Lawmaker seeks gov't support for Sewol divers

By Kim Bo-eun

A lawmaker has proposed a revision to a special act on the Sewol disaster to extend government financial support for civilian divers who participated in search and rescue (SAR) operations for their physical and mental damage.

Many divers voluntarily took part in SAR operations for missing passengers who were on the ferry which sank and killed more than 300 people on April 16, 2014.

“Many of these victims have been suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder but they have had to pay for their own treatment,” said Rep. Park Joo-min of the Minjoo Party of Korea, Monday. “And many of these individuals have had difficulty making time to receive treatment as they need to work for their livelihoods.”

Kim seeks to revise the act so that divers can be included as recipients of government support along with the survivors and bereaved families who lost loved ones in the sinking.

The draft of the revision states that the civilian divers can receive government support to treat the traumas of the Sewol disaster through medical treatment and counseling.

The lawmaker’s proposal follows a recent suicide by one of the divers.

Kim Gwan-hong, 43, was found dead inside a greenhouse at his residence in Goyang, northwest of Seoul, Friday.

Kim, who was unable to work as a diver after sustaining injuries during SAR operations, had been making a living by growing flowers and working as a chauffeur.

Police said Kim had returned home early Friday after finishing work, drank alcohol and then collapsed, according to surveillance camera footage. They found a bottle of pills on the site and also records of Kim sending messages to acquaintances implying that he would commit suicide.

Kim had been involved in activities to uncover the truth about the Sewol disaster, attending a hearing hosted by the Special Investigation Commission and the National Assembly’s audit of the Ministry of Public Safety and Security.

Disappointed at the government’s negligence of the divers and many other volunteers who suffered, he said in the audit, “Now I urge the government not to seek people’s help in any disaster but do it itself.”

Kim also assisted the lawmaker in drawing up the revisions.

The revisions also seek to provide support for firefighters and volunteers who took part in SAR operations as well as students and teachers of Danwon High School, who were not on the ferry but were also psychologically traumatized by the tragedy.

According to the revisions, those who sustained injuries or died in SAR operations will be recognized by the state for their contributions. The revisions have also deleted a time frame limiting registration for compensation.

Park said he will also work to extend the investigation period of the Sewol committee. The investigations are set to conclude within this month, but the salvaging of the sunken ferry is not expected to be completed until the end of July, which has raised concerns that a proper investigation would be impossible.