Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, visited Muan Airport on the night of the 29th, where the Jeju Air passenger plane accident occurred. He presided over an emergency supreme council meeting at the National Assembly that afternoon, then moved to the situation headquarters set up by the South Jeolla Provincial Party to assess the damage before heading to the airport.
Lee arrived at Muan Airport at approximately 8:50 p.m. that day and met with the bereaved families. When Lee asked, “Please tell me what you need,” one family member responded, “The identification process is too slow.” Lee took out a notebook and pen to write it down. He also comforted a grieving family member by holding their hand.
Subsequently, Lee held a meeting with interim family representative Park Han-shin, and then held a closed-door meeting at the site with Gwangju Mayor Kang Gi-jung, South Jeolla Governor Kim Young-rok, and Democratic Party lawmakers. Cho Seung-rae, chief spokesperson of the Democratic Party, met with reporters after the meeting, noting that lawmakers from South Jeolla and Gwangju had already begun activities to consult with and support the families of the victims.
The bereaved families at the airport are requesting the government to expedite the identification process. Currently, out of 179 deceased, the identities of 88 individuals have been confirmed. Spokesperson Cho said, “We will do our utmost to ensure that identifications are expedited.”
Cho also noted, “The formation of a community for the victims' families is crucial,” emphasizing that quick communication with the government and Jeju Air is necessary, adding, “It is said that some structure is already in place.” After meeting with the family representative, Lee tasked lawmakers Maeng Sung-kyu, Chairperson of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure, and Transport Committee, and Moon Jin-seok, opposition party secretary, with acting as bridges between the families and the government, Jeju Air, and Korea Airports Corporation.
Residents from Gwangju and South Jeolla were mainly on board the ill-fated aircraft, with more victims reportedly from Gwangju than from South Jeolla. During the meeting, Mayor Kang judged that legal support for the families was necessary, and it was agreed that the Gwangju and South Jeolla Bar Association would provide legal assistance to the victims. Spokesperson Cho explained, “From the initial stage of forming the victims' family group, it is necessary to obtain legal advice to quickly and clearly settle issues with Jeju Air.”
On the morning of the 30th, Gwangju Metropolitan City will set up a joint incense altar at the May 18 Democracy Square, and South Jeolla Province will do so at the Muan General Sports Park. The Democratic Party plans to hold a supreme council meeting on-site in the morning and then move to the joint altar, where party leaders are expected to pay their respects.
At approximately 10:08 a.m. that day, Lee posted on Facebook with the statement, “Shoot towards tomorrow! - Butch & Sundance. Shoot towards the people! Yoon & Han.” The statement references the 1969 film about Butch and Sundance, who led a bank robbery gang in the American West and fled to Bolivia. It is speculated that the post is related to a prosecution investigation result, which found that President Yoon had instructed frontline commanders during martial law to “break down the (parliament's) door and drag them out by shooting if necessary.”
However, Lee quickly deleted the post. It seems the backlash was due to the inappropriateness of the post considering the passenger plane accident at Muan Airport about an hour prior. Subsequently, Lee wrote a post about the accident, saying, “Every second counts in this urgent crisis,” and pledged that both the National Assembly and the Democratic Party would provide all possible support for accident recovery. Spokesperson Cho told reporters, “It's a matter of time difference between the accident occurrence and the post,” adding that “it's excessive to interpret it with malice.”