I woke up on the morning of October 29, tired from a long week. I had a headache, I was sweating, and I honestly wished I could have fallen back asleep. I rolled over to check my phone, scrolling through notifications and news alerts. Among the first few banners was a headline that awoke me from my dreary limbo: “Hundreds killed in Itaewon incident.”
A total of 158 souls were crushed to death on a narrow alley down World Food Street in Itaewon, Seoul. Amid the chaos of a Halloween party in a district known for its high percentage of expat workers from the US, authorities and law enforcement struggled to effectively evacuate and tend to the injured. According to the Washington Post, the first responders only started the crisis aversion process 26 minutes after the first reported crush. 11 emergency calls were made to police and fire department services during this time, with several more as early as four hours before the crush.
Beyond the inefficient response team, the logistical considerations were significantly underlooked. Historically, crowd management techniques have been very effective for Halloween parties of years gone by, with police officers stationed at several areas to coordinate a logical distribution of civilians. Bizarrely, no such plan was implemented for this year, most likely due to the fact that this was the first year with somewhat reduced COVID-19 mandates. The ‘pandemic fatigue,’ as termed by Lee Health, may have led to more lackadaisical measures from law enforcement. While officers were stationed on watch for drug use and sexual abuse, to expect the personnel present to be able to control massive crowds is ludicrous.
With the questionable governance by the police in this situation, one wonders what the implications are for President Yoon Seok-yeol’s administration. Approval ratings have fallen a further 1.5 percentage points to 34.2% following the incident, and more importantly, disapproval ratings have risen to 62.4%. The Yoon administration has already been under substantial scrutiny following a multitude of incidents, including a ‘hot mic’ moment caught during his visit to New York. The Korean president was allegedly caught directing vulgar remarks to President Biden, a claim that Yoon vehemently denied, defending that he was referring to the National Assembly instead. His oftentimes passive, even nonchalant demeanor contrasts his occasionally brash actions, many of which may be due to his relative inexperience in the political realm.
Considering these trends in public approval, many have likened the Itaewon incident to that of the Sewol ferry incident in 2014, where 304 passengers were killed. Many lambasted the lack of leadership demonstrated by then-President Park Geun-hye, who apparently did not even leave her bedroom during the entirety of the tragedy. Her mishandling of the incident remained in the spotlight amid Park’s impeachment in March 2017.
One cannot help but put Yoon Seok-yeol in the same category; although not to the extent of considering impeachment, Yoon’s poor handling of an already politically divided nation has only been underscored by the Itaewon tragedy. I find it difficult not to blame the administration for failing to prevent what was seemingly a rather simple situation from ever arising. However, I understand the predicament that the Korean president faces. The level of political polarity within the nation at the moment is on a razor’s edge; from Instagram feeds to approval ratings and a barrage of protests, the backlash that the Yoon administration has received is honestly concerning in my opinion. Recent events have left me wondering if this government can succeed. If those being represented are expressing such a level of disdain, one cannot help but feel slightly helpless.
I sincerely hope that the President and his office can ratify this situation and, crucially, improve upon it. Nevertheless, there is nothing we can do to reverse the loss of 158 lives, to spare the pain of their families as they mourn, or to appease civilians who live in fear of history repeating itself. All we can do is face the consequences of what we have done, on behalf of those we lost on a Halloween more terrifying than it ever should have been.