By Lee Chi-dong
Staff Reporter

SEOUL - Proving that cremation is gradually taking root as the main funeral method in Korean society, about half of Seoul citizens who passed away last year were found to have been cremated.

Also, residents living north of the Han River were revealed to have more of a preference for cremation than those residing south of the river, who are said to be richer than the others.

A daily average of 51 Seoul citizens, 18,603 throughout the year, were cremated last year, said the Seoul Metropolitan Installation Management Corp. Feb. 20.

This means that half of last year’s deceased Seoulites were cremated, considering that 103 persons lost their lives every day in the region in 1999, according to an official tally.

In fact, the capital city’s cremation rate is on a sharp rise with 49.5 percent last year, from 41.1 percent in 1999, 36.5 in 1998, 29.9 in 1997.

Keeping pace with the boom, a growing number of remains are being processed at the city-run crematorium in Koyang, north of Seoul with 14,362 in 2000 from 9,285 in 1999, 6,709 in 1998 and 4,017 in 1997.

"The surge is largely attributed to a gradual change in public perception resulting from civic groups’ campaigns and many celebrities’ initiative efforts to promote cremation, along with economic aspects," said Lee Ho-jo, head of the Seoul City-affiliated organization.

Until recently, cremation has not been accepted in Korean society mainly because of conventional notions on dealing with dead people based on Confucianism, which stresses that one should respect the human body during life as well as after death.

However, Korea’s ever-increasing population and relatively small size are pushing the limit of available tomb space.

Government figures showed that annually, burial sites occupy roughly nine square kilometers of the nation’s land, equivalent to 1.2 times the size of Yoido in southern Seoul. As much as 1000 square kilometers, or about 1 percent of the nationÕs gross area, is covered by graves.

In a bid to tackle the problem, following the cremation of Chey Jong-hyon, the late SK group chairman, two years ago, many prominent social figures, including Seoul City Mayor Goh Kun, have led cremation promotion movements, requesting in their wills to have their bodies cremated.

He added that he expects the practice to expand to local regions, spurred by the capital city’s example.

Still, cremation rates nationwide reach only 30 percent. In the same vein, out of the total 25,438 cremations that took place in 2000, Seoul residents took up 61.6 percent with 15,676.

In Seoul, by region, a total of 10,643 bodies from the northern region of the Han River were cremated last year, accounting for 56 percent with a daily average of 29, while the southern areas of the river registered only 7,960 cremated bodies, or 43 percent with daily average of 22.

The gap is believed to result from the difference in financial power.

"The average size of a tomb is 13.95 pyong (some 46 square meters). It is not easy to buy space in metropolitan areas," said one official from the authority.

He added that currently, financial ability determines the type of funeral, but the time-honored burial will soon give way to modern times and money-saving cremation.

However, observers point out that locals’ awareness on cremation has to be drastically improved, citing the reality that the Seoul City administration is experiencing difficulties in selecting a site for its second crematorium due to residents’ objection, in spite of the funds raised from business circles.

Currently, there are only four crematoriums in the metropolitan area, located in Seoul, Inchon, Suwon and Songnam.