South Korea: Parliament starts looking into the Jeju Air disaster

South Korea: Seoul A special parliamentary committee was established by the South Korean National Assembly on Monday to look into the precise cause of the Jeju Air jet disaster that killed 179 people last year.

When the Bangkok-based Jeju Air plane attempted an emergency belly landing at Muan International Airport, around 290 kilometers south of Seoul, on December 29 of last year, it collided with a concrete mound and overshot the runway, causing it to burst into flames after a bird hit.

According to Yonhap news agency, the 18-member committee, which will convene for at least 40 days, intends to thoroughly investigate potential causes of the incident, such as the bird hit, the mound the aircraft collided with, and any aircraft flaws.

It will also look into any efforts at cover-up during the government’s accident inquiry.

The committee was established after the government’s decision earlier this month to postpone announcing the preliminary findings of its inquiry.

Family members of the tragedy’s victims have expressed disapproval of the official inquiry, questioning its integrity and openness and demanding an independent investigation.

In protest of the government’s interim investigation into the disaster, a group of victims’ relatives shaved their heads earlier this month, casting doubt on the probe’s validity and demanding an independent inquiry.

To reveal the preliminary findings of the deadly disaster that occurred at Muan International Airport on December 29 of last year and claimed 179 lives, an investigating committee under the transport ministry is set to begin a two-day hearing on Thursday.

Outside the presidential office complex in downtown Seoul, a group representing the relatives of the victims and other civic organizations organized the demonstration, claiming the committee lacked transparency.

Kim Yoo-jin, the leader of the bereaved family organization, said, “The transport ministry has packaged the disaster as being handled well and blocked all information through the ‘self-investigation’ and ‘black-out investigation’ with the committee.”

The group said that the inquiry cannot be trusted since the committee is under the transport ministry, which is in control of aviation policy, and they requested for the hearing to be postponed and for the investigation to be conducted by an independent body under the prime minister.

Five protesters shaved their heads, and some of them subsequently got into altercations with police when they tried to visit President Lee Jae Myung inside the presidential office.