Hong Kongers find Itaewon tragedy reminiscent of past, question lack of crowd control in Seoul

Women talk at West Kowloon Cultural District near Victoria Harbour during sunset in Hong Kong, Oct. 28. Reuters-Yonhap

By Park Ji-won

HONG KONG ― Some claim the Saturday crowd crush in Itaewon, which killed at least 154 people as of Monday, was like a natural disaster that no one could have prevented. However, many Hong Kongers who learned lessons from a similar incident in Lan Kwai Fong in 1993 think it was the government's job to control the crowds to prevent such a tragedy from happening.

"As a Hong Kong government official, what I thought first when I saw what happened in Itaewon was why the government did not control the crowd," an official working for a Hong Kong government administration said on condition of anonymity.

"That is what the government would do in Hong Kong during any events such as Christmas, Lunar New Year, fireworks, national holidays and of course Halloween. It is part of their responsibility preventing such incidents from happening."

In Hong Kong, the police can control crowds based on the Public Order Ordinance for every event that is expected to gather crowds.

According to the ordinance, the police can use their power over meetings, processions and gatherings in the name of public safety by preventing the holding of, stopping, dispersing or varying the place or route of any public gathering.

This Halloween was no exception. The government announced in a press release, "Police will implement special traffic arrangements at Lan Kwai Fong, Central from Oct. 30 to Nov. 1 to facilitate the public celebrating Halloween."

It also announced road closures and possible additional road closures depending on the crowd situation while also announcing the suspension of parking spaces.

"There are fences here and there and police are herding people in one direction. Basically, I can go upwards and cannot go back where I just left," a person who went to the police-controlled district said.

The law was reportedly made after a stampede in Lan Kwai Fong in 1993.

Early on Jan. 1, 1993, about 20,000 people were crammed in the roads for the New Year's countdown in the Lan Kwai Fong district where there are a lot of bars and clubs.

"Witnesses said most people were initially well-behaved, but crowds started to sway alarmingly minutes after midnight … Witnesses said the pressure of the crowd coming down the hill was so overwhelming that people piled on those who had fallen, and more people fell on top of them," a South China Morning Post report reads.

"Hong Kong people learned a lot from the Lan Kwai Fong stampede incident that occurred in the countdown to the New Year in 1993, which killed 20 and made crowd control guidelines," a researcher surnamed Wong in a university in Hong Kong said.

According to press releases and reports, even before the 2019-20 protests in Hong Kong, the Hong Kong government has been announcing crowd control measures for some events such as National Day Fireworks and Christmas holidays.

The Itaewon tragedy made headlines for many Hong Kong local news outlets which compared it with what happened in Hong Kong in 1993.

Under the headline, "Itaewon tragedy reminiscent of the 1993 Lan Kwai Fong stampede that killed 20," the Standard, a local English media outlet, wrote, "The tragedy is reminiscent of a tragedy that occurred in Lan Kwai Fong in Hong Kong on January 1, 1993, when thousands of local and foreign partygoers stampeded through a packed bar and restaurant district in central Hong Kong."

Korean investigators talk to a restaurant owner as he tries to put a candle and food to mourn at the scene of a deadly accident following Saturday night's Halloween festivities in Seoul, Monday. A crowd surge killed more than 150 people during Halloween festivities in Seoul over the weekend in the country's worst disaster in years. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

Loopholes in Korean law

The Korean government introduced its own safety manual in 2006 following a stampede the previous year at a stadium during a concert in Sangju, North Gyeongsang Province, killed 11 people and left 162 injured. The manual contains guidelines such as audience capacity by venue size, the number of ways out and emergency contingencies while making organizers cooperate closely with police and firefighters in advance and during the event.

However, as the festivities in Itaewon didn't have a single organizer, it may be hard to apply the guidelines.

Lee Woong-hyuk, a professor of police science at Konkuk University, told YTN on Sunday that insufficient crowd control was the biggest cause behind the incident.

He stressed that an inspection of the area should have been conducted in advance, adding that any of the concerned parties, which could be the central government, local government, Itaewon shop owners or police, should have done their job for the safety of the public before this tragedy killed so many people.

Hong Kongers' condolences to victims

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee offered condolences in a statement on Facebook. "I express profound sorrow over the passing of the victims, extend my deepest condolences to their families and wish for a speedy recovery to all those who were injured. The government will pay close attention to the incident. I have asked Security Bureau to monitor its development and stand ready to render assistance to any Hong Kong residents that may need assistance."

No victims from Hong Kong have been reported, according to the government.

There are a lot of tweets offering condolences to victims of the tragedy.

"This is just sad. Hope the injured people will recover soon. It reminded me of Hong Kong 1993 stampede in Lan Kwai Fong," Henri "JiaJia" Lam wrote on Twitter.

"Condolences to grieving families in Seoul, & best wishes to those injured a speedy recovery! Itaewon tragedy is reminiscent of the 1993 Lan Kwai Fong stampede that killed 20. Hkgers partying in LKF for Halloween be mindful of steps & slopes," Josephine Bau wrote on Twitter.