By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter
Brushing off a cold snap sweeping the capital, a stream of people continued to gather around Namdaemun to pay their respects to the 610-year-old National Treasure No. 1, which was gutted by fire last Sunday.
A makeshift altar was set up Thursday with pears, oranges and other foodstuff between several garlands decorated with white chrysanthemums and white tape that read ``I am so sorry. It's our mistake.'' A huge black-and-white picture of Namdaemun was standing behind the table similar to a photograph of the deceased seen in Korean funeral services. With a traditional funeral song blaring from speakers, numerous visitors offered flowers and bowed twice, as is also done at a traditional services.
``I came here from Ilsan in Gyeonggi Province to mourn,'' a housewife, who refused to be named, said in tears. ``I lived for several decades nearby Namdaemun. So I feel as if I have lost one of my oldest and best friends.'' ``This is National Treasure No. 1. How dare an individual set a fire to the historical heritage,'' she said.
Seo Ye-yun, a third grade schoolgirl at Indeogwon Middle School in Anyang, Gyeonggi Province, who visited the fire scene with two friends, said ``When I watched the wooden structure in flames on TV, I was so sad and cried all the night long. I am deeply sorry for having little interest in Namdaemun.''
``The arsonist caught Monday should be severely punished. But the government and concerned officials that have managed the national treasure in a cursory manner cannot be excluded from responsibility for the fire,'' the 17-year-old said.
Lee Ki-dong, 70, a cabdriver, said ``I took a day off to visit here and mourn. I was bitterly sad when I saw the blackened structure while driving through downtown Seoul.''
Most people on the scene called for the government to utilize the site as an educational location.
``The debris should be left as it is for a while to be used as a vivid lessons for residents visiting here. The scene should be transformed into a location for history education,'' said Kim Rahn-ki, 55, a director of the civic group Korean Heritage.