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Events held to mark 2nd anniversary of Cheonan sinking

Posted March. 20, 2012 06:09,   

한국어

“I will never forget that North Korea killed South Korean naval servicemen guarding our seas by torpedoing the South Korean naval corvette Cheonan,” says elementary school student Kim Seo-jin.

More than 200 visitors formed a long queue from the entrance to the lobby on the first floor of the Memorial Hall for the Incheon Landing Operation in Incheon amid bright and sunny weather at 2 p.m. Sunday. A large number of visitors flocked to the facility to watch a photo exhibition on the Cheonan, which was held to mark the second anniversary of the vessel’s sinking by a North Korean torpedo.

Some 50 photos were on display, including the process for lifting the ill-fated naval vessel that was split into two due to the attack and the sobbing of the families of the fallen seamen at the latter`s funeral.

After watching the exhibition with her parents, Kim, 11, from Incheon said, “It`s been two years since innocent soldiers on the Cheonan passed away, but seeing photos of the incident made me feel angry anew at North Korea, which hasn`t even apologized,” adding, “I`ll visit the exhibition once again with my friends next weekend and offer chrysanthemums on the photo of the Cheonan.”

The sinking will mark its second anniversary March 26 but the South Korean public continues to mourn and pay respects to the 46 soldiers who drowned in freezing cold waters. The scene is in stark contrast with the acts of pro-North Korea groups, who seek to divide public opinion by claiming a conspiracy theory about the torpedo attack.

According to the memorial hall Monday, more than 20,000 people visited the exhibit from its opening March 1 through Sunday. More than 2,500 visited the hall and watched photos over the weekend.

Kim In-sook, director of the exhibition hall, said, “Many people visit the exhibition to remember the spirit of fallen soldiers who sacrificed their lives to guard the nation,” adding, “Many people have asked us to organize events that can rekindle vigilance over the North’s atrocity in addition to the exhibition.”

Visitors also flocked to a memorial tower for the 46 seamen erected on a hill in the village of Yeonhwa-ri on Baengnyeong Island, a site near the waters where the Cheonan sank. According to the township office of Baengnyeong, around 80,000 people have visited the island on average per year since the sinking.

The facility has thus become an essential tour for those interested in national security, with more than 90 percent of visitors to the island going to the memorial tower and paying their respects. All new Marines deployed to units in Baengnyeong offer flowers at the tower as part of national security training.

The 8.7-meter tower comprises three triangular pyramids made of marble symbolizing the nation`s territorial waters, land and the people. The epitaph reads, “The body has perished, but the spirit will revive as history, live perpetually in the hearts of the people, and become the guardian of the Republic of Korea.”

Kim Jeong-seop, chief of the township of Baengnyeong, said, “Residents who witnessed the Cheonan sinking at the closest location remember the truly lamentable death of the 46 great soldiers,” adding, “We will hold a memorial rite to pay respects to them in the presence of the Navy and the seamen`s families next Tuesday.”

Civic campaigns are also being staged to remember the 46 soldiers. Ten civic groups including the Incheon Metropolitan City Saemaeul Movement Council, Incheon Council of Women’s Organizations and Incheon Junior Club comprising college students in their 20 and 30s as members formed the Incheon Hope Network and started fundraising to erect a memorial sculpture.

Incheon Hope Network Chairman Cho Sang-beom said, “Public recognition of national security is so weak that national opinion remained divided even after the sinking of the Cheonan by the North’s torpedo attack,” adding, “It`s important for us to constantly inform the public of the North’s belligerence rather than becoming angry every time North Korea conducts an act of aggression.”



kchwang@donga.com