Police to track down authors of posts insulting bereaved families

[Anchor]

The families of the victims are experiencing a more difficult time than ever since the passenger plane disaster, and they are suffering even greater pain due to secondary harm.

Malicious posts insulting the bereaved families continue to appear online.

The investigative authorities have announced a strict response policy.

Oh Jung-hyun reports.

[Report]

This is a post that appeared on an online community on the day of the disaster.

It mocks the bereaved families by mentioning the accident compensation, saying, "The families hit the jackpot."

The families are once again devastated by such insulting posts.

[Park Han-shin/Representative of the Bereaved Families Association: "I sincerely ask that you stop the malicious expressions. Please also immediately cease the baseless slander against the remaining family members."]

Since the disaster, the police have deleted over 120 malicious posts online.

The police are applying for seizure warrants for four particularly severe cases and are tracking down the authors.

Acting President Choi Sang-mok has ordered strict measures against defamation of the victims and their families.

[Choi Sang-mok/Acting President: "We will take strict legal action against matters that defame the victims and their families through monitoring."]

The media's sensational reporting on compensation amounts, such as 'a minimum expected compensation of at least 250 million won per person and a maximum compensation limit of 300 million won,' is also pointed out as a factor that incites secondary harm to the bereaved families.

The 'Disaster Reporting Guidelines' stipulate that "reporting on insurance payouts and similar matters should be restrained and not overly detailed."

[Baek Jong-woo/Professor of Psychiatry at Kyung Hee University: "The public disclosure of such (compensation) processes does not help society at all, which is why, during the 9/11 attacks, there was an implicit agreement not to report on it at all."]

The police have stated that they will respond strictly with a zero-tolerance policy against posts that mock or belittle the victims and their families.

This is KBS News, Oh Jung-hyun.