The Democratic Party of Korea is pushing to include 13.28 billion won ($10 million) in next year's government budget to fund the activities of the special investigation commission tasked with uncovering the truth behind the Oct. 29 Itaewon crowd crush and preventing a recurrence.
The Democratic Party's special committee on the Itaewon crowd crush announced the plan Friday after holding a meeting at the National Assembly with officials from the special investigation commission and the Ministry of Interior and Safety, ahead of the fourth anniversary of the disaster. The proposed amount is similar in scale to this year's budget of 13.3 billion won.
Rep. Nam In-soon, the National Assembly vice speaker who chairs the special committee, said the commission's operating period had been extended but that it continued to face difficulties securing investigators and seconded civil servants, and that the extended period was not adequately reflected in the proposed budget. "We must secure sufficient funding so the commission can focus entirely on its investigation, and we must actively work to provide organizational and personnel support, including professional investigators and seconded civil servants," she said.
Nam added that the extended operating period should be devoted entirely to uncovering the truth. "We must make it absolutely clear why the state's disaster prevention and response systems failed to function, and who bears what responsibility in that process," she said.
The meeting also covered the status of ongoing investigations related to the disaster and measures to support victims.
"There is still a long road ahead before we can complete the work of establishing the truth and holding those responsible accountable," Nam said. "The special committee will continue to monitor the commission's investigative activities and will fulfill its responsibilities to the end — from securing budget and personnel support to guaranteeing victims' rights and reforming the system to prevent a recurrence."
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