Category: solidarity

Collection of Global Solidarity Messages Writing in Protest for the Navy to Drop Its Wrongful Lawsuit

Since the navy filed a lawsuit on the rights to indemnity against 116 anti-base individuals and 5 groups including Gangjeong Village Association, some internationals were willing to send protest letters to the South Korean government. Following an April 24 appeal for protest to the South Korean navy lawsuit (See here), many more peace activists in the world have joined them. They thoughtfully sent us their solidarity messages to Gangjeong and/or forwarded us their protest letters to the South Korean government/ embassies. We are updating this site, as well as sharing the original and translated messages with Koreans. Thanks so much to the friends who took their precious time for Gangjeong. We appeal other friends in the world again to please help us by paying attention to the appeal for protest in the site. The name of senders are listed here by alphabet order of family name.

Christine and Gloria Steinem(May 30)/ Alliance of Scholars Concerned about Korea (ASCK) Steering Committee (on April 29)/ Antonio (on April 26)/ Catherine Christie (on April 25)/ Nick Deane (on April 26)/ Ulrich Duchrow (on April 29)/ Catherine Fontanazza (on April 26)/ Bruce K. Gagnon (on April 5)/ Boyette Jurceles Jr. (on April 24)/ Natasha Mayers (on April 29)/ Rachael Berman Melville (on April 25)/ MIGRANTE International (on April 26)/ Missionary Society of St. Columban (on April 14)/ Nogawa Mio (on April 9)/ J. Narayana Rao (on April 28)/ Stuart Rees (on April 25)/ Arnie Saiki (on April 29)/ Veterans for Peace (on April 19)/ Russell Wray (on April 26-27)/ Angie Zelter (on April 24)

………………………………………………………………………………

Gloria Steinem and Christine Ahn ( on May 30)

Dear Gangjeong Villagers,
We send our greetings, respect and gratitude for the superhuman courage, peacefulness and tenacity you have shown in opposing the construction of a naval base on your home of Jeju Island.

Like millions of people around the world who fight against ecological damage and global warming, we support you who are on the frontline of resistance on behalf of us in every country who value the unique natural and cultural heritage of Jeju Island. Peace movements around the world join in thanking you for resisting a U.S. and South Korean naval installation that would militarize and endanger the safety and peacefulness of the people JeJu Island and our world.

We write now because we are shocked to learn that, not only have you been forced to endure violence and imprisonment for your actions in the service of peace and environmental justice, but the South Korean Navy is now demanding $2.9 million in damages from 117 Jeju island residents, activists and local citizens for exercising a human right to nonviolent protest and free speech.

This is in direct contradiction to Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees freedom of expression. We urge the South Korean Navy and government to immediately drop demands for this unlawful penalty that would negate an inalienable right to free speech and assembly, and send the anti-democratic message that all who oppose state actions are subject to ruinous fines.

Your actions have inspired all who value democracy, peace, and the environment. Your courage is contagious. We thank you, and we stand with you.

In love and in peace,
Gloria Steinem and Christine Ahn

Alliance of Scholars Concerned about Korea (ASCK) Steering Committee (on April 29)

“We stand wholeheartedly with the residents of Gangjeong Village. Since 2007, the people of Gangjeong have used every democratic measure and every non-violent means of protest in order to oppose the construction of the new naval base there and to challenge the re-militarization of Jeju Island. Gangjeong residents and peace advocates have a right to freedom of expression‎ by protesting the base, which jeopardizes peace in the wider region by rendering Northeast Asia far more vulnerable to the risk of future military conflict.

“We now call upon the ROK Navy to withdraw its unfounded US$2.9-million lawsuit against the residents and peace advocates in Gangjeong Village. There must be an end to the anti-democratic procedural- and human-rights violations that led to the building of the new naval base on Jeju. The wrongful lawsuit against Gangjeong must be dropped immediately.”

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Antonio (on April 26)

DON’T GIVE UP!!!

YOUR FIGHT IS OUR FIGHT!!!

Regards,

Antonio

@Ilprescelto77

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Catherine Christie (on April 25)

Gangjeong Village, the small rural farming-fishing village on Jeju Island which has had a naval base built on its waterfront, destroying the marine environment, destroying the community spirit of the village. They are enduring a lot of stress, and all of a sudden the Navy has decided the village should pay for the days it took over to build the base. A suit has been brought against the village and its members, that mean all municipal assets would be forfeit. What a ridiculous move by the Navy! I ask all to call on the Korean government to withdraw this dangerous and foolish action. My association, IRCA, said I could write in their name to support this rural village of faithful and hardworking people. Below is the letter, challenging the government, I hope, to move on thi [..]

International Rural Churches Association
Voice of the Voiceless

………………………………………………..

April 25, 2016

Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Jung Ho Sub

Ministry of National Defense, Minister Han Min Koo cyber@mnd.go.kr
President of Korea, Honorable Park Geun Hye webmaster@president.go.kr
Saenuri Party: Rep. Kim Moo Song
Democratic Party: Rep. Kim Jong In
Peoples Party: Rep. Ahn Cheol Soo
Governor, Jeju Province: Governor Won Hee Ryong jujmaster@jeju.go.kr

Honorable representatives of the Republic of Korea:

This letter is written to vehemently call for the dropping of the Republic of Korea Navy’s action against the Village of Gangjeong, Jeju Island, in its filing of a lawsuit seeking indemnity rights, or compensation for losses incurred during the construction of the Jeju Naval Base, officially opened in Gangjeong Village on Feb. 26, 2016. The Naval lawsuit demands 3 Million USD in its suit – a suit which will mean the destruction of this village, as it will have to liquidate all municipal assets to cover this, as well as the many citizens who will lose their property. This is an incredibly unjust and arrogant legal action.

I humbly point out that there were a number time when concerns were raised about this particular construction, not just from the Gangjeong villagers and other related groups. A number of times the Governor of Jeju of the time, Hon. Woo Keum-Min, issued suspension orders stopping construction for hearings on issues like environmental assessment and because the company had neglected to install, or had installed, faulty silt protectors that failed to protect the marine environment. And then there was Dec. 30, 2011, when the National Assembly, in its end of the year deliberations, cut 96% of the 2012 budget for the Naval Base construction. That was amazing, and many people thought the plans would be significantly changed at the time, one editorial suggesting perhaps the construction area would become a coast guard facility. As well a typhoon that struck the area early in the construction period which caused damage to the caissons being installed, necessitating that the job be done again.

I write on behalf of the International Rural Church Association which is concerned about this rural farming-fishing community in Korea that is struggling to survive in the face of great changes. Often rural communities bear the brunt of development of industrial-military or resource extraction facilities. IRCA stands on behalf of sustainable rural communities throughout the world, and in this regard, we strongly urge the government of Korea to reject this action of the Navy and its lawsuit against Gangjeong village.

Yours respectfully,

(Rev.) Catherine Christie,
Past chairperson, International Rural Churches Association
Seoul, ROK

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Nick Deane (on April 26)

I sent the message below to the Korean Embassy in Canberra, Australia.

Thoughts are with you!

Nick

………………………………………

Unjust measures have been taken against those who are peacefully protesting the construction of naval facilities on Jeju Island.

The lawsuits taken out against local residents are wrong and should be dropped.

We neither want nor need more war-waging facilities, on Jeju or anywhere else!

The whole world is watching!

Nick Deane.

(Sydney, Australia)

(Go to the Korean translation site, here)

Ulrich Duchrow (on April 29)

Dear friends,
thank you for your amazing persistance in the struggle. As I am travelling in Brasil and not at home in Germany I can only send a very short message of solidarity to you. In October/November 2013 I took part in a solidarity mission of “Peace for Life” in resistance against the military base on Jeju Island. So I know the brutal oppression of the people in Gangjeong.
I wish you full success in your struggle against the lawsuit .

