The families of victims from the Dec. 29 Jeju Air passenger plane disaster last year demanded a full search and recovery for remains left unattended at the crash site.
The Dec. 29 Muan Airport Jeju Air passenger plane disaster families' council said in a statement on the 20th, "We urge a follow-up search to identify responsibility for leaving remains unattended at the disaster site and to carry out a large-scale recovery of the remains."
The families said, "During the process to improve storage of Dec. 29 passenger plane disaster debris that began on the 12th of last month, 69 items presumed to be victims' remains were recovered," adding, "DNA analysis conducted so far has confirmed 16 items as victims' remains, of which 13 individuals have been identified, and we are anxiously awaiting the results of dozens of other analyses."
They continued, "This identification is a clear and sorrowful basis for conducting a large-scale follow-up search that includes areas outside the airport fence," and argued, "The government must mobilize all administrative capacity of the relevant ministries to recover the remains and determine responsibility."
The families said, "Although the Aviation and Railway Accident Investigation Board (ARAIB), which was transferred to the Office for Government Policy Coordination, has newly formed its commissioners, the investigators who have actually conducted the probe were transferred as-is without replacement," adding, "We cannot accept a transfer of the ARAIB that only changes the outer garment. All ARAIB investigators must also be replaced."
They added, "We will watch to the end how the government sincerely apologizes for this situation and carries out substantive follow-up measures," and "All processes going forward will also be directly observed by the bereaved families and the legal support team."