Saturday, April 26, 2014

South Korea's Prime Minister Resigns Over Ferry Sinking

Chung Hong won

South Korea's Prime Minister Chung Hung-won has resigned over the government's handling of a recent ferry disaster which left more than 300 people dead, Yonhap News is reporting.

Chung announced his resignation Sunday during an emergency press conference in Seoul, Al Jazeera reported.

"Keeping my post [is] too great a burden on the administration," Chung said, according to Reuters.

Similar in role to U.S. vice presidents, the prime minister in South Korea is second-in-command to the president, a position currently held by Park Geun-hye, who was elected in 2013.

The futile search-and-rescue effort for victims of the Apr. 16 disaster had been heavily criticized by South Koreans, especially families of those who died. For Chung, that meant boos and someone throwing a water bottle at him during a visit with the grieving families, according to Reuters.

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