Park's apology may determine local election
Candidates in South Korea are campaigning for local elections that some experts say could become a referendum on the president's response to last month's fatal ferry accident.
Experts say the June 4th poll will be a chance for people to show whether they accepted Park Geun-hye's televised apology on Monday.
She told viewers that she is ultimately responsible for the failure to rescue people who could have been saved. About 300 people died in the accident.
She announced a plan to break up the Coast Guard and set up a new government function dedicated to maritime safety and emergency rescue operations.
Relatives of people still missing said the president's announcement could prevent Coast Guard officials from focusing on the rescue work.
They said they do not understand why Park failed to refer to the ongoing rescue operations. They said they doubt her dedication to finding every missing person.
The president's approval rating has fallen by more than 10 percentage points, to under 50 percent, since the accident