In the second trial of the lawsuit filed by the bereaved families of the Sewol ferry disaster against the state, the second trial was recognized, and the amount of alimony increased than the amount of compensation recognized by the first trial.
On the 12th, the 4th Civil Division of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judge Lee Gwang-man, Kim Seon-a, Cheon Ji-seong) ruled in favor of some of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit for damages filed by 228 bereaved families of the Sewol ferry disaster, including Jeon Myung-seon, director of the 4/16 Democratic Citizenship Education Center, against the state and Chonghaejin Shipping.
In addition to the compensation awarded in the first trial, the court ruled that the state should pay alimony of 5 million won per person to the victim's biological parents and 1 to 3 million won to other family members.
The judge said, "It is acknowledged that the Defense Security Command of the Republic of Korea, regardless of its duties, violated the plaintiffs' freedom of privacy by inspecting and reporting the personal information and political orientation of the bereaved family members of the Sewol ferry."
355 bereaved families of 118 Sewol ferry victims (116 Danwon high school students, 2 ordinary people) were the cause of the Sewol ferry disaster in September 2015 as the government neglected management such as safety checks. I couldn't do it, so I filed a lawsuit claiming that I increased the damage.
The bereaved families also filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming that Cheonghaejin Shipping, the shipowner, overextended and remodeled the Sewol ferry's hull, and the damage increased due to negligence in operation and failure to properly respond to the initial response.
The first trial recognized the responsibility of the government and acknowledged the responsibility of Cheonghaejin Shipping, considering that former Mokpo Coast Guard 123 suit Kim Gyeong-il was sentenced to three years in prison for manslaughter on the job.
In addition, a total of 72.3 billion won, including 200 million won per victim, 80 million won for spouses, 40 million won each for biological parents, and 5 million to 20 million won each for children, siblings, and grandparents, will be jointly paid by the state and Cheonghaejin Shipping. set it to
Among the bereaved families, 228 appealed against the verdict of the first trial.
In the appeal trial, additional compensation was requested for secondary harm, such as illegal inspections by the Defense Security Command.
The bereaved family held a press conference immediately after the sentence, saying, "It is very regrettable, but we welcome the part where the court acknowledged (the state's secondary harm)."
Kim Jong-ki, chairman of the 4/16 Sewol Ferry Disaster Families Council steering committee, said, "The state perpetrated all sorts of oppression by driving the bereaved families and citizens who shouted 'truth-finding and safe society' into pro-North Korea leftists." It is an acknowledgment once again that it was illegal."
"The state must sincerely apologize for state violence, find out the truth, punish those responsible, and come up with measures to prevent recurrence," he said. It will be a safe society."
(Photo = Yonhap News)