South Korean President Park Geun-Hye was among hundreds of people who paid their respects to the victims of the ferry disaster at an official memorial altar that opened on Tuesday.
She burned incense and offered a silent prayer for the 302 people who died or are still missing from the April 16th disaster.
At a cabinet meeting she apologised for the loss of life and poor response to the accident.
(SOUNDBITE) (Korean) SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT PARK GEUN-HYE SAYING:
"How should I apologise for the failure to prevent the accident and for the insufficient initial response in order to comfort the pains and sufferings (of relatives of the victims) even for a moment?"
The altar was set up in the city of Ansen on the outskirts of Seoul. Most of the victims were students and teachers from a high school in Ansen who had been on a field trip.
The ferry capsized on the routine trip from Inchon to the island of Jeju.
Park and her government have been criticize
