: A spiritual success upon the 65th anniversary of the Jeju 4.3 uprising!
A Joint Action for the realization of peace
: 4.3 Peace Week: From April 1 to 6, 2013
4.3 Joint events program
April 1(Mon) 20:00 pm Screening of ‘Jeju Prayer (Binyom)’ in Gangjeong, Village Community Hall
April 3 (Wed) 19:30 pm “You, Gangjeong_Writers Fall in Love with Jeju,”: Peace Book concert, 10th Fl. Jeju Venture Maru, (1176-67 Ido-2 dong, Jeju City, Jeju Island (Or 217 Joongang-no, Jeju City))
April 4 (Thurs) Watching Jiseul with the Gangjeong villagers, Lotte Cinema, Seogwipo City (914 Beophwan-dong Seogwipo-si, Jeju-do)
April 5 (Fri) 18:30 pm “Gangjeong is the 4.3” Poet Kim Kyung-Hoon’s 4.3 Book concert, Small Theater, Jeju Culture Hall ( 69 Dongwang-no, Ildo 2-dong, Jeju-si, Jeju-do)
April 6 (Sat)
09:00-16:00 Peace trip, 4.3 historic sites in the eastern part of the Island
16:00-18:00 Peace Culture Festival, Gangjeong Village Community Hall yard
Peace Week Joint Campaign
Let’s see together! Nationwide campaign to see the movies of ‘Jiseul,’ and ‘Jeju Prayer(Binyeom)’
Keungot Geomheulgool (About 3 meter ddep cave. It is guessed to have been a meeting place by the 4.3 armed guerrila. It is told that the Jeju City set up wire fence around it, considering it as a detesting place
Darangshi Cave (a famous 4.3, 1948 massacre site in which 11 dead bodies were discovered only in 1992 but condemned by the government)
Darangsh Oreom(a small hill impressive for both of views and history for the Darangshi village that existed underneath but extincted following the 4.3 )
Photo by Lee Wooki/ Dungree working during the summer, 2012
Dungree (Real name: Park Sung-Soo) has stayed in the Gangjeong village since summer 2011. With his unlimited energy and dedication, he produced the videos of daily struggle in Gangjeong almost everyday. His video ‘Gangjeong Style’ made a mega hit. Not only that, he is the one who has diligently collected and listed all the daily human rights violation incidents in the field. Thanks to him, enormous examples of judicature oppression have been known to the world.
Moreover, thanks to his dedication, people nationwide and overseas could be vividly informed about the struggle and suffering of Gangjeong.
Today, on March 25, we got the surprising news from his writing that he is resolute to go to jail not only because he can’t afford fines but he is sorry to young female activists who not only suffer from daily long-time protests in front of gates but also from tremendous fines for their protests.
As of Feb. 2013, average fines against each activist are about $3,000 to $4,000 USD. Some of them are fined of $ 8,000 to $9,000 USD each. The fines against activists have become soared especially after the Presidential election on Dec. 19, 2012. It is a new strategic method of the government to oppress the movement against the Jeju naval base project. See more detail, here.
Dungree has been accused for trespass in 2012 when he entered alone the naval base project committee building complex to protest that the navy had confined, threatened, and harassed two young woman reporters with condemning sexual remarks. The two reporters appealed on the incident later to the Korean human rights committee (though eventually dismissed by the puppet committee)
You can watch the video at the time here. Dungree himself narrates with humor what happened to him on the day, including the reminders of the past crimes of the same navy personnel who have committed human rights violation on two reporters. One of those was lieutenant commander Chung who has openly put a banner of naming protesters as ‘the pro-North Korea left,’ in the village.
Recently Dungree’s appeal to the Supreme Court was dismissed and he has to pay 1,400,000 KRW (which is about $ 1,300 USD).
