#remember 0416

seven years ago today, 476 passengers and crew boarded the sewol ferry and only 172 returned. 325 of the passengers were high school students excited to embark on a field trip they had been looking forward to.

the sinking of the sewol ferry was an avoidable tragedy. inspections of the ship were inaccurate due to falsified documents. cargo was 1,155.7 tons over the limit. warnings about the ship’s stability were dismissed with threats. there weren’t enough life jackets. passengers weren’t taught how to properly use the few life jackets that were available.

the crew made announcements telling the passengers to stay still, even as the ferry was beginning to sink. even as water began pouring inside. even as the crew themselves abandoned ship.

korea is a culture that heavily emphasizes listening to elders. so when authorities told the students to stay trapped inside, they obeyed. they disregarded their instincts to flee and trusted the people who sacrificed them to save themselves. only those who went against the adults were the ones who survived. many of the bodies that were recovered were found bloodied and with broken bones. proof of their frantic attempts to escape and survive.

every year, it breaks my heart to hear the voicemails the kids left behind. their last text messages to their families. their videos that they filmed, unaware of their impending death.

the government was slow and inefficient in their rescue operations. civilians had to take matters into their own hands. more than half of the survivors were rescued by fishing boats and other commercial vessels.

there are many conspiracy theories as to why this was handled so messily. this incident was also the last straw that pushed the then-president’s impeachment. but i won’t delve too deep into that here. because today, i want to honor and remember the victims.

i still remember watching this on the news. waiting for updates on the internet. praying that everyone would come back safe and sound to their families. i remember seeing the devastated parents waiting for their children to come home.

294 people were declared dead. 5 people are still missing to this day.

5 families did not get the closure they deserved. 5 families are still pained with the grief of not being able to put their loved ones to rest.

kang mingyu, the vice president of the high school students, couldn’t bear the guilt of surviving and committed suicide two days later.

kim gwanhong, a diver who voluntarily rescued passengers, was haunted by the bodies he couldn’t save and committed suicide in 2016 after suffering from injuries during search and rescue operations that made him unable to work.

if you are able to, please check out these videos to inform yourself about the tragedy and to remember the lives lost and ruined.

🎗Meeting a survivor from S. Korea’s biggest maritime disaster: Sewol Ferry Tragedy ↳ hear the story from the perspective of a student survivor

Sewol Ferry Remember song🎗️( 세올 페리 기억해, 노래) ↳ i really want to translate some of the letters left on the desks. it truly hurts to read them ↳ “to: jooeun unnie, hi unnie! i’m dawoon’s little sister. i can’t see you often now but i hope you get along with my brother there too~” ↳ “kim jean, where are you? you’re alive, right? i miss you so much your name won’t leave my lips.. we have to go eat 3 cm pizza. we promised to go get nose surgery together in the winter. hurry up, i’ll hug you. it’s cold. i miss you so much.. i really love you. i believe in you. you have to come back. you have to, okay? from, hyeran who loves you the most” ↳ “woohyuk, my lovely nephew. it must be cold, right? i know it’s dark in the ship but stay strong. you have to stay strong. you have to stay alive until we save you”

Inside The Worst Modern-Day Tragedy In Korea: 5 Year Anniversary Of The Sewol | ASIAN BOSS ↳ this documentary does a great job of covering the tragedy. if you want to learn more in depth about what happened, you should watch this video

seven years ago, i was 14. these students were 16/17 (korean age 18).

seven years later, i am now 20 yet these students are still 16/17.

i mourn for their stolen youth. i pray that they have found peace.

there are still so many unanswered questions about this tragedy. it wasn’t until november 2019 that another investigation was opened. but by then, 3 years had already passed. 3 years of unbearable and indescribable pain.