Will the captain who caused the "Sewol Ferry Sinking" be sentenced to death?

(Baonghean.vn) - On Monday, October 27, the trial of those involved in the Sewol ferry sinking continued. The prosecution requested the court to sentence the captain of the ferry that caused the April ferry sinking in South Korea, which killed more than 300 students.

Captain Lee Joon Suk appears at the Gwangju court on June 24, 2014. Photo: AFP

The prosecution said the death penalty was appropriate for the 69-year-old defendant. The prosecution argued that the defendant bore “the primary and heaviest responsibility for leaving the ferry without making any effort to rescue the passengers on board.” The prosecution also said, “During the investigation, Mr. Lee Joo Suk tried to justify his actions and lied. Defendant Lee Joo Suk did not show remorse for his actions.”

Regarding the responsibility of the other three key members of the ferry, the prosecutor said that these people should be sentenced to life in prison. The other 11 members could face sentences ranging from 15 to 30 years in prison. At the trial, Captain Lee felt he “deserved” the death sentence because he abandoned the lives of passengers to save his own. Lee Joon Suk declared, “I sincerely ask for forgiveness from the victims and their families and I will pray for them until my life ends… I think I deserve the death sentence, but I never intended to sacrifice the lives of passengers to save my own life.”

Investigations have found the cause of the ferry sinking. That is due to the ferry's design being changed without permission, overloading the permitted load as well as the crew's control error. It is known that when the ferry capsized, the amount of goods on board was up to 6,845 tons.

The anger of the victims’ families has focused mainly on the ferry captain and crew members for their reaction when the ferry capsized. They were the first to board the rescue boats, leaving the hundreds of passengers still trapped in the boat to their fate. When the ferry sank, instead of being asked to move, passengers were told to stay where they were. It was too late when the water started rushing in and tragedy struck.

In early November, the court will have to give its verdict on the Sewol ferry sinking. Of the 476 people on board that day, 325 were students from Dawon High School, and only 75 survived. The incident has caused a wave of outrage in South Korea. Many people wonder if the defendants will receive appropriate punishment for their crimes and whether the death penalty will be applied when no one has been sentenced to death in this country since 1997.

Chu Thanh

According to Liberation October 27