[Press Release] Commission Elects Standing Commissioner Song Doo-Hwan as Chair
National Commission for the Investigation of the October 29 Itaewon Disaster
Press Release
June 23, 2026
Commission Elects
Standing Commissioner Song Doo-Hwan as Chair
The National Commission for the Investigation of the October 29 Itaewon Disaster and Prevention of Recurrence (the “Commission”) elected Standing Commissioner Song Doo-Hwan as its Chairperson at its 60th plenary meeting on June 23.
The newly elected Chair, Song Doo-Hwan, was recommended by the Speaker of the National Assembly on May 29 and appointed by the President as a new Standing Commissioner on June 19. He was subsequently elected as the new Chair following a resolution adopted by the Commission at its 60th meeting held today.
The newly elected Chair, Song Doo-Hwan, served as an attorney after working at the Seoul District Court and Chuncheon District Court. He subsequently served as Director of Human Rights at the Korean Bar Association, Chair of Lawyers for a Democratic Society, a Justice of the Constitutional Court, and Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea.
Meanwhile, Chair Song Doo-Hwan is scheduled to visit the Road of Remembrance and Safety, —the site of the Itaewon disaster—to lay flowers and pay his respects. He will then hold an inauguration ceremony at 4:00 p.m. in the 8th-floor auditorium of the Commission’s office. //End//
* Legal basis for the election of the chairperson
Special Act on Protection of Rights of Sufferers, Truth-Finding, and Prevention of Recurrence of October 29 Itaewon Disaster
Article 8 (Composition of Investigation Commission)
③ One chairperson shall be elected from among the standing commissioners by resolution of the Investigation Commission.
⑤ The term of office of the chairperson and commissioners shall last until the Investigation Commission's operational period ends; provided, if the Investigation Commission's operational period is extended, the term of office shall be extended by the extended operational period.
