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Amid the criticism that the situation would have been different if the site had been properly controlled, Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min said to the effect that it was not a matter of police manpower assignment today as it did yesterday (30th).
Minister Lee expressed regret for his remarks late in the afternoon as his criticism grew stronger.
Reporter Yoo Deok-gi reports.
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[Lee Sang-min / Minister of Public Administration and Security (Yesterday): Compared to before, there was not a large crowd gathered to be particularly concerned...
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Unlike usual, it was not a problem that could be solved by pre-arranging police or firefighting personnel…
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The Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min explained the remarks made in the briefing regarding the Itaewon crushing disaster yesterday.
It was after he had paid his condolences to the joint incense burner in Seoul Plaza.
[Lee Sang-min/Minister of Public Administration and Security (Yesterday): This is to the point that we should not make hasty predictions, speculations, or seditious political claims until the exact cause of the accident is revealed by the police.]
And once again, this disaster was caused by the shortage of police and firefighters. I continued to say no.
[Lee Sang-min/Minister of Public Administration and Security (Yesterday): Was it an accident caused by a lack of police force, or is there something that we need to correct at a rally or any meeting fundamentally?]
Minister Lee reiterated his position that there was no problem with the deployment of the police force, adding, "The number of citizens gathered for Halloween has increased by about 30% compared to the previous year, and the number of police officers has increased by 40%."
As the minister in charge of taking responsibility for public safety measures, criticism followed yesterday for inappropriate remarks.
Minister Lee Sang-min then issued a press release in the afternoon, saying, "I am sorry for making remarks that may be of concern to the public."
(Video coverage: Oh Young-chun, video editing: Jeong Seong-hoon, CG: Jang Seong-beom)