Korea’s funeral culture boasts its time-honored tradition and history. It was used as a means and symbol of strengthening sovereignty since the time of Goguryeo, Baekje, Shilla and Gaya in the Korean Peninsula in their mutual competition of forming international relations of East Asia with China, Japan and other countries. Especially, in large-sized tombs for the nobility including royal families was installed every kind of burial goods, wall pictures and artifacts suggesting its size and splendor. In modern times, however, there are neither forms of burying bodies in the ground nor even a built burial mound any more, starting to bring change to funeral culture more realistically and conveniently. Ceremonies for showing off a political and social status and maintaining a comfortable life in the other world as well as in this world have also varied by the coming and spread of religions. Currently, there are over three hundred funeral service companies with a three-million membership and fifty thousand employees who are writing a new culture of funeral rites. Among others, with the advent of professional funeral services which deals in family rites, they are providing a broad range of funeral service by constructing a more stable operating system coupled with active social contributions. In the meantime, in July 2997, Song Gi-ho, president of Korea Sangjo Association, established Sangjo Performance Bond, Inc., which has now become Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial Piey (http://www.sangjoi.com), by connecting CMS network of the Korea Financial Communications & Clearings Institute when he constructed the funeral service system covering all of planning, management, sales, events, etc. Then in April 2009, he renamed it into the current ‘Mirae Sangjo 119, Filial piety Inc.’ and broadened the name recognition by launching goods for funeral service, wedding, one’s first, sixtieth and seventieth birthdays, church organizations, etc. Then, he embarked on a welcoming ceremony for reporters of relieving victims from funeral services in April 2012 composing a transition committee and a professional management team for M&A of large funeral services. He held the first nationwide poem reciting contest ‘Together with the Turquoise Sect’ and sent out an open written inquiry to April 11 general election candidates with relation to the bills of professional funeral service. He also became in full charge of funeral service insurance, relieving subscriber victims, class-action lawsuit as well as receiving consultation from victims from funeral services.

미래상조119(주)효마음 송기호 회장 ⓒ대한뉴스

‘Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial Piety Inc.’ managed by president Song Gi-ho is a corporation, which manages and proceeds with its reliable events with fifty thousand employees around the country, equipped with the sales method and organizational system like a life insurance. They are on the fast track having ready its unique system and basis like an insurance company which shows a solid growth for dozens of years piling up a longtime experience and knowhow. Putting members of the Sangjo first, they are carrying out their duty with full readiness to seek relief on a religious basis so that there may not be a single victim involved. President Song Gi-ho says, “The first management philosophy of Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial Piety Inc. is ‘reliable event management.’ Here we usher the event sharing the sorrow of the bereaved so that they may use pleasant and clean facilities. Above all, we are taking the lead in advanced funeral culture for the 21^st-cenurty Korea with reasonable funeral costs and quality services. Besides, we are practicing ‘transparent management of an installment.’ For the safe accumulation of fees and smooth funeral service of the membership of our company, we are under contract of depositing advance payment to Shinhan Bank in accordance with the contract of consumer damage compensation insurance based on funeral service bill-related installment transaction Act Art 27-1 with an aim to lay by fees safely and create ‘new-concept funeral service culture.’ Currently, they have taken over Morae Sangjo Inc. and Changyoung Euijeon Inc. by merge as well as Jeonju Park Cemetery sale in lots (Jinan, Jeonbuk). Besides, operating divisions for owner-operator taxis and for exhuming and burying elsewhere, the company is supporting the dandelion forum and the peace community center as well as GMB TV. Especially, in February 2013, they joined hands with Geumchon church and Jeil church at Hwasoon dong-myeon and closed agreements with 19 funeral services in the area of Gwangju. Then, by tying up with Gwangju Chamjoeun church, Union church, Gangbyeon church, Abi church, Changdae church, Namgwangju church, Gwangpyeong church, Saerona Memorial Hall, Gwangju Jinju church, etc., they are seeking to improve the stability and level of their professional funeral service.

ⓒ대한뉴스

Funeral service operations nationwide in dynamics

Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial Piety Inc. is located at Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu in Seoul. With the phone number 1661-8119 they receive the commission from customers 365 days and immediately set about everything for the event. For the funeral service as well, they have beefed up the system by installing an exclusive number of ‘1661-4119.’ Customers also can use the fax at the numbers ‘070-4032-0119’ and ‘070-4009-3119’ for consultation.

Besides, they are expanding their activity through Jeonju management operation (89 Gyeongwon-dong 1-ga, Wansan-gu, Jeonju city, Jeonbuk, 4^th floor Gyeongwon-dong Post office), Busan Business operation (675-17 Jeonpo-1 dong, Jin-gu, Busan metropolitan city, 3rd floor Heungguk Bldg.), Masan Euijeon General Headquarters (303-4 Hakseong Bldg 2nd floor, Odong-dong, Happo-gu, Masan, Changwon city, Gyeongnam), Daegu Business operation (164-2 2nd floor, Shinam 3-dong, Dong-gu, Daegu city), Changwon Business operation (12-1 Samwon Hall 3rd floor, Sangnam-dong, Seongsan-gu, Changwon city, Gyeongnam), Kim Soo-yeong Wedding operation (857-7 Beomchon 1-dong, Busanjin-gu), etc. This Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial Piety Inc., which is sparing no efforts materially and spiritually for activating funeral service business as well as the Korea Sangjo Association, is also planning to expand the business into Asian area in the future. Since at the moment, however, they are at odds with the government, overcoming this matter comes first. Besides, by merging with thirty funeral services in danger of bankruptcy to relieve the members who had suffered loss, they are cultivating a new path for smooth resolution. Song Gi-ho, president of Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial piety Inc. and Korea Sangjo Association, while reminding that it is time for the government’s fair trade commission to stop their role as a navigator on the funeral service circles at ‘the 2^nd declaration of funeral services ethical management and development forum’ held in the past February, emphasized that funeral services should be voluntarily devoted to systematic and efficient management for the industry. Referring to the most serious pending problem, President Song indicated “faced with the funeral service turmoil caused by allotment transaction act, the government needs to change their recognition about the funeral service business.’ and asserted that they should read the market flow correctly to establish the funeral service industry anew.” Also, he said with emphasis that “We need ‘an accredited funeral service organization’ so that the funeral service business may proceed on its own.”

ⓒ대한뉴스

What should funeral service industry aim after the turbulence?

After its high growth, funeral service industry is currently facing a crisis. As rumor has it about ‘‘turbulence of the professional funeral service,’ many companies in this line are giving away to the policies of the Fair Trade Commission without any countermeasure or alternative of their own. In these hard circumstances, there have been nearly 500 thousand cases of victims happening within the funeral service industry. In the meantime, Song Gi-ho, president of Korea Sangjo Association, came out to indicate the problems of ‘allotment transaction act of funeral industry’ made by the government. He asserted himself by requiring a countermeasure and plan from the government which had been simply notifying operators about important matters one-sidedly without giving them a single word of explanation even after enacting legislation.

“Under these circumstances, it is the customers who must suffer damage after all. There is another need to protect the business persons but they are just being regarded as a criminal. The government has proposed the allotment transaction act as an alternative but this is ‘a bad law’ that must lead the funeral service industry to bankruptcy. Some practical relief measure must come as soon as possible. Only through the relationship of symbiosis and communication can funeral service industry make advance. As it is, however, there are not only 500 hundred thousand customers who suffered loss but as many as 217 companies have gone under, too. Of late, the industry has made two thousand persons jobless. Therefore, at the current situation, I think relief is the way to restore the funeral service industry to life,” he worried. Then, he adds, “First of all, it is the shortcut to stopping the customer damages to relieve the customers related to bankrupt companies and business managers and operators who have lost their jobs. That is, relief of the three – consumers, business managers and operators – is the way to restore the funeral service industry to life. There is no restoration to life without relief. Only with relief can the existing funeral service industry remain alive instead of disappearing. That’s why I put up the slogan for relieving consumers, business managers and operators. We can only keep from the customer damages by relieving and helping all of consumers, business managers and operators. From there starts advance.” Currently, however, ‘Mirae Sangjo 119 Filial piety Inc.’ in consolidated management of over 50 funeral service companies is giving its best self-cleansing effort considering it the most urgent thing to recover the trust of the masses as the leader of initiating funeral service culture that succeeds to the traditional long-established and fine custom of our country’s own. The company urges the funeral service industry, which is receiving a cold shoulder from the public because of some immoral companies, to make a new decision in order to be born again as ‘a neighbor who can stand by in their difficult time.’ The president emphasizes that they only have the future only in building up as a healthy service industry that can be reliably used by the people.

For these reasons, President Song Gi-ho elucidates the following musts in providing professional services: 1) to process duties honestly and fairly respecting the customers’ hopes 2) to abide by the laws and regulations related to funeral service industry and enhance healthy trade ethics 3) to realize the social mission of the industry and secure the transparence and ethics of management as far as possible as a means to contributing to build an honest society 4) to make the most of the consumers’ property and contribute to improving their national economy and family welfare through honest and efficient management 5) to secure the consumers’ peace of mind and confidence by constant self-development and setting a fair and proper service charge 6) to make efforts to create the customers’ satisfaction through constant self-development and qualitative improvement of the services, and 7) to enact the moral code of funeral service companies as a guide for corporate management to carry out the declaration concretely.

김남규 기자

종합지 일간 대한뉴스(등록번호:서울가361호) 다이나믹코리아(등록번호:서울중00175호) on-off line 을 모두 겸비한 종합 매체입니다.

대한뉴스 다른기사 보기