He was told to be volunteering to appear in the Jeju Prosecutor’s office and was eventually jailed as of 5~6 pm, today, March 25. Currently the Korean law, counts a day for 50,000 KRW(which is about $ 50 USD). It means he has to be imprisoned for 28 days.
Dungree was very resolute to say he does neither want people pay for his fines nor he was visited but receiving letters. He is willing to bear the sufferings that he would encounter in the prison for a month.
He became the first victim of the government’s new strategy to oppress people with the judicature fines. Before him, Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo had been jailed for 10 days because of his protest in 2010 (See the bottom of here) At the time the fines against him was 2,000,000 won and people released him by gathering remaining fines for him despite Yang’s own resolution to be jailed for full period.
The matter is that it would be not only Dungree but that many activists are now at the risk of being jailed because they cannot afford fines. As the judicature oppression will grow, more and more activists will suffer from those burdens of fines.
Image source: Choi Hye-Young/ Dungree during the Island Peace Pilgrim, Summer, 2012
Today March 25, the Jeju media says that the Ministry of Strategic Planning allocated the budget for the naval base project. As the 70 days’ period ended on March 11 and the Island governor jointly signed with the central government on the civilian-military joint usage protocol on March 14, the acceleration of construction speed has been expected.
Tomorrow, March 26, the villagers will fight again to dissipate the navy’s presentation on military residential housing project. The villagers had an emergency general meeting on March 24. The Gangjeong Village Association concerned about saying that “Even though the naval base construction has not been completed, the navy is again raging wind with the matter of the military residence house in the Gangjeong village. The naval base would bring lots of conflicts such as radar base, helipad, powder magazine, training facilities, military airport, and more and more military residential house projects..”
Photo by Dungree on March 24, Sunday/One of his photos that he took on Sunday, March 24, just before the day of his imprisonment. See more of his photos , here.
Reverends, Kim Hong-Soul and Kim Hee-Young will take solidarity fasts with Yang Yoon-Mo from March 26 to 29. The peace activists will take daily one man protest in front of the Jeju Prosecutors’ Office to denounce the judicature oppression upon the jailing of Dungree.
As Dungree appealed to people in his writing, please become a member of the Gangjeong Friends that gathers members from the domestic and international to support the fines for activists, campaign for Life and Peace Gangjeong Village and movement for Demilitarizing Jeju, the Peace Island.
You may contact gangjeongintl@gmail.com.
Photo by Song Dong-Hyo/ Dunguree Park Seong-su on August 24, 2011 when mayor Kang of Gangjeong village was arrested. . . Memorable day that lots of Gangjeong villagers protested to block the arrest of mayor Kang. . .Overnight protest has continued in front of Seogwipo police station (Caption by Regina Pyon)Photo by Abigail Yu/ Dungree working in the field when mayor Kang was arrested in Aug. 24, 2011.
In this month’s issue: Remembering the one year anniversary of the blasting of Gureombi, the campaign to demilitarize Jeju continues, linking the tar sands protests and Jeju, Solidarity from Okinawa and Taiwan, trial updates, Guest articles from several visitors, as well as Angie Zelter and Benjamin Monnet, and more!
Source/ Press conference in front of the Prosecutors’ Office, Seoul, simultaneously held with that of Jeju on March 21, 2013Press conference in front of the Prosecutors’ Office, Jeju, simultaneously held with that of Seoul on March 21, 2013
It is a translation of people’s statement on March 21, 2013. You can see the original Korean script, here.
March 21 Press Statement
We denounce the prosecutors’ brutality to oppress the Gangjeong village!
: The dismissal rate of the arrest warrants regarding the incidents in the Gangjeong village is 44%
: The written arrangements and arrest warrants are manipulated with lies and distortions
In the research on the ‘Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) 2012‘ reported by the Transparency International (TI) on Dec. 5, 2012, the Republic of Korea (ROK: South Korea) got the 45th among 176 nations, two steps down from a year ago. The ROK headquarter of the TI stated that “The result this time is because of the prosecutors that got the bottