AFP
PHNOM PENH: Relatives of 13 South Koreans killed when their chartered plane crashed earlier this week in Cambodia gathered on Thursday to mourn as officials warned the disaster could dent a burgeoning tourism industry.
Family members prayed and lit incense sticks before photographs of the victims lining an altar at the capital's Calmette Hospital, where the bodies were taken to await transport back to South Korea.
"They are holding ceremonies to respect the dead according to their religion," said Nhim Vanda, head of Cambodia's National Disaster Committee, adding that the dead would probably be taken home Friday evening.
A Korean media scrum far outnumbering the stricken relatives followed, highlighting the intense press coverage the crash has received in South Korea.
In 2006, South Koreans made up the largest number of Cambodia's 1.7 million foreign visitors, and tour companies are designing increasingly elaborate packages catering entirely to Korean tourists.
Tourism Minister Thong Khon said the crash could discourage Koreans from travelling to Cambodia.
"South Korean tourists could be fearful – they could think there will be problems," he told AFP, but said that the impact of the crash would only be short term.
"(The situation) will be back to normal," he added. "The incident is not caused by a terrorist act ... or technical problems – it was caused by a weather problem, and this doesn't only happen in Cambodia."
Memorials for Cambodians who died in the aircraft were also held Thursday at a temple in the capital.
Those killed in Monday's crash were en route to the seaside resort of Sihanoukville from Siem Reap, where they had visited the Angkor temples, Cambodia's most famed tourist draw.
Their Russian-made AN-24, which was also carrying three Czechs, five Cambodian crew and a pilot from Uzbekistan – not Russia, as Cambodian officials had originally reported – slammed into the side of a mountain during bad weather, just minutes from its destination.
No one survived the crash, which was Cambodia's deadliest air disaster in a decade and highlights safety concerns for the country's nascent domestic air industry as tourist numbers continue to rise.
The plane was operated by Progress Multi Transportation (PMT) Air, which has had at least three accidents or in-flight emergencies in the past two years, and was temporarily grounded at one point.
United Nations staff have been banned from flying PTM since 2005.
The airline opened a route between Siem Reap and Sihanoukville in January to boost tourism, and South Korea's ministry of construction and transportation has called for PMT's fleet to undergo safety checks.
But Cambodia's government has said it would allow the troubled airline to continue plying its domestic and international routes pending an investigation of the aircraft's flight data recorders, and downplayed safety concerns.
"Even before the accident we were taking measures – we are always strengthening air safety, both the regulations and technical aspects," Cambodia's civil aviation cabinet chief Him Sarun told AFP.
PMT's Siem Reap to Sihanoukville service has been suspended.
Family members prayed and lit incense sticks before photographs of the victims lining an altar at the capital's Calmette Hospital, where the bodies were taken to await transport back to South Korea.
"They are holding ceremonies to respect the dead according to their religion," said Nhim Vanda, head of Cambodia's National Disaster Committee, adding that the dead would probably be taken home Friday evening.
A Korean media scrum far outnumbering the stricken relatives followed, highlighting the intense press coverage the crash has received in South Korea.
In 2006, South Koreans made up the largest number of Cambodia's 1.7 million foreign visitors, and tour companies are designing increasingly elaborate packages catering entirely to Korean tourists.
Tourism Minister Thong Khon said the crash could discourage Koreans from travelling to Cambodia.
"South Korean tourists could be fearful – they could think there will be problems," he told AFP, but said that the impact of the crash would only be short term.
"(The situation) will be back to normal," he added. "The incident is not caused by a terrorist act ... or technical problems – it was caused by a weather problem, and this doesn't only happen in Cambodia."
Memorials for Cambodians who died in the aircraft were also held Thursday at a temple in the capital.
Those killed in Monday's crash were en route to the seaside resort of Sihanoukville from Siem Reap, where they had visited the Angkor temples, Cambodia's most famed tourist draw.
Their Russian-made AN-24, which was also carrying three Czechs, five Cambodian crew and a pilot from Uzbekistan – not Russia, as Cambodian officials had originally reported – slammed into the side of a mountain during bad weather, just minutes from its destination.
No one survived the crash, which was Cambodia's deadliest air disaster in a decade and highlights safety concerns for the country's nascent domestic air industry as tourist numbers continue to rise.
The plane was operated by Progress Multi Transportation (PMT) Air, which has had at least three accidents or in-flight emergencies in the past two years, and was temporarily grounded at one point.
United Nations staff have been banned from flying PTM since 2005.
The airline opened a route between Siem Reap and Sihanoukville in January to boost tourism, and South Korea's ministry of construction and transportation has called for PMT's fleet to undergo safety checks.
But Cambodia's government has said it would allow the troubled airline to continue plying its domestic and international routes pending an investigation of the aircraft's flight data recorders, and downplayed safety concerns.
"Even before the accident we were taking measures – we are always strengthening air safety, both the regulations and technical aspects," Cambodia's civil aviation cabinet chief Him Sarun told AFP.
PMT's Siem Reap to Sihanoukville service has been suspended.
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