After additional remains and belongings of victims were recently found at the scene of the Jeju Air passenger plane disaster at Muan International Airport on Dec. 29, 2024, bereaved families said the initial recovery effort was poor and demanded punishment of those responsible.
The Dec. 29 Muan Airport Jeju Air passenger plane disaster bereaved families council held a press conference on the 9th in front of the fountain at Cheong Wa Dae in Jongno-gu, Seoul, and urged, "The government must kneel before the bereaved families and thoroughly uncover the truth about the failure to handle the disaster." They added, "Strictly discipline the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport officials who led the disaster response and the sloppy investigation."
The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT), the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board, and the South Jeolla Provincial Police Agency's forensic unit have been re-examining the wreckage since the 26th of last month. In the process, one 25-centimeter-long piece of a victim's remains was found. Eight additional remains, presumed to belong to victims, were also found and are being analyzed by the National Forensic Service.
Kim Yu-jin, co-representative of the bereaved families council, said, "I received the National Forensic Service identification report last Thursday informing me that the first remains were my father's," and added, "We have repeatedly demanded a full re-examination of the debris left in the open areas of the airport, but Jeju Air, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT), the airport corporation, and the police only shifted responsibility to one another."
After the press conference, the bereaved families delivered to Cheong Wa Dae, through public conflict coordination secretary Joo Jin-woo, a letter of protest calling for an apology for leaving victims' remains unattended and for strict punishment of those responsible.
Kim Yun-duk, Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, held a briefing at the Government Sejong Complex that day and said, regarding the belated recovery of victims' remains and belongings, "On behalf of the government, I bow my head in deep apology."