S Korea to ask Japan, China to watch for ferry bodies

Under a very tragic circumstance, this sad event allows these three parties to put aside their differences to help recover the dead

I hope the bodies can be found to help bring closure to the families.

What a terrible tragedy.

How about NKorea? Japan can cooperate in full hospitality. I dunno about China. China seems busy with its airplane matters and selfish affairs.

This link has a picture of Abe paying respect to the ferry victims thank very much Abe ! May South Korea and Japan have a better relationship ! http://media.daum.net/photo/4984/#20140429033806221

Unfortunately Japan's offer to help right after the disaster was refused or ignored. Japan has historically a good ship-disaster rescue record , plus state-of-art technology. Certainly the deeply humanitarian instinct within Japanese consciousness, will do nothing ther than with dignity care for those bodies that they find. May they rest in peace.

Absolutely awful tragedy. Deepest sympathies to the parent who lost their children just at the point they were becoming adults with their lives and future potential lost forever. They must be unconsolable.

I really hope they find some of the them alive. This has got to be one of the worst ways to die.

There's video of the captain abandoning ship, utterly disgraceful. The captain is supposed to be one of the last to leave.

May the souls of the unfortunate victims rest in peace.

Too bad they were not so quick to ask for help finding live bodies.

titaniumdioxide: "China seems busy with its airplane matters and selfish affairs."

I don't think this is the kind of thread for you to come on and air your dirty laundry in regards to your right-wing views about neighbouring countries. This is a thread showing that South Korea is reaching out and asking neighbours to cooperate, and hopefully it is the silver lining on this tragedy and the countries can work together. It's awful that tragedy is what is needed to bring people closer together, or so it seems, but that's often how it works -- and SK was one of the highest donators to Japan after the 3/11 tragedies.

injapan,

Oh good day! Sorry to loose your hopes on me! :-P but I'm no right winger! I was just suggesting that South Korea might also want to consider asking the nearest country to them which the dead bodies might have travelled, which is North Korea. It's a good thing that they'll ask Japan to cooperate this time which was ignored or refused to help during the time where the ship passengers might still be alive. I am only speaking about reality not right-wing/nationalism speculations that China might ignore since they've got a lot of personal business going on. Don't get too grumpy on me Mr. injapan. Cheers!

titaniumdioxide: "h good day! Sorry to loose your hopes on me!"

It's spelled "lose", not "loose" -- I wasn't loosing any arrows or anything.

" I was just suggesting that South Korea might also want to consider asking the nearest country to them which the dead bodies might have travelled, which is North Korea."

You did that, but then you undermined your own comments with your statement about China ("...with its airplane matters and selfish affairs").

"It's a good thing that they'll ask Japan to cooperate this time which was ignored or refused to help during the time where the ship passengers might still be alive."

It's pretty clear the captain and crew were incompetent, to say the least. As for the government refusing help by other governments, Japan is no stranger for that -- in fact, they still refuse a lot of foreign offers to inspect/help with Fukushima, let alone waiting for ages for help from the US and others after the initial disaster. In that case it was to cover up the obvious neglect until it was far too late. In the case of the ship in SK, while the government itself is not to blame for the sinking, they no doubt wanted to keep it as in-house as possible. Not a good thing, but not at all limited to SK, as I've pointed out.

In any case, THIS is a chance to reach out, not an opportunity to take digs at China and South Korea. As to NK, well, given that only the day before yesterday they called the President a 'prostitute', it's not all that surprising they might not extend the reach out to NK.

It's spelled "lose", not "loose" -- I wasn't loosing any arrows or anything.

I know injapan. Samsung galaxy phone's auto word input is ridiculously lousy. I won't be buying some next time. Learned my lesson.

You did that, but then you undermined your own comments with your statement about China ("...with its airplane matters and selfish affairs").

And what's wrong with that? I said "I dunno about China", "China seems", right? It's a possibility that China will ignore, but I wasn't attacking China. LOL

As for the government refusing help by other governments, Japan is no stranger for that -- in fact, they still refuse a lot of foreign offers to inspect/help with Fukushima, let alone waiting for ages for help from the US and others after the initial disaster. In that case it was to cover up the obvious neglect until it was far too late. In the case of the ship in SK, while the government itself is not to blame for the sinking, they no doubt wanted to keep it as in-house as possible. Not a good thing, but not at all limited to SK, as I've pointed out.

Typical of you buddy! Always, "SAME WITH JAPAN, so spare us".

In any case, THIS is a chance to reach out, not an opportunity to take digs at China and South Korea.

It is! We need to deal something about your misinterpretations some other time. Let's do hope China responds something good, ok?

NK, well, given that only the day before yesterday they called the President a 'prostitute', it's not all that surprising they might not extend the reach out to NK.

Do you believe South Korea as a mature nation? Then, they should have asked North Korea with humility and ignored the childish remark.

I would think that most of the bodies are still in the ship. It is almost impossible for divers to get into all the various cabins and spaces with zero visibility. Once they lift the ship, they will find more... I hope it does not take too long.

I hate this incompetent government SK has. She is very poor at leading a country that needs a very strong leader with quick decisions and humility. All she has shown so far is remarkable ability to pinning the blame on someone else. The more I see her, the more sorry I feel for SK.

smithinjapanAPR. 29, 2014 - 12:48PM JST titaniumdioxide: "In any case, THIS is a chance to reach out, not an opportunity to take digs at China and South Korea. As to NK, well, given that only the day before yesterday they called the President a 'prostitute', it's not all that surprising they might not extend the reach out to NK..

Why would you let him troll you further? He is the opportunist that would divulge slightly from the topic and badmouth the countries he hate with slight chance presented. Says that he's not the right-winger but says everything right-wing loves to read. Doesn't also seem to know SK and NK never had good relations, not to mention NK is still stuck in 1950's therefore it's impossible to ask for help yet loves to talk out of his rear so much.

Please leave politics out of this tragic event! Please think about the children and adults that died or are missing. Think about their grieving families and what we can do to help. The Republic of Korea has a first rate Navy and I respect them. To honor the dead, missing and their families please restrain from the usual comments.

Very well said Yuri! Respect.

@titaniumdioxide

"It's a good thing that they'll ask Japan to cooperate this time which was ignored or refused to help during the time where the ship passengers might still be alive."

Dealing with a ship capsize is a different kind of disaster than an earthquake, tsunami, flooding etc. It requires extremely quick and well-coordinated actions during a very limited timeframe. Bringing in foreigners midway through with whom the hosts have no previous joint training experience with can be counterproductive and very risky.

If the Koreans need help salvaging the ship, then fine. But not in the case you're talking about. Anyway, if Japan has such wonderfully advanced underwater assets, as you say, how come they're not being used to locate the Malaysian airliner?

If the Koreans need help salvaging the ship, then fine. But not in the case you're talking about. Anyway, if Japan has such wonderfully advanced underwater assets, as you say, how come they're not being used to locate the Malaysian airliner?

Totally a different technology or facility. No nation has not succeeded to locate where the airplane sunk.

YuriOtaniApr. 29, 2014 - 03:17PM JST Please leave politics out of this tragic event!

Of course you are right. But the article suggests that you should be telling this to the South Korean people.

The S. Korean Government had refused Japanese Government offers for to send search and rescue team when Ferry was sinking. Now Government is asking for to look out body drifting in the sea. There can be found a few passengers alive if they accepted Japanese Government offers to send search and rescue team when beginning of accident. I'm really sorry for family of victims and victims.

As a parent...damn. Just damn.

Anyway, if Japan has such wonderfully advanced underwater assets, as you say, how come they're not being used to locate the Malaysian airliner?

But they were. Check out today's photo. And despite using the same technologies of other advanced navies, nobody has found the plane.

But we are talking about completely different technologies and purposes here. Or at least I am. You do realise looking for a presumably downed plane, over a huge area, that might not even be there, is not the same as rescue/salvage of a ferry that is marked by 2 large buoys, surrounded by boats, and everybody with access to the internet, newspaper, radio or being close enough to see, knows exactly the location, are 2 entirely different things?

"But they were. Check out today's photo."

Not they weren't. They were trying to spot debris from a US-designed aircraft, the Orion. The robotic vehicle sent underwater was designed and built in the US by a US company, and is being operated by the Australians.

But as I pointed out above, this isn't an earthquake, with an extended operational timeframe. It required a quick response by highly coordinated teams. A Japanese crew would be useless. Although the US military is stationed there and conducts joint training with the Koreans on a regular basis, so they might have been called for.

ok

Not they weren't. They were trying to spot debris from a US-designed aircraft, the Orion. The robotic vehicle sent underwater was designed and built in the US by a US company, and is being operated by the Australians.

Regardless of who made the aircraft, it's still among the best in the world. Are you claiming it's somehow inferior if the Japanese operate it?

As for the robotic vehicle, why bring it up if the Japanese were not using it?

The fact remains that your comparison of the air search and a marine rescue is illogical.

You may be correct in assuming that the Japanese could not assist with the ferry given the short time frame, but your shaky grasp of technology, poor reasoning and pathological Japan bashing does not do you any favours.