South Korean President Park Geun-Hye on Thursday faced the angry parents of hundreds of children missing in a ferry disaster, holding an impromptu and at times very tense meeting in an island gymnasium.
Park's security detail looked decidedly nervous as emotions boiled over, with distraught parents screaming at the president and other officials standing with her on a stage in the auditorium in Jindo island.
"What are you doing when people are dying! Time is running out!" one woman shouted as Park tried to speak.
Clearly moved by the despair of the relatives, Park found herself in an unusually vulnerable position for any head of state, engaging in a lengthy question and answer session with a volatile crowd.
Much of the anger was focused on the head of the South Korean coastguard, Kim Suk-Kyoon, with relatives insisting not enough was being done to find survivors more than 30 hours after the ferry sank on Wednesday morning.
When Kim countered that there were 550 divers involved in the search effort, he was immediately drowned out by jeering and booing, with one furious parent shouting: "But none of them are actually in the water!"
Park tried to calm the mood down, and promised that no effort would be spared in the rescue and recovery process.
"You must be so worried, unable to sleep at all last night," she said. "Never lose hope and please wait for the news of rescue."
But some parents responded by shouting they were being kept out of the loop, and only being fed scraps of information.
"I think we should make more efforts to make sure that families know every single detail of what's going on," Park said, turning to the other officials and drawing applauses from the crowd.
"This is a matter of trust with the relatives. We will do our best to rescue the last single person," Park added.
Earlier, the president had taken a boat to the rescue site where she urged divers to press on, despite the exceedingly dangerous conditions, with strong currents and almost zero visibility.
"Time is running out. Please hurry," she told the members of one dive team. "If there are survivors, every minute and second is critical."
AFP
Thu Apr 17 2014
South Korean President Park Geun-hye, left, responds to crying mother and girl during a meeting with parents whose children are now missing in Ship Sewol at a gymnasium in Jindo, South Korea, Thursday, April 17, 2014 -(AP Photo/Yonhap, Do Kwang-hwa)
Tyra Kamaruzzaman kini isteri pereka fesyen, terima mas kahwin RM1,111
Menerusi perkongsian siaran langsung di Instagram, pasangan itu dinikahkan oleh bapa Tyra, Kamaruzzaman.
[TERKINI] Sambutan Hari Anggota Bomba Sedunia 2024
Perdana Menteri, Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim hadir ke Majlis Perhimpunan Sambutan Hari Anggota Bomba Sedunia 2024 di Ipoh.
Majlis perhimpunan sambutan Hari Anggota Bomba Sedunia 2024
4 Mei ialah tarikh keramat bagi semua anggota bomba di seluruh dunia dan pastinya, anggota bomba di Malaysia juga meraikan hari tersebut yang disambut pada setiap tahun di seluruh dunia.
Dengan Ipoh sebagai lokasi pilihan pada tahun ini, sambutan Hari Bomba Sedunia 2024 terus mengangkat 'Bomba Tonggak Penyelamat Negara' sebagai tema.
Dan untuk kita mendapatkan perkembangannya, langsung sahaja bersama wartawan Astro AWANI, Farhan Hakimi di Tambun.
Dengan Ipoh sebagai lokasi pilihan pada tahun ini, sambutan Hari Bomba Sedunia 2024 terus mengangkat 'Bomba Tonggak Penyelamat Negara' sebagai tema.
Dan untuk kita mendapatkan perkembangannya, langsung sahaja bersama wartawan Astro AWANI, Farhan Hakimi di Tambun.
Cuaca panas: Orang ramai tidak perlu risau, KKM sentiasa pantau keadaan
Orang ramai diminta tidak khuatir dengan cuaca panas yang melanda beberapa negeri ketika ini kerana situasi itu sentiasa dipantau rapat Kementerian Kesihatan (KKM).
Lima ulat parkir ditahan di Melaka
Ujian saringan air kencing mendapati dua lelaki dan seorang wanita yang ditahan itu positif dadah.
Barcelona tekad langsai hutang jumpa Girona
Barcelona akan menentang Girona dalam perlawanan 'derby' Catalan hujung minggu ini dengan misi membalas dendam awal musim ini.
Kemelut PKR Sabah: Tunggu Anwar umum Pengerusi MPN
Semua pihak diminta bersabar untuk menunggu keputusan daripada Presiden PKR Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim berhubung perkara itu.
Reformasi pembangunan TVET perlu dibuat secara holistik
Reformasi pembangunan perlu dibuat secara holistik membabitkan ekosistem Pendidikan TVET sedia ada di Malaysia, kata Presiden Yayasan Mahir Malaysia, Datuk P Sri Ganesh.
AWANI-RareTV: Kampung bunian di Switzerland
Penulis J.R.R Tolkien menjadikan Lauterbrunnen sebagai latar dan insipirasi kepada penghasilan kampung 'Rivendell'.
Hubungan Klopp-Salah kembali jernih
Klopp dan Salah bertelagah di tepi padang ketika Liverpool seri 2-2 dengan West Ham minggu lalu.