Behind the Myth: Could Japan Have Helped With The Sewol?

The slow recovery of survivors and bodies from the wreck of the MV Sewol after it sank on April 16 has caused so much frustration that a nasty rumor about it was to be expected. Now here it is: some people are saying the government could have searched the water more quickly with international assistance, but chose to put politics ahead of the rescue mission.

According to a Hankyoreh article published on April 21 that quoted Japanese news sources, Japan’s government immediately offered to help the Korea Coast Guard search for survivors and bodies. More specifically, Japanese Minister of Defense Itsunori Onodera declared he had mobilized his country’s own divers and its minesweepers, ships with powerful sonar radars. However, the Coast Guard refused the help.

A Japanese lawmaker named Taizo Sugimara then expressed his hope on TV that this rejection did not stem from political disagreements between the two countries. Expressing that hope, of course, was actually a subtle way of suggesting the possibility, and multiple news sources proceeded to irresponsibly spread it. The insinuation soon reached the friends and family of the Sewol victims and reportedly caused another uproar at a conference.

Of course, perfectly reasonable explanations exist for why the Coast Guard said no. The most obvious example is that disaster scenes easily become overcrowded, making additional help counter-productive – a reality which all professionals understand. As a result, other countries often offer to help with these kinds of problems only as a gesture of kindness; they know their offers will not be taken.

Even if the Coast Guard never gives us such an explanation, though, it should be noted that the government already had the assistance of the US Navy in searching its waters. It should also be remembered that even in the conservative days of Chun Doo-hwan’s military dictatorship, South Korea was not too proud to accept flood relief from North Korea itself. In that context, the idea of Korea refusing Japan’s assistance because of Dokdo and “comfort women” seems silly. The safe bet is the Coast Guard had no political motivations for turning down help.

If only disproving a myth always resulted in a more positive picture of people. According to a 2012 study in the US titled “Gender, social norms, and survival in maritime disasters,” it is also a myth that most men and crew-members try to save women and children before themselves.