Seoul Police Chief Admits Mistakes

A Halloween party in the South Korean capital of Seoul ended tragically as more than 150 people died in mass panic on Saturday night. Now the country’s national police chief has acknowledged major mistakes.

Police Chief Yoon Hee Keun said on Tuesday that before the accident, police had heard of a “large crowd” during Halloween celebrations in the Itaewon district, which is popular for its nightlife. However, this information has been processed “insufficiently”.

Authorities remained passive

At least 156, mostly young people, were killed and several others injured in the first Halloween celebrations in Itaewon since the start of the corona pandemic on Saturday night. About 100,000 people were out in the area. However, as the celebrations were not officially announced, the gathering was not systematically monitored by security experts – neither the police nor the local authorities took action.

There are actually strict rules for the safety management of crowds in South Korea. This means, among other things, that there are often more police officers than demonstrators at demonstrations.

Police say the police sent 137 officers to Itaewon by Halloween. However, according to media reports, 6,500 officials attended a demonstration on the other side of Seoul, in which only about 25,000 people took part.

South Korean president promised improvement

The Metropolitan Government of Seoul has a real-time crowd monitoring system that uses mobile data to predict the size of the crowd. However, according to media reports, this Saturday night was not in use.

South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, 61, said Tuesday that the country urgently needs to improve its crowd management system after disasters. “People’s safety is important whether there is an organizer or not,” he said at a cabinet meeting. (AFP/bab)