One of the things I've wanted to do is visit the Sewol Ferry memorial, commemorating the April 16, 2014 disaster in which a Korean ferry, the Sewol (officially, the MV Sewol), sank after being improperly loaded. But where is the official memorial?
While the vessel was sinking, PA announcements—to passengers who were mostly high-school students—told people not to go anywhere. Most of the students obeyed when they should have ignored the instructions and left the boat. There was also a false report, at the time, that all the passengers had been rescued. It later came out that the cowardly captain of the ferry was among the first to abandon ship; he did nothing to help the drowning kids. 304 people, out of 476 aboard, lost their lives. Of those, 250 were students from Danwon High School; 11 were teachers from the same school; 33 were general passengers; 10 were crew. On top of those 304 from the ship, 2 rescue divers and 5 emergency workers also lost their lives.
Various online references suggest that Sewol memorials, most only semi-permanent, sprung up all over South Korea (including in Gwanghwamun, Seoul), but so far, there is no large, permanent memorial. This article from 2022 suggests that "disputes and resistance" have impeded the completion of a Sewol memorial by Paengmok Harbor on the southwestern tip of the peninsula. Near Danwon High School (in Ansan, southeast of Incheon, not far from an inlet), however, there is a memorial exhibition hall. ChatGPT contributed this:
Yes — there is a permanent Sewol memorial, though it's not yet accessible in the way most visitors would expect.
- A National Maritime Safety Center building opened near Paengmok Harbor in Jindo County in late 2023. It includes a large sculpture commemorating the 304 tragedy victims, located about 500 m from Paengmok Port where families had gathered during the disaster Wikipedia+8Korea Joongang Daily+8Korea Joongang Daily+8.
- However, the broader vision—commonly called a “life‑safety memorial park” or preserving the actual hull—has not been completed. The construction has been delayed by funding issues and local opposition, and families are still campaigning for full realization of the project jben.kr.
- So while the building and sculpture exist, the full-size permanent memorial planned by the sea (with the ferry hull and park) remains unfinished.
So should I go to the exhibit near the high school and leave some flowers? Or should I visit Paengmok Harbor? Or both?
Even in its uncompleted state, the harbor memorial seems like the most meaningful option to me.
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