News Digest

S. Korea court to rule on possible death penalty for Sewol ferry captain

A South Korean court is set to rule on whether the captain of a ferry that capsized killing more than 300 people, most of them children on a school trip, should be put to death for culpable homicide. A three-judge panel in the southern city of Gwangju will hand down verdicts and sentencing on Tuesday in the trial of captain Lee Joon-seok, 68, as well as 14 crew members, who face jail terms if convicted. The overloaded Sewol capsized on April 16 while making a turn during a routine voyage to the holiday island of Jeju. The crew were among the first people to be rescued from the ship, while the mostly teenage passengers waited in their cabins.

In my opinion, the death penalty which prosecutors demanded is too much for the captain’s charge. But the public opinion was too negative and the situation from the gallery in the courtroom wasn’t good.

Cheong Yeong-seok, a law professor at Korea Maritime and Ocean University

The public outcry provoked by the tragedy led to concerns over whether the crew would be able to get a fair trial, with private sector lawyers largely shunning the defendants. Only one crew member was represented by a private lawyer. Death sentences are rare in South Korea, which has not carried out an execution in more than 15 years. The crew on trial have said they thought it was the coastguard’s job to evacuate passengers. Video footage of their escape triggered outrage, especially after survivors testified that crew repeatedly told passengers to stay put.

I think it has been a fair trial given the defendants and their lawyers have made enough arguments in favour of them, despite public criticism.

Kim Hyun, maritime lawyer