at this moment of crisis. Regardless ofthe anger of the Korean people, they can’t hear even a single world of sincereapology from the government.
There are still people inside the ferry and we don’t knowwhether they are alive or not.
1. We urge the government todo their best to find these people and confirm their life or death. The reasonwhy people are full with anger is because they are not seeing any heartfeltreaction from the government. They want to see the efforts of the government toprotect everyone, from the first person to the very last. A genuine apologystarts from doing their best and taking all possible steps for the people.
2. The peoplewant the truth without any falsehood. Thus, the government has to keepeverything open to the people about the disaster very clearly and specifically.We can only plan proper disaster prevention measures when substantive truthcomes to the surface. There should be no attempts to hide or defocus thesubstantive truth. We will keep our eyes focused on the government.
It’s not the time to ease our holy resentment yet.
1. Our society hasexperienced many disasters and we have suffered a lot. But we tend to forgetsuch disasters and pain too easily. We know that we need courage to face up tothe pain. We are asking you to muster up courage and fight as survivors for aworld where this terrible history won’t reoccur. Please let us fight togetherso that we don’t need to be in tears anymore.
2. Oursociety has to keep an eye on the procedure of the settlement and follow-upmeasures of the disaster from the viewpoint of the victims and their families.We have to help them as companions so that they don’t have to go through that pain andcrying anymore. This is the way we can pay back our deepest apologetic mind.
3. We appealto the press. Memory comes back by talking about it. We are asking you toreveal the truth, defend the weak and stand in the frontline of the fightagainst this sad memory.
April30, 2014
National Council of Churches in Korea
Chairman Park Jong-Deok
Secretary KimYoung-Ju | 
