The disclosure followed an April 10 Seoul High Court ruling that overturned the government’s decision to withhold the list. The government decided not to file a further appeal, making the ruling final.
The case began with a June 2017 information request seeking disclosure of the list of designated presidential records tied to passenger rescue efforts on the day of the disaster.
The archives had denied the request, citing Article 17 of the Presidential Records Act and the protected status of the materials. But the court, in a remand trial, said it was difficult to conclude the legal requirements for designation had been properly met and found the nondisclosure unlawful.
The released information is a list of 28 designated presidential records produced or received on April 16, 2014, by the presidential secretariat and the National Security Office, among others. The contents of the individual records were not included in the disclosure.
Han Seong-won, head of the Presidential Archives, said the agency respected the court’s decision, quickly completed administrative steps related to dropping the appeal and delivered the list to the requesters.
Han said the archives also plans to provide the list soon to the 4.16 Sewol Ferry Disaster Family Association, which requested the same information, adding that the disclosure is expected to help protect the public’s right to know and improve administrative transparency.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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