Seoul to create 'yellow ribbon garden' for ferry victims

The Seoul municipal government said Wednesday it will open a garden featuring yellow ribbons at a downtown plaza this week to pay tribute to hundreds of victims of a recent ferry disaster.

The municipality allowed the Korean Society of Landscape Architects (KSLA) to use the eastern plot of Seoul Plaza to create the "Yellow Ribbon Garden," which will open on Thursday, according to its officials.

Yellow ribbons represent a desperate hope for the safe return of those still missing in the deadly sinking of the ferry Sewol two weeks ago.

Around 210 passengers out of 476 people aboard the ferry have been confirmed dead, with about 92 others still unaccounted for, as of early Wednesday.

Citizens across the country have written messages of hope and remorse on the ribbons and tied them to fences and walls, with the campaign also spreading in social media.

The 450-square-meter garden will have a total of 302 metal bars reserved for ribbons, which symbolize the 302 passengers who have either been confirmed dead or missing.

The place will be available at least until the joint memorial altar set up in Seoul Plaza closes, though officials said how to operate it is subject to further discussion.

"The garden will take the shape of a teardrop or a comma, symbolizing both grief of the bereaved families and the people, as well as our wish that the victims will rest in peace," a KSLA official said. (Yonhap)