Society that ignores basic rules and order invites disaster
As divers retrieve one body after another, hope is giving way to despair among the families of passengers trapped on the sunken ferry, Sewol. This will soon turn into anger ― and a resentful voicing of "why?" What caused this nightmarish disaster, taking away hundreds of young people from their beloved relatives?
A full picture of the nation's worst maritime calamity in two decades has yet to emerge. However, what is almost certain is that it is another "man-made disaster".
And what makes this ongoing tragedy all the more heart-rending are the many "ifs." If the owner of the 6,825-ton, second-hand ferry had not unduly extended its cabin; if the company that operated it had not overloaded it with massive containers; and if its helmsman had not veered off the regular route, had not sped up and made a sharp turn to save time, the cruise ship might have safely gone on its way.
If the captain and crew had been trained for emergencies and showed a minimal degree of responsibility, the death toll might have been much smaller than now. And if the maritime police had grasped the gravity of the situation in the early stages, they could have saved many more lives.
What all this leads to is that Korea, a self-styled "advanced nation," is actually an underdeveloped country as far as its ability ― and willingness ― to maintain basic principles and follow established laws. It may be a first-rate country in terms of economic growth, but it is a third-rate one when it comes to the ability to protect its citizens from danger and keep them safe. This explains why Korea, which is relatively free from natural disasters and terrorism, has to "regularly" hold group memorials.
Especially disheartening was the extreme haste and confusion of the government, led by a president whose two buzzwords are "safety" and "principles." It was President Park Geun-hye who changed the name of the Ministry of Public Administration and Security to the Ministry of Security and Public Administration. The name change might have not led to any real changes in the bureaucrats' chronic "ignorance of safety," a disease marked by three no's ― no safety manuals, no systems and no awareness.
President Park promised the families of missing passengers that all people found responsible for the disaster would face stern disciplinary action.
This is necessary but hardly sufficient to alert businesses and government officials who put money and bureaucratic expediency ahead of public lives and safety. Nothing will change fundamentally if the government again stops at punishing some officials and taking other temporary measures. It is long past time for Seoul to come up with safety manuals against various possible disasters and train officials and the general public alike to better prepare for emergencies. Most important of all, all public employees, from the president on down to lowest officials, should set the example of abiding by basic rules, however small and insignificant these might appear to be.
A normal, safe society punishes people who break rules and rewards those who keep them. In Korea, people who abide by rules often suffer losses and are disadvantaged while lawbreakers go unscathed or even are rewarded. Many Cabinet ministers in the Park administration are people who used false residential addresses for property speculation or for the benefit of their children's education, or committed plagiarism. Park also retains her spymaster who violated grave rules to cover up big political scandals.
Foreign media is describing the disaster as the test of Park's ability to manage crises. She must restart by practicing what she preaches ― obeying laws and rules and sticking to principles. A Chinese paper pointed out the ferry incident demonstrated the limitations of "compressed growth." At the time of the accident, the captain of the ferry left the helm to a third mate. The Park administration must dispel humiliating jeers that the nation itself might be at the hands of a third officer.
As divers retrieve one body after another, hope is giving way to despair among the families of passengers trapped on the sunken ferry, Sewol. This will soon turn into anger ― and a resentful voicing of "why?" What caused this nightmarish disaster, taking away hundreds of young people from their beloved relatives?
A full picture of the nation's worst maritime calamity in two decades has yet to emerge. However, what is almost certain is that it is another "man-made disaster".
And what makes this ongoing tragedy all the more heart-rending are the many "ifs." If the owner of the 6,825-ton, second-hand ferry had not unduly extended its cabin; if the company that operated it had not overloaded it with massive containers; and if its helmsman had not veered off the regular route, had not sped up and made a sharp turn to save time, the cruise ship might have safely gone on its way.
If the captain and crew had been trained for emergencies and showed a minimal degree of responsibility, the death toll might have been much smaller than now. And if the maritime police had grasped the gravity of the situation in the early stages, they could have saved many more lives.
What all this leads to is that Korea, a self-styled "advanced nation," is actually an underdeveloped country as far as its ability ― and willingness ― to maintain basic principles and follow established laws. It may be a first-rate country in terms of economic growth, but it is a third-rate one when it comes to the ability to protect its citizens from danger and keep them safe. This explains why Korea, which is relatively free from natural disasters and terrorism, has to "regularly" hold group memorials.
Especially disheartening was the extreme haste and confusion of the government, led by a president whose two buzzwords are "safety" and "principles." It was President Park Geun-hye who changed the name of the Ministry of Public Administration and Security to the Ministry of Security and Public Administration. The name change might have not led to any real changes in the bureaucrats' chronic "ignorance of safety," a disease marked by three no's ― no safety manuals, no systems and no awareness.
President Park promised the families of missing passengers that all people found responsible for the disaster would face stern disciplinary action.
This is necessary but hardly sufficient to alert businesses and government officials who put money and bureaucratic expediency ahead of public lives and safety. Nothing will change fundamentally if the government again stops at punishing some officials and taking other temporary measures. It is long past time for Seoul to come up with safety manuals against various possible disasters and train officials and the general public alike to better prepare for emergencies. Most important of all, all public employees, from the president on down to lowest officials, should set the example of abiding by basic rules, however small and insignificant these might appear to be.
A normal, safe society punishes people who break rules and rewards those who keep them. In Korea, people who abide by rules often suffer losses and are disadvantaged while lawbreakers go unscathed or even are rewarded. Many Cabinet ministers in the Park administration are people who used false residential addresses for property speculation or for the benefit of their children's education, or committed plagiarism. Park also retains her spymaster who violated grave rules to cover up big political scandals.
Foreign media is describing the disaster as the test of Park's ability to manage crises. She must restart by practicing what she preaches ― obeying laws and rules and sticking to principles. A Chinese paper pointed out the ferry incident demonstrated the limitations of "compressed growth." At the time of the accident, the captain of the ferry left the helm to a third mate. The Park administration must dispel humiliating jeers that the nation itself might be at the hands of a third officer.
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