In solidarity

Ulrich Duchrow
Professor at Heidelberg University and Moderator of Kairos Europa

(Go to translation site, here)

Catherine Fontanazza (on April 26)

A note to the protestors :

Keep up the work, your non violent protest is very important and I will be writing to President Obama about your situation.

Power to the people.

Sincerely,

Kate Fontanazza

(Go to the Korean translation site, here)

Bruce K. Gagnon (on April 5)

To: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon

Dear President Park:

We have learned that your government, the South Korean Navy and Samsung Construction division are currently demanding damages from local groups and residents on Jeju Island for the alleged costs incurred due to the residents’ opposition to the Navy base construction: US $2.9 million. Your government has listed the Gangjeong village association, five groups and 117 residents and activists as the defendants.

The insistence that the construction delay was caused by residents is groundless. There are multiple complex reasons for the delay in the construction schedule.The principal reasons include disputes and controversy over the legality of the work, suspension orders issued over illegal construction work, losses and damage to structures caused by the natural environment, the strong wind and waves of Gangjeong’s coastline, Typhoon Bolaven, Typhoon Neoguri, etc. It is sophistry and exaggeration to claim that the residents blocking construction vehicles from entering and leaving the base for only a few minutes at a time caused the delay.

The responsibility lies solely with the state for threatening citizens’ right to a peaceful existence and causing their pain by enforcing this wrongful government policy. There is no one else as responsible for this as the government. The state rather than the residents bears the responsibility. Without mentioning a word about their own responsibility, it is the height of irresponsibility for the state to shift the blame for the delays in the construction onto individual citizens. The state that should be protecting the basic rights of its citizens is instead declaring war against them.

The biggest crime of all is that the ROK government and the Navy rejected the will of the Gangjeong villagers and have destroyed a 500-year old community. In addition the environmental ‘special preservation area’ is being destroyed as well – violating your own government’s environmental protection designation.

Our international membership stands with Gangjeong villagers and we demand that these outrageous and illegal charges be immediately dropped.

We eagerly await your positive response.

In peace,

Bruce K. Gagnon
Coordinator
Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space
Brunswick, ME , United States
http://www.space4peace.org
http://space4peace.blogspot.com (blog)

Thank God men cannot fly, and lay waste the sky as well as the earth. – Henry David Thoreau

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Boyette Jurceles Jr (on April 24)

Thanks for the updates. Philippines will surely respond to this. We will also circulate your appeal to our global network.

In solidarity and more power!

Boyette Jurceles Jr.

Ban the Bases!

And BAYAN

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Natasha Mayers (on April 29)

Dear President Park and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon :

Please drop the charges against the villagers of Gangjeong, Jeju Island, Korea.

The South Korean government, Navy and Samsung are demanding damages from these villagers for the alleged costs incurred due to their opposition to the Navy base construction. The Gangjeong village association, five groups and [116] residents and activists have been charged with paying $2.9 million (US dollars). The world has witnessed the brave non-violent resistance of the villagers to the destruction of their community and to the environmental ‘special preservation area’. The State (and typhoons) bear the responsibility for construction delays for rejecting the will of the Gangjeong villagers.

Respectfully,

Natasha Mayers

Whitefield, Maine

(Go to translation site, here)

Rachael Berman Melville (on April 25)

I’ve just emailed the letter to President Park via the US and UK embassies and posted via Facebook links to your recent post. I wanted to send along an image of a painting that I created in 2009 (part of a solo show I had at the Jeju Hallasumokwan). I believe this image has been used previously in your campaign as I sent it in previously (although years ago). It is based on a photograph I took at Gangeong Villiage in 2009. I took the shot through the foreground of an artpiece that was installed on the coast. A beautiful metal piece.

I hope it is still there? Do you know it? I wonder if you know the name of the artist who created this piece. I would love to credit them if I use the image in the future.

I lived on Jeju for a year in 2009 and felt deeply the concerns the residents of Gangeong and Jeju regarding the Naval Base construction. I have stayed connected through your newsletter and facebook posts. I always feel I wish I could be in Jeju now to help support this cause. I hope the small actions I have taken and hope to continue taking in the future will help Jeju reclaim it’s waters, it’s Gangeong Village, and it’s reputation of Peace Island. There is so much injustice in this world, so much war, destruction, and power struggle. Jeju is an amazing, inspiring place – they are proud of being ‘Peace Island’ and want to keep it that way. So do I!

Thank you for keeping those who can’t be present in Jeju up to date with what is happening and continuing to spread the word and get the international community behind the cause.

All the best and peace,

Rachael Berman Melville

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

MIGRANTE International (on April 26)

To the dear people of Gangjeong Village,

Migrante International, a global alliance of Filipino overseas organization, salutes the people of your village for its courage and staunch defense of your village and your rights.

We stand with you in solidarity against the militaristic machinations of the US government.

Down with Imperialism!

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Missionary Society of St. Columban (on April 14)

Forwarded by Fr. Pat Cunningham

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Nogawa Mio (on April 9)

To South Korean President Park Geun-Hye

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Stuart Rees (on April 25)

Dear Friends,

Military interests in using Jeju as a base is another expression of violence which should be opposed by every non-violent means.

The world needs to dismantle military vases not build more.

Congratulations on your brave stand.

In Solidarity and with Best Wishes,

Stuart Rees, former Director,

Sydney Peace Foundation

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Arnie Saiki (on April 29)

To: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye

Dear President Park:

It is a travesty for any country based on the principles of democracy to sue citizens for engaging in their right to peaceful protest.

This lawsuit lacks courage and wisdom. Demanding damages from the people of Gangjeong Village reveals the pettiness of a supposed “advanced economy.” The fact that Samsung—the sixth largest corporation in the world whose revenue was (US) $305 billion in 2014—would seek damages from groups that only sought to protect their community; and that as President you would undermine the will of this community, only shows the world that your vision of Korea cares more about global corporate governance than people.

I love Korea and am honored to have stood beside Gangjeong Village protesters when I visited Jeju. As much as I lament the loss of Gureombi Rock and the destruction and insecurity that you have brought to the community, I equally object to your anti-democratic values.

Arnie Saiki
Coordinator
Moana Nui Action Alliance
Los Angeles, CA, USA

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Veterans for Peace(on April 14)

“Letter from Veterans For Peace (based on and adapted from Bruce Gagnon’s original letter) hard copies are being sent to the SK Pres. and all consulates in the US and the Embassy. “

Tarak Kauff

Veterans For Peace
Board of Directors
Managing Editor
Peace In Our Times

(Go to the translation site, here)

Russell Wray (on April 27)

Dear Friends,

Like so many others, I am appalled by the news of the lawsuit that you are all facing now. I am appalled, but not surprised, because the ROK government and Navy, and the Samsung Corporation have already made it very, very clear how little they care for democracy, human rights, and the right of humans and non-humans to a healthy, living environment. Still, this latest assault upon you good people leaves me feeling very sad, …and angry!

I am so glad to have had a chance to spend some time (not enough!) with you in Gangjeong this past December as part of the Veterans For Peace delegation. It was an honor to be there with you. I miss you all and though I am not there with you now physically, I am there in my heart and in solidarity. I wish you all good energy to keep up the fight for what is good and beautiful …

Peace and Best Wishes,

Russell

Russell Wray

Citizens Opposing Active Sonar Threats

Hancock, Maine, United States

“Below is a copy of a letter that I sent to the ROK embassy in D.C. I also sent the same letter, but addressed to the Boston consulate. Also emailed both the embassy and Boston consulate . Have telephoned as well, many times….nobody will speak with me about it, no one will call me back.Very frustrating….”

……………………………..

April 26, 2016

The Honorable Ahn Ho-Young

Ambassador of the Republic of Korea

Embassy of the Republic of Korea

2320 Massachusetts Ave, NW

Washington, D.C. 20008

Re: Fining those who oppose the naval base at Gangjeong Village

Dear Honorable Ambassador,

I am writing to you today on behalf of Citizens Opposing Active Sonar Threats (COAST) regarding the US $2.9 million fine being leveled at Gangjeong Village residents, activists, and organizations by the government of the Republic of Korea, its Navy, and Samsung. We believe this fine to be a gross injustice; one which is being directed at people who have already had to face the great injustice of having the Navy base in Gangjeong Village forced upon them against their will, resulting in the destruction of their village, their way of life, and their once-beautiful environment.

The people who opposed the construction of this base had, and continue to have, every right to do so, given the very plain fact that the South Korean Navy used deception and bribery in an attempt to make it appear as if the village supported the base construction. But we know that this “village approval”, with only 87 of Gangjeong’s 2,000 villagers present, was a total sham, with most of the villagers not even having heard of this meeting until after it took place.

Following that, the village held a referendum on the matter, with 94% of the eligible voters voting against the base. Clearly, the people of Gangjeong did not want or approve of the base! Their opposition to the base was, and still is, entirely justified.

Furthermore, it is clear that their were numerous factors involved in construction delays other than protests. These other factors account for a far greater portion of the delays than do the protests. Some of these other factors include the Navy’s very bad decision to cite the base at Gangjeong, given its susceptibility to extreme wind and waves.There were the typhoons Bolaven and Neoguri, and their resulting damage to the construction, as well as suspension orders that were made due to the illegality of the construction.

To place the blame for construction delays solely on the people and organizations opposing the base is beyond unreasonable.

Regarding the base at Gangjeong Village, the government of the Republic of Korea and its Navy have trashed the democratic process and inflicted great injustice, pain, and destruction upon its own people and environment. When the people of the world hear the real story of this, they will know that the notion that South Korea is a democracy that is committed to human and environmental rights is simply false on each count.

COAST strongly urges the South Korean government to drop the charges and fines against these people and organizations immediately, and to begin the conversion of the base from militaristic to peaceful, life-promoting purposes. Thank you for your consideration. We look forward to your response.

Sincerely,

Russell Wray

President

Citizens Opposing Active Sonar Threats (COAST)

Hancock, ME, USA

……………………………………………………………………..

And a same email to the South Korean Consulate in Boston , with Bruce K. Gagnon’s April 9 letter being forwarded , too.

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

Angie Zelter (on April 24)

Dear Gangjeong Resisters,

I am very distressed to hear that you are being targetted by the Government, Military and Corporations, for your lawful, peaceful, humanitarian resistance to war and destruction. Your protests are part of a world-wide movement for peace, real security and global citizenship. The navy’s lawsuit that so wrongfully tries to stop your resistance shows just how successful you have been and is part of their long history of denying civil rights and trying to destroy your struggle and resistance. Please know that you have friends all over the world that stand with you and care about you. I do hope that you can keep up the strength to go on resisting.

We are in a time of global stress when the forces of peace and justice are facing the forces of militarisation and corporate greed. It is a time of deep conflict and change and we all need to keep strong and hopeful and not lose heart.

I love and respect all your hard work for peace and think of you as colleagues and friends connected together in our joint struggles for a better world. As we, here in the UK, continue our struggle to resist the replacement of the UK’s nuclear weapons with our own civil resistance, we will remember and honour your struggle and do what we can to let people know about the outrageous US$2.9 million lawsuit currently threatening the village.

Love, peace and strength, Angie Zelter.

Angie Zelter, is the founder of Trident Ploughshares (Right Livelihood Award Laureate), Faslane 365, International Women’s Peace Service-Palestine and various other organisations. She is author of ‘Trident on Trial – the case for peoples’ disarmament’, ‘Faslane 365 – a year of anti-nuclear blockades’, ‘World in Chains’. She is active in organising civil resistance against nuclear weapons and the arms trade to uphold international law.

(Go to Korean translation site, here)

April 27, 2016
An Appeal for Protest
The buildings shown behind the banner are military residence inside the base

The village representatives have been doing tent sit-in in protest to the unjust navy lawsuit since April 10th despite the police threat on the first day. For more, see here and here.

April 23, 2016

Dear friends of Gangjeong Village:

This weekend, our village is honored to host the 1^st International Peace Film Festival in Gangjeong (April 23 to 26). Unfortunately, we also find ourselves in grave danger and need your urgent help. Although our peace movement has been recognized internationally as an “exemplary non-violent struggle” by organizations like the International Peace Bureau and Veterans for Peace, we are currently struggling for our very survival.

Please read the letter from Bruce Gagnon below, which describes the staggering US$2.9 million lawsuit currently threatening the village. We are appealing for the support of you and your organizations: (1) Please forward this letter, along with your own brief message of protest, to Korean embassies and consulates. (2) Then share through your networks to raise awareness and to ask for others to join in protest. You may also refer to a protest letter by the St. Columban Missionaries in Britain, here. (3) Finally please send us any short solidarity messages, images, videos which we will share with people here. (gangjeongintl@gmail.com)

We are asking that these be sent ideally during Aug 26-30^th, the launch period for this protest. Also, if you have not done so, please join No Naval Base on Jeju on Facebook for more updates and information, or visit savejejunow.org.

The reasons we chose April 26th: It symbolizes the overturning of democratic processes that the navy had used in order to create a cover story for building the base. On that day in 2007, it organized an ad hoc general meeting among a tiny fraction of the residents to make the deceptive claim that the village approved the base. In protest, the villagers responded by holding their own plebescite four months later, when 94% of more than 70% electorates of the village population voted to oppose the base project*. However, the government has never recognized the village’s legitimate democratic vote. Instead it relied upon the fraudulent “approval process” that took place on April 26, 2007: Not only was there anti-democratic voter-suppression, with no advance publicity or public discussion, there was not even a vote; instead, approval was absurdly measured by clapping. By bringing attention to the anniversary of this date, we seek to emphasize how the base has been forced upon the village through lies and repression despite overwhelming popular opposition to it. The date is also the last day of the 1^st International Peace Film Festival in Gangjeong.

For our April 26-30th protest campaign, the key message is that: (1) the lawsuit against Gangjeong is wrongful; (2) the navy’s lawsuit must be dropped (3) Also, we denounce the history of unjust measures that have been used to install the base.

We greatly appreciate your time and apologize for the very short notice.

Thank you always for your solidarity.

Sincerely,

The Gangjeong Village Association

======

To: South Korean President Park Geun-Hye and UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon

Dear President Park:

We have learned that your government, the South Korean Navy and Samsung Construction division are currently demanding damages from local groups and residents on Jeju Island for the alleged costs incurred due to the residents’ opposition to the Navy base construction: US $2.9 million. Your government has listed the Gangjeong village association, five groups and 116 residents and activists as the defendants.

The insistence that the construction delay was caused by residents is groundless. There are multiple complex reasons for the delay in the construction schedule. The principal reasons include disputes and controversy over the legality of the work, suspension orders issued over illegal construction work, losses and damage to structures caused by the natural environment, the strong wind and waves of Gangjeong’s coastline, Typhoon Bolaven, Typhoon Neoguri, etc. It is sophistry and exaggeration to claim that the residents blocking construction vehicles from entering and leaving the base for only a few minutes at a time caused the delay.

The responsibility lies solely with the state for threatening citizens’ right to a peaceful existence and causing their pain by enforcing this wrongful government policy. There is no one else as responsible for this as the government. The state rather than the residents bears the responsibility. Without mentioning a word about their own responsibility, it is the height of irresponsibility for the state to shift the blame for the delays in the construction onto individual citizens. The state that should be protecting the basic rights of its citizens is instead declaring war against them.

The biggest crime of all is that the ROK government and the Navy rejected the will of the Gangjeong villagers and have destroyed a 500-year old community. In addition the environmental ‘special preservation area’ is being destroyed as well – violating your own government’s environmental protection designation.

Our international membership stands with Gangjeong villagers and we demand that these outrageous and illegal charges be immediately dropped.

We eagerly await your positive response.

In peace,

Bruce K. Gagnon
Coordinator
Global Network Against Weapons & Nuclear Power in Space
http://www.space4peace.org
http://space4peace.blogspot.com (blog)

Thank God men cannot fly, and lay waste the sky as well as the earth. – Henry David Thoreau
- We also thank St. Columban Missionaries in Britain for its protest letter this April. See here.
April 24, 2016
A Protest Letter by the Columban Missionaries in Britain
- The letter was forwarded by Fr. Pat.
April 24, 2016
Korean Lawyers Defend Village on Jeju Island from Samsung & Navy

Image by Oum Mun-Hee/For more photos, see here. Villagers’ press conference in front of the Island government hall on March 30 to demand the navy to drop down the unjust suit on reimbursement against people.

The Navy’s damage claim against Gangjeong residents is a declaration of war against its own citizens

By Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun)

The ROK Navy is claiming a sum of 3.4 billion won [approximately 3 million US dollars] in damages against 116 individuals including residents and clergy and 5 organizations. The Navy is demanding this money in compensation for the losses incurred by the construction company due to a 14-month delay in construction in the naval base due to residents, etc. obstructing the work. We (Minbyun) found that this case is an unjustified declaration of war against the people.

If the state suffered property loss, would it be fair to take individual citizens to trial to claim reparations? In pursuing its objective, the state has the power to seek criminal punishment and to take many steps including administrative measures, fines, penalties, non-compliance charges, etc. and the imposition of various administrative monetary sanctions. If such a state were to suffer financial losses due to a delay in construction and were to claim compensation from individual citizens, this could be used as a weapon to block all those who are critical of any state policy in the future. In this kind of situation, who would be able to oppose state policy?

When ominous heavy equipment destroys the foundation of life with no hesitation, citizens have no other power but to use their own bodies to stand in front of it. Before carrying out so-called ‘state policy’, the state should listen carefully to its citizens’ voices. When the reckless development of the state and large construction companies threaten the right of citizens to a peaceful existence, the right of citizens to oppose this must be guaranteed as their natural and constitutional right since sovereignty rests with the people. To condemn this action as illegal is to delegitimize the foundation of democracy.

The insistence that the construction delay was caused by residents is groundless. There are multiple complex reasons for the delay in the construction schedule.The principal reasons include disputes and controversy over the legality of the work, suspension orders issued over illegal construction work, losses and damage to structures caused by the natural environment, the strong wind and waves of Gangjeong’s coastline, Typhoon Bolaven, Typhoon Neoguri, etc. It is sophistry and exaggeration to claim that the residents blocking construction vehicles from entering and leaving the base for only a few minutes at a time caused the delay.

The responsibility lies solely with the state for threatening citizens’ right to a peaceful existence and causing their pain by enforcing this wrongful government policy. There is no one else as responsible for this as the government. The state rather than the residents bears the responsibility. Without mentioning a word about their own responsibility, it is the height of irresponsibility for the state to shift the blame for the delays in the construction onto individual citizens. The state that should be protecting the basic rights of its citizens is instead declaring war against them.

The Navy read and copied an enormous amount of criminal case records in the prosecution office in order to prepare this civil case. Individual criminal case files contain very important personal information so they only can be provided to a third party based on legal grounds. For example, in cases where the parties have applied for a trial or where the need to conduct an investigation is recognized, it is possible through a decision of the court. Even before the Navy can properly file a lawsuit on legal grounds, it must reveal whether it copied individual criminal case records.

Minbyun defines this claim for reimbursement not as one simple trial but as a provisional seizure used to strangle workers. Like this, it has a historical connection to the suppression of labor. It has a dishonest intention to extend dangerous statism to the judiciary. Minbyun will organize a legal team to fight for the 121 people and will make efforts and take measures to inform the public both domestically and internationally about the unconstitutionality and illegality of this case. The state should stop threatening citizens with this case. It should get out from behind this case and get down on its knees in front of its citizens and apologize for causing them pain.

March 30, 2016

Lawyers for a Democratic Society (Minbyun)
Han Taek-geun, Chairperson

Take Action: Please call the South Korean embassy or consulate nearest you and complain about this outrageous action to destroy Gangjeong village. Here is the link to find the ROK consulate nearest you in the US. Do it today!

…………………………

To see the original Korean commentary by MINBYUN, see here. The translation above was done in collaboration by the members of the Gangjeong Village International team and posted here under the permission of the MINBYUN.

The above is also re-blogged from here.

To see the article on villagers’ conference on March 30, see here

April 6, 2016
Navy files suit for losses against locals that opposed naval base in Jeju

A photo by Gangjeong Village/ Press conference by Gangjeong villagers held in front of the Jeju Island provincial government building (South Korea). The banner said “Navy killed all the Gangjeong villagers and then just take away the property! You have already taken away our land, destroyed our community and now even try to take all our property away!”

the hankyoreh

Activists, civic and religious groups accused of causing loss of taxpayer money for delaying construction in Gangjeong Village

The South Korean Navy is demanding damages from local groups and residents in Jeju Island for “taxpayer losses” incurred by their opposition to the construction of a new naval base.

The groups targeted include the village association of Gangjeong in the city of Seogwipo.

“On Mar. 28, we filed a suit with Seoul Central District Court for the exercise of indemnity rights for the Jeju multi-purpose port complex,” the Navy announced in a press release on Mar. 29.

“The purpose of this exercise of indemnity rights is to hold those responsible accountable for losses in taxpayer money from among the additional costs of 27.5 billion won (US $23.8 million) incurred due to the [14-month] delay in the port’s construction period owing to illegal obstruction of operations,” it added.

The total compensation claim amounted to 3.4 billion won (US$2.9 million) of the additional costs, with the Gangjeong village association listed among the defendants alongside five groups and 117 residents and activities who took action to oppose the naval base construction.

Last year, Samsung C&T demanded 36 billion won (US$31.2 million) in compensation from the Navy for delays in the construction schedule; a figure of 27.5 billion won (US$23.8 million) was finally settled on after mediation by the Korean Commercial Arbitration Board. Mediation is currently under way for Daelim Construction’s claim for 23 billion won (US$19.9 million) in compensation.

The Navy called the claim a “legitimate measure for legal responsibility for causing construction delays and losses in taxpayer money through their illegal obstruction of a state effort undertaken according to lawful procedures.”

In addition to holding residents and activists accountable for the additional costs incurred by their opposition, the Navy‘s decision to pursue the claim following the base’s completion on Feb. 26 appears intended to send the message that those who oppose state efforts in general will face legal action.

The Gangjeong village association responded with indignation.

“We intend to discuss this with residents at the village level,” said association head Cho Gyeong-cheol, adding that legal professionals were being consulted on a response.

“The same Navy that said it would be ‘working with residents’ is now demanding compensation, and it hasn’t even been that long since they finished. It’s shameful to see the Navy going on about the ‘shared benefits for residents,’” Cho said.

Hong Gi-ryong, the head of the provincial countermeasures committee‘s executive committee, said it “makes no sense for the Navy to demand compensation when resident lives have been devastated.”

Hong went on to say residents and groups planned a joint legal response with the group MINBYUN-Lawyers for a Democratic Society.

In 2007, the administration selected Gangjeong as the site of its naval base construction despite procedural objections over an ad hoc general village association meeting attended only by a portion of residents. The construction went ahead despite the objections of local residents, activists, and religious workers, and was finally completed in February. Around 600 people were prosecuted over obstruction, with some 400 million won (US $346,000) in total fines to residents and activists.

Take Action: Please call the South Korean embassy or consulate nearest you and complain about this outrageous action to destroy Gangjeong village. Here is the link to find the ROK consulate nearest you in the US. Do it today!

……………………………………………..

Rebogged from here.

Related post is here.

For more photos, see here and here

April 1, 2016
Gangjeong Village Story: Monthly Newsletter | December 2015 Issue

In this December Edition:

Words by Cho Kyung-Chul, re-elected mayor, facing Nanjing as our future, protest to the entering of the 7th task flotilla, Veterans for Peace solidarity trip to Jeju and Okinawa, Farewell reflections by Tony Flynn and a direct action by Martha Hennessy, Philippine solidarity events for Gangjeong, Miryang commemorates 10 years, deteriorating human rights condition in South Korea, Park Sung-Soo(Dunguri) was released, the saddest day of the year 2015, trial update, Christian message of solidarity and more,

Download PDF

January 8, 2016
“The joy of joining efforts for peace” Two Catholic Workers visit Gangjeong

From Dec. 9 to 27, two Catholic workers from the United States Martha Hennessy and Toni Flynn visited the village. While both joining daily activities of 100 bows and mass, Martha Hennessy, grand daughter to Dorothy Day, felt the need of further direct action. Here is her statement read on Dec. 23 when she stopped a military vehicle in front of the base construction gate. (For a photo and statement with Korean translation, see here). Please also see Martha’s interviews as a granddaughter of Dorothy Day with two Catholic media of Catholic Times (here) and Catholic News Now and Here (1, 2)

Photo by Gangjeong village/ Martha Hennessy, Granddaughter to Dorothy Day and New York Catholic Worker carries out direct action on Dec. 22. The Korean letters read, “No need of task flotilla in the Island of Peace.’

However, their visit was also filled with meetings with people and nature here. Here are some of the essays written by the two.

“Advent on Jeju – Dec 12, 2015 Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe” Martha
& Toni’s 1st report from Jeju Island

Photo by Gangjeong village

Photo by Gangjeong village

Day 4

Gangjeong Village, Jeju Island

The weather in Gangjeong Village is cold and windy with intermittent rain blowing over Jeju Island. In contrast the Catholic peace community is warm, welcoming and grateful to us for joining them throughout December. We are all deep into Advent.

Gureombi Rock- a sacred site- is demolished, the Naval Base is built, and the Peace Community has been defeated in their struggle to prevent the construction and opening of the base.

The once pristine southern area of the island is now heavily militarized. Yet this community of villagers and activists maintain a prayerful presence at the gate, day after day, as they have for several years. This is about witness. This is about faithfulness. Although not all who participate are Catholic, this is where theCatholic Church truly breaks open the Body of Christ. This is where the Eucharist is paired with the crucifixion of the world. And this is
where the belief of Redemption is embodied in the faith of the people.

Each morning we wake up and walk a short distance from St. Francis Peace Center to join others at the gate of the naval base. The police, dressed in bright yellow uniforms, are ever present. We begin the ritual of one hundred bows in the darkness, and finish with the
dawning of the day. The Korean chanting and prayers during the bows mingle with our own inner prayers for our ancestors, family, and community members.

The daily heart and soul of the peaceful resistance culminates at the 11:00 AM Mass across from the gate. During Mass we sit in plastic chairs with priests, villagers, and activists, blocking the entrance to the base. The action proceeds nonviolently throughout Mass in a choreographed ritual between police and peacemakers. At three different intervals, police warnings intermingle with the words of the Mass as we are lifted chair and all, and moved to the side. Each time we return to sit at the gate. The priest then walks across the street bringing us communion and as we receive it, the meaning of the body and blood of Christ comes alive within us. The priest and nuns then lead us in reciting the Rosary, the Hail Marys blending with the roar of concrete trucks rolling in and out of the base. The Mass and Rosary have become inseparable from the activity of the base and the peacemakers’ efforts in the face of militarization.

At the conclusion of events, we walk to the nearby community kitchen where we enjoy the company of Jesuit priests and brothers, Franciscan nuns, local activists, and internationals.

We are served delicious Korean food including kim chi, glass noodles, rice, seaweed, and seasonal greens. We are reminded of Dorothy Day’s emphasis on the goodness of sharing a meal in common. Our lunchtime at the kitchen also serves as a means of decompressing from the intensity of the ongoing daily resistance.

We are steeped in the joy of coming together with our South Korean brothers and sisters during this Advent season. In the midst of resistance love flows out. We are grateful to all who supported us in our efforts to come here and our prayers join with yours.

“4 Vignettes from Gangjeong Village” by Toni Flynn – Calif CW

Photo by Gangjeong village

There is a pattern to our days now. Martha goes every morning at 7 am for the Hundred Bows. The weather is more fierce and I have been struggling with a sinus infection and sore throat so I read the hundred prayers from my room. “While holding in my heart that truth gives freedom to life, makeup first bow.” And each meditation deepens with each bow. (see attached doc for English translation)

After Bows, breakfast of rice, steamed eggs, yogurt and tangerines with Fr. Mun and others. Every one fusses over me wanting to help me get well so I am provided with healing elixirs, teas and various concoctions along with medicine. Martha is full of energy! She participates in every event enthusiastically. I on the other hand pace myself and enjoy one-on- one conversations.

—

The naval base is casting a huge shadow over this little village. Word is out that there will be more land used to construct housing for members of the military and their families. Some of the humble facilities set up by the peace activists will no doubt be torn down in the process, such as the community kitchen where all gather together after daily Mass to eat and converse.

Fr. Mun celebrated the 50th anniversary of his priesthood last night at the St. Francis Peace Center where he lives and where Martha and I are guests. So much food as we joined many of his friends to celebrate around a big round table. We dined on fish, snails (ok I passed on the snails), octopus (passed on that too!), seasoned rice, vegetables, and an array of other edible delights.

It was good to see the faithful women, Fr. Mun, the Jesuits and Diocesan priests find cause for celebration because they have all suffered and sacrificed so much over years of time in opposition to military presence.

—-

Mr. Oh lives in the village. He is, I believe, a Quaker. During every Mass at the entrance to the naval base, he performs a solitary funeral march, dressed in traditional pale yellow mourning clothes and a mourning hat that resembles a French baker’s hat. In silence, he slowly circles the area between the makeshift chapel on one side of the street and the entry to the base on the other side. Mr. Oh. He takes three steps, bows, places his hands on the ground, then his knees, then rises and repeats over and over again, around and around while Mass continues. His grief represents the grief of the community over the loss of their sacred rock, Gureombi; the loss of sea life; the loss of their peaceful existence. Mr. Oh’s beard is gray; his face is ancient, his eyes are piercing. One evening he sang songs and his voice was filled with sorrow, passion, strength. I would not be surprised if his songs were heard across the ocean.

—

See attached photo: This is JeJu’s non-violent Joan of Arc. She is a faithful witness at the entrance to the naval base. Two weeks ago a cement mixer truck ran over her foot while she stood at the gate. She has been in the hospital ever since. We visited her there, kindness of Fr. Kim. Joan of Arc is a woman on fire with love of this Island and the villagers. She will soon return to the naval base gate to continue with prayerful yet persistent protest. God bless Joan of Arc and all the brave priests, nuns and activists! Martha and I are already transformed by joining with them during this Advent time.

Photo by Gangjeong village

—–

“Summary of JeJu’s struggle” by Toni Flynn

The future of Gangjeong Village looks grim as does the future of JeJu Island as a whole. On another side of the Island a second civilian airport will be built. Along with more environmental destruction there is suspicion that eventually this airport will include an Air Force presence. As for Gangjeong Village, activists believe that the newly opened naval base is turning an abstract danger into a definite one by offering practicality to the U.S. and thereby
posing a threat to China. Daily life of the villagers has forever changed. What once was a unified village of peace and pristine beauty is now a militarized area with some in the village approving and some opposing the naval base. There are two family operated convenience stores in the village on two sides of the same street. One shop approves of the naval base and the other supports the opposition to the base. Before the base, these shop owners good neighbors. Now they symbolize a split village. In time, the expansion of the base along with the influx of military people and their families will overwhelm and influence the village people, their schools, shops and their village culture. The base will house not only military staff but submarines, weaponries, and war ships. The peacemakers in Gangjeong ask “How do we avoid war by building and preparing for more war?” These activists say that the struggle in Gangjeong is not only important to the locals or to the larger Korean population, but it.is of significance to all peaceful movements and peace communities around the world. We must all persevere in imagining and implementing alternatives to state violence and wars. Here is a poem for the children of Gangjeong by the poet Shin Kyung- Rim: My dears, you must be so proud of your parents who are struggling to save your village. A
day must come when we will all remember the beauty of this long struggle.

“My visit with Fr Mun” by Toni Flynn

Photo by Gangjeong village

Martha prayed the Hundred Bows at the gate this morning (she does the Bows faithfully every day) and has gone to pick tangerines with the villagers. I stayed back at the Peace Center for a visit with Fr. Mun in his work shop. He is a remarkable man of many talents with a nature that is both passionate and peaceful. His workshop is his sanctuary. There he practices his accordion and smokes an occasional cigarette. Most of the time he carves wood, creating art that speaks of struggle and peace. At breakfast today, Fr. Mun told me and Martha “We have no guns. We resist militarism with open hands.” He added “I used to love walking around in Gangjeong Village viewing the.beauty. Now I hate walking around because of the sight of the naval base structures.” Fr. Mun, Martha and I agreed that the new St. Francis Center is a solid, tangible sign of hope in the midst of all the military buildings – it is four stories high and welcomes everyone. As I started to leave Fr. Moon’s work shop he gave me a gift – a dramatic
wood carving of the suffering Christ wearing a crown of thorns. Below the face of Christ are the words in Korean: Beginning now. Peace.

Fr Mun Sings:
Below links to youtube clips of Fr Mun singing the three songs he
sings daily at Navy Gate during Mass and the Rosary.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3l8DXj5RCs
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uxhUdUO1-MI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rbOnExXQy14

33 photos of Martha Hennessy and Toni Flynn at Jeju Navy Gate Witness Dec 2015
https://www.flickr.com/photos/frank_cordaro_and_the_dm_catholic_worker/albums/72157660191689933

The destruction of Gureombi Rock is a challenge to the human
civilization and the creation of God” Bishop Peter Kang
—

Photo by Gangjeong village

Photo by Gangjeong village/ Toni and Martha in the April 3rd Peace Park

“Bishop Peter Kang -The Catholic Voice for Peace” by Martha Hennessy

Peter Kang, appointed bishop of Cheju in 2002, speaks fluent English with a gentle British accent. He studied in Japan and Rome and is known for his wisdom and compassion to both the people of Cheju, and those of downtown Seoul where he served for 25 years. He considered it God’s recompense to come to this place of fresh air and natural beauty after the noisy, smoggy city. He became aware of the tragic side of the history of the island when he moved here. As a well-educated Korean he knew little of how the island was used by United States Cold War military interests following the end of the Japanese occupation from 1910 to 1945.

These circumstances led to the slaughter of at least 30% of Cheju’s population from 1948 through 1953. Eighty-four villages were permanently destroyed. Bishop Kang expressed sadness and remorse over this history, that his government had committed such crimes. The majority of Koreans know very little about what really happened. A governmental cover-up has persisted for decades.

In 2000 an investigative study was finally allowed and the full report was completed in 2003. Bishop Kang and others traveled to Washington D.C. in April of this year to present the report to Congress but were invited to meet only with two congressional secretaries. South Korean/U.S. government interests had informed the Congress and biased them against meeting in person with the small contingent. Bishop Kang and the others have not heard from the U.S. Congress regarding the documentation of the slaughter of Cheju islanders.

The people of Korea are under significant pressure to not question the government and military in the interest of national security. Any dissenting voice is painted as “communist” and the military defense has free reign, with U.S. backing. This collaboration with the U.S. is considered essential to the existence of South Korea even as the threats of North Korea are now known to be inaccurate. An attempt was made by the South Korean president in 2002 to regain the right to direct military decisions during a time of war back into the hands of the Korean military. The current president, Park Geun-hye rolled back this effort and the U.S. continues to hold the highest level of control of any military decisions if war is declared.

Bishop Kang has expressed opposition to the building of the naval base on Cheju against the will of the people. It is imposing yet another layer of trauma on the people following the history of the massacres before and during the Korean War. He recently made five points during a homily given for the opening of St. Francis Peace Center in Gangjeong in September.

“Firstly, war is disaster. It cannot be a solution between nations. It is because such thing did not happen in the past and would not happen in the future, either.”

“Secondly, when a state power takes armed force, it can be justified and get citizens’ sympathy only by strict conditions. The mobilization of state power against the struggle in opposition to the Gangjeong naval base can never be of self-defense.”

“Thirdly, modern arms are weapons of massive mankind-killing. The increment of arms cannot be connected to peace.”

“Fourthly, we are dumping tremendous budgets into arms production. What if it is used for the nation’s progress, for the poor?”

“Lastly, why should there be a military base in Cheju, the far-most from the Korean truce line and tainted by the wounds of the April 3rd [1948] incident? Cheju is the Peace Island designated by the government. The relationship between any military base and the Peace Island is like water and oil.”

“With the construction of the naval base, the death of the April 3rd spirits has become meaningless…”

Bishop Kang cited both Catholic social teaching and the United Nations Charter to reinforce his position regarding the Korean/US naval base construction. The Jesuit provincial has permanently assigned two priests and a brother to continue carrying out daily Mass at the gate with the participation of Franciscan and Benedictine nuns, and others from the Catholic community. It is this Mass that allows the resistance to continue to block the military base for two hours every day, making the traffic wait going in and out of the entrance.

We will be holding Mass at the Chapel across from the gate on Christmas Eve, and again at the gate on Christmas Day. Bishop Kang will join in solidarity with the community stating: “the work has only just begun.”
—

Bishop Kang for Truth TV – YouTube, Published on Oct 6, 2012
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0_cfYBz7fg
“I interviewed the bishop of Jeju Island, His Excellency Peter Kang on the last day of my stay on Jeju Island. Bishop Kang is an outspoken critic of militarism and arms buildup, and a strong advocate for the Church to be involved in issues of social justice and peace.” Regis
Tremblay

“Catholic bishop reflects on the tumultuous story of Jeju”, The Hankyoreh March 9, 2012
http://www.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/522761.html

Catholic Priests unite despite navy and police insult. Bishop Kang U-Il says, “Peace is the result of justice and love.” Posted by Save Jeju Now, Nov. 13, 2012
http://savejejunow.org/catholic-priests-kang-u-il/
—

Martha Hennessy

Toni Flynn
—

Video clips from the daily Mass and Rosary at the Jeju Navy Base main gate

Dec 17, 2015 Martha dancing at Jeju Navy base gate (1min 55sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GzMk1ncy7RM

Dec. 18, 2015 Martha carried of drive Jeju Navy base (1min 50sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-EYpy7YsqE

Dec. 19, 2015 Toni carried off drive (1min 49sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HmtOernj4W0

Dec. 19, 2015 Martha dancing – Toni sitting… (2min 41sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aXzt-qoxtA

Dec 20, 2015 Communion Toni and Martha at the gate (5min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHn8AZwRMN4

Dec 21, 2015 Martha and Toni carried off drive (1min 45sec)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wa1ko4I4TEk

Dec 21, 2015 Line Dance – Toni and Martha (3min)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l-5SHdiCI08
—-

“My heart is forever changed”

by Martha Hennessy

My heart is forever changed by what I saw, heard, and received at the naval base gate in Gangjeong village. The effects of jet lag linger and my mind holds on to the people who remain there, carrying on the struggle. The 100 bows begun in the dark, the Mass at the gate, the recital of the Rosary amidst roaring construction machines, the constant witness. The sound of knocking, grinding, giant jackhammers tearing away at the island still rings in my head. Our peacemaking efforts have taken on a tremendously stronger meaning when practiced in the context of what Father Bill from Tacoma called Eucharistic resistance.

There is always the urgent feeling that we are not doing enough. I would awaken at 5 in the morning; my soul feeling devoured by this scourge taking form near the St. Francis Peace Center. One morning after the 100 bows I crossed onto the concrete breakwater at the sea’s edge and had a bird’s eye view onto the front of the base. The massive wall dwarfed me, leaving me feeling puny and helpless in the face of this insistent, mindless drive towards destruction. Standing at the gates of Mordor my very being clamored for protection and safety. I also felt like throwing myself at it. The construction workers continued with their jobs, oblivious to the wailing of heaven and earth, grieving over this great sin. I trudged back to the Center for breakfast feeling empty, distraught. I can only begin to imagine the toll this has taken on all the people who have sustained their efforts of resistance over the long haul.

On my way home through Seoul, I was able to meet with a small group of representatives from labor unions, mothers for peace, and the Protestant community. Labor leader Han Sang-Gyun is now imprisoned and on hunger strike. Police oppression continues to grow in South Korea, along with civil unrest. The demonization and exaggerated threat of North Korea is used to justify the purchase of yet more military weaponry from the United States. I spoke of the crucified body of Christ as I saw it on the island of Jeju. We all struggle to link the many causes together that make up the picture of global oppression and violence. Martin Luther King, Jr. and Philip Berrigan spoke of the need for a general strike to shut down the economy of nations run amok. But we must have in hand a ready list of clear demands needed to reform the structures of sin. Together, how do we lay out a new world in which it is easier to be good?

Meanwhile I am back in Vermont, helping to care for small grandsons, and waiting for the ewes to give birth, no doubt holding off from the cold spell ahead. We must hold all of these things in our hearts.

Enjoying time with our hosts before our departure from St. Francis Peace Center in Gangjeong.

December 30, 2015
An Island off Korea Takes on the U.S. Military Machine

For more, go to Veterans for Peace, here.

Related blog (Bruce Gagnon 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), article (Hankyoreh),

Photos by Ellen Davidson( 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

Radio interview with Ann Wright ( here)

and the link on Korean articles is here.

…………………………………………

Re-blogged from Ellen Davidson, Stop These Wars

Jeju Islanders Steadfast in Eight-Year Fight Against U.S.-South Korean Navy Base

Veterans For Peace Delegation Joins the Struggle

By Ellen Davidson

A daily ritual begins early in Gangjeong Village on Jeju Island, South Korea, site of a joint U.S.-South Korean deepwater naval base.

Activists surrounded by police as they make “100 Bows” in the early morning at the Jeju Island naval base entrance. Photo by ELLEN DAVIDSON

At 7 am every morning, activists at the entrance to the military base, begin a “100 bows” prayer. Police are lined up around them to make sure they don’t block construction vehicles. On this particular morning, this spiritual presence is augmented by Catholic peace workers, some of whom spent the previous night here in the raw damp. A mattress lies by the side of the road, occupied by Father Mun, one of the most famous radical priests in Korea. When he gets up, he is surrounded by an entourage of police who move with him as he walks, blocking his way if he tries to go too close to the road into the base. At one point, he shakes his cane at them, shouting in Korean that he is not a contagious disease to be quarantined this way.

Father Mun on the mattress where he spent the night outside the U.S.-South Korean naval base. Photo by ELLEN DAVIDSON

Villagers have been protesting construction of the Gangjeong facility and the attendant destruction of the surrounding environment for eight years. Every day, no matter the weather, they are out at the base entrance with their placards and banners, plastic lawn chairs, flower arrangements and carved wooden signs, with which they attempt to block vehicles from entering or exiting the site.

Veterans For Peace delegation organizer Tarak Kauff is set down at the side of the base entrance by South Korean police. Photo by ELLEN DAVIDSON

After the 100 bows are completed, protesters move into the next phase: police step back and allow them to move their chairs into the middle of the gateway, where they sit while the traffic builds up on both sides of the entrance. Every 20 minutes or so, a policeman comes out with a microphone and announces that if they do not leave, they will be removed. When they fail to move, 20-30 police move out and pick up the chairs (with their occupants) and flowers. They carefully deposit the chairs (still containing their occupants) by the side of the entrance and surround them while traffic is allowed to pass through the gate. When the lines of waiting cars, trucks, and construction equipment have all moved in or out, the police withdraw to their shelter behind the fence, and the protesters resume their positions in the middle of the entrance.

At 11 am, Mass begins. The removals of the protesters take place less frequently, as it is no longer “rush hour” to get to the construction site, but there is brisk traffic in and out of the gate throughout the entire day. For an hour and a half, the Catholic Mass is broadcast via speakers across the street. The protesters also have a cordless mic, and they chime in from time to time with a song or a portion of the service.

Following the Mass, the protest gets a little rowdier, with Korean pop music and dancing. Usually, this ends the daily vigil, but today the protesters stay until all the vehicles exited the gate, well past dark. This is because they were especially motivated by the previous day’s events, when a protester had been hit by a construction truck. She was taken to the hospital, where she required surgery to reconstruct her foot, which was crushed, and two other demonstrators had been arrested and taken to Jeju City. Upset by this escalation, Father Mun and others stayed the night, and Father Mun has vowed to fast until the two are released.

Veterans For Peace delegation stands with banner while giant construction vehicles leave the site. Photo by ELLEN DAVIDSON

Another aspect that made this day different was the arrival of a delegation of members of Veterans For Peace. The group of 13 includes one Korean War veteran and two others who were stationed in Korea during their military service. They joined in the protest at the gate in late afternoon, unfurling a banner that said “VFP Supports Ganjeong Village! No Navy Base!” They met with a warm welcome as they took their place among those sitting in the chairs and were carried off to the side by police. “I am thrilled that a Veterans For Peace delegation is here in strength in Jeju ,” said Bruce Gagnon, who first visited Gangjeong six years ago and has been supporting the struggle ever since. “I felt proud while we were standing in front of the gate holding our banner.”

Iraq War veteran Mike Hanes is carried out of the base entrance by South Korean police. Photo by ELLEN DAVIDSON

“I’m excited that two great post-911 veterans are with us,” said Tarak Kauff, one of the delegation organizers. “These younger veterans bring fresh energy and insight to our movement, and they are a critical part of building and strengthening the organization.”

The delegation will be on Jeju for a week, before traveling to Okinawa to join protests against expansion of U.S. military bases there. “We are here to learn more about and stand in solidarity with those feeling the direct ecological and human impact of U.S. base expansion as part of Obama’s pivot to surround and provocatively encircle China,” said Gagnon, coordinator of the Global Network Against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space.

Sung Hee Choi, a leader of the Gangjeong international team. Photo by ELLEN DAVIDSON

And for the people of Gangjeong, a village of 1900 that depends on the ocean for its economic survival, the impact is already evident, as they see the destruction wrought by the base construction on their sacred rocky Gureombi coastline and the endangered coral forests off their shore.

December 14, 2015
Gangjeong Village Story: Monthly Newsletter | November 2015 Issue
In this November Edition:

A protest on the 1st squadron created on Dec. 1, controversy on the 2nd jeju airport construction project, remembering Yang Yong-Chan, seeing the future of Gangjeong village from Pyeongtaek’s experience, confronting the provincial governor, international solidarity, questions about port entry and completion rate, trial update, military plans to write history text books, a photo exhibition on the Gurembi Rock, condolence to the victims of violence in the world and more.

Download PDF
- For the 3rd page, please refer to the re-edited below.
December 14, 2015
“PEACE FOR THE SEA IN 2015” : Statement by Participants of the International Peace Camp Held in Okinawa

See the below in a PDF file, here. ( forward by K. N./ Peace for the Sea in 2015)

Related posts are here and here

Related photos are here

“PEACE FOR THE SEA IN 2015”

Statement by Participants of the International Peace Camp Held in Okinawa

We are an international group of activists working for peace at a critical moment in Northeast Asia. Earlier this fall, we gathered in solidarity from around the world for a five-day gathering called “Peace for the Sea.” As the second annual international peace camp of its kind, its goal was to promote inter-island solidarity among our communities in Jeju Island of South Korea; the islands of Taiwan; and Okinawa and other Ryukyu Islands, including Miyakojima, Ishigaki, Yonaguni and Amami-Oshima.

Ichariba chōde (行逢りば兄弟) is an Okinawan proverb that carries a special resonance for our group, meaning “Once we meet, we become brothers and sisters.” We already share a kinship of historical memory as survivors, witnesses, descendants, and advocates. Indeed, the Ryukyu Islands, the islands of Taiwan, and Jeju Island all bear legacies of suffering, given our parallel experiences of Japanese colonial occupation and postwar authoritarian rule in the shadow of the Cold War under US hegemony. Furthermore, the security of Taiwan has long been used as an excuse for the stationing of troops in Korea and Japan.

As we mark 70 years since the end of World War II in the Asia-Pacific, we are still struggling against the unresolved contradictions of both that conflict and the Cold War, while also contending with the emerging reconfiguration of bipolar rivalries into a New Cold War. Truly, it is more pressing and necessary than ever to strengthen our solidarity as a transnational community of peace. In the spirit of Ichariba chōde, we have sought to strengthen our solidarity as a sisterhood and brotherhood of peace.

The Urgent Necessity of “Peace for the Sea”’

Following our first “Peace for the Sea” program in Jeju last year, we could not have anticipated the urgency of being in Okinawa this autumn. On the day that we arrived for our Peace Camp in late September, the railroaded passage of war bills by the Japanese Parliament marked a grave turning point, forsaking the country’s longstanding pacifism, despite massive protests throughout Japan. Shortly thereafter Okinawa’s Governor Onaga Takeshi spoke in front of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. He said, “The building of the new base in Henoko is a violation of the right to self-determination of the Okinawan people.” During that same period in Korea, an Aegis destroyer entered the Gangjeong Sea for the first time to conduct a test-mooring in the harbor of the naval base that is nearing completion, foreshadowing the end of Jeju’s identity as an Island of Peace.

As we know by now, these alarming developments are all related to the “Asia pivot,” which the Obama Administration first announced five years ago. This term commonly refers to the policy of redirecting US foreign policy and military strategy away from the Middle East and toward countries in Asia and the Pacific Rim, in response to the rise of China. But what it really means is the escalating confrontation of two hegemons, the US and China, competing for control over the last resources on earth. Truly, 2015 is a year that has seen a breakneck expansion of the region’s militarization on a scale that is unprecedented.

We fully understand that this shift will not bring about greater human security but will instead yield the conditions for a far greater risk of war and tremendous environmental destruction. We further recognize that these changes have been fueled by the global weapons industry, which reaps enormous profits from increased military tension and conflict, while ordinary people and the wider ecosystem suffer the inevitable consequences. Amid such developments in the globalization of the weapons industry, Taiwan is also implicated as a consumer through its obligation to purchase millions of dollars in US arms through the secondary market, as stipulated by Taiwan’s treaty of mutual cooperation with the US (i.e. the Taiwan Relationship Act).

A Resilient Community Affirming All Living Creatures

Many of us have come to Okinawa for the first time, and our hosts taught us the Okinawan saying, “Nuchi du takara” (ヌチドゥタカラ – 命ど宝), meaning “Life is a treasure,” or “Nothing is more precious than life.” What at first sounds like a simple life-affirming phrase is in fact shadowed by the harrowing experience of mass death during the Battle of Okinawa. In this way, “Nuchi du takara” is also a message of profound resilience: Bearing the memory of devastating tragedy and hardship, the response of Okinawan people has been to embrace life unequivocally.

So we, too, are today facing mortal threats to the collective peace in our region, and similarly our response must be to affirm the coexistence of all living creatures and to build a strong transnational community of friendship and solidarity. We are all part of nature and have the responsibility to protect the water, land, and air upon which we depend to survive.

We condemn the degradation of the natural environment and the structural violence committed against island residents and other marginalized peoples, whose interests have too often been sacrificed for the sake of exclusive and destructive forms of nationalism, or global capitalism in the guise of nationalism.

Our Shared Conviction for Peace

We stand together to oppose the dangerous militarization of this region and the destruction of our peaceful communities and our vital ecologies:

■ We demand a stop to military exercises, which are escalating regional tensions, wasting precious resources, and leading to the mass beaching of sea mammals.

■ We demand a stop to dredging to make new artificial islands, a process that destroys marine ecologies.

■ We demand a stop to the naval base construction at Gangjeong.

■ We demand a stop to the helipad construction at Takae.

■ We demand a stop to the radar base construction at Yonaguni.

■ We demand a stop to the plans for base construction at Ishigaki, Miyakojima, and Amami-Oshima.

■ We demand a stop to the plans for base construction at Henoko.

We invite more people – both in East Asia and throughout the world – to join us in taking the initiative to promote peace. Toward this vision, we will continue to work closely together, and we look forward to the third international peace camp next year in Taiwan.

We cannot leave this work to political leaders and governments, which largely answer to corporate interests and the military-industrial complex. We challenge the prevailing assumptions behind the current configuration of geopolitics that takes for granted the precedence of nation-states, military interests, and capitalist accumulation.

We will instead create another kind of geography. Through our peace camp and similar projects, we are already creating alternative political communities based on a sustainable economy, the ethics of coexistence, and our shared responsibility to preserve peace.

November 16, 2015