Ferry safety and South Korea

By Bernard Rowan

The tragedy that unfolded last week near Jindo continues to dominate the media and news in many nations. I have written a poem to say how I feel to conclude this column.

However, as "Mugunghwa" intimates, we must look forward. I cannot but think the innocent lives lost call us to action.

If we scan the Internet, we see there is readily available literature about ferry travel, ferry safety, and the challenges for this industry in our world.

Too many accidents, injuries, and deaths occur each year. The problem disproportionately affects developing nations, but it remains a concern in advanced nations as well.

The problem pales by comparison with automobile and other forms of travel safety. However, don't neglect ferry safety! The Worldwide Ferry Safety Association (http://www.ferrysafety.org/news.htm) provides useful information on the stakes of ferry travel today.

We can say with virtual certainty the crew of the Sewol inadequately handled the disaster and needed crisis training. Also, the provision of safety equipment and passenger safety training were seriously lacking.

However, don't scapegoat yourselves. It's been going on for too long and helps nothing. Calling the captain a murderer doesn't fix the problem. He has almost certainly violated laws and the ethics of captains. It's a bitter pill to learn a 2010 video on the safety of Korean ferries featuring him.

The suicide of Danwon High School's vice principal does nothing. Simply calling in heads of the military and civilian government agencies doesn't either. We need to use best practice design for a system that would prevent more ferry accidents and respond to them better.

We should be wary of seeking instant expiation of our outrage, sadness, and frustration in obvious ways. They may reinforce national "han" but will not do justice to reality.

Common sense often loses out at the margins of human behavior. I would like to know if the Sewol was overcrowded or carrying excess cargo, in particular for the travel conditions that existed when the accident occurred. We shouldn't put children at risk for 100 million won here or there. We shouldn't put anyone at risk.

Regulation of companies engaged in the transport of human beings and cargo must improve. We should inspect carefully the safety protocols and managing practices of ferry operators.

Korea's strength as a society did not disappear. Many children and innocent civilians showed faith and respect in their last hour. Many calmly sought a solution or turned to elders to ask for help. We might condemn such actions as "saintly" or foolish. That's idiocy. Don't lose sight of basic humanity, or we become what we hate.

South Koreans are taking the sinking to heart to such an extent that it creates a national trauma, a national crisis, and a moment of looking inward.

It is analogous to the Malaysian plane disaster of last month. Many Chinese and other families of victims cannot let go. The search for Malaysian Air 370 continues, still unsuccessfully. It has cost hundreds of millions of dollars. South Korea must transcend obsession with thanatos, with death, about the Sewol.

South Korea should join with the International Maritime Organization (www.imo.org) and other international organizations such as Interferry (www.interferry.com) to explore better models for ferry design.

The world needs a technology of ferry transport for the 21st century. It must include ways to standardize and diffuse commercially available models to improve the stock of serviceable craft throughout the developing world. It needs improved training and safety systems for crews and passengers.

South Korea should invigorate national and local emergency response protocols and policies. She should regulate private concerns and enforce controls, with fines and other penalties for violations. Honor the dead, compensate the families, find out and improve public and private contexts.

We can make the world safer for ferry travel, and South Korea should invest in improving the design and industry of world ferry transport. These acts replace death with love in living.

Mugunghwa:

You have gone back

By way of the sea;

Precious flowers,

May your fears and sadness

Verging us to madness

Be reconciled to the Love we have for thee;

Dear ones,

You are in our hearts and minds

And so you will remain

After the tears are gone

As time passes and beyond;

We shall see you

In the blooms of Spring

Each time we hear a laugh or cry

Of the young and old

Who recall your fateful journey;

Dear flowers of Korea

Even more, may we remember you

In the ways we live

Now and always;

We should learn from this

We will learn not to do this

We must learn to save life.

Bernard Rowan is assistant provost for curriculum and assessment, professor of political science and faculty athletics representative at Chicago State University, where he has served for 20 years. He can be reached at browan10@yahoo.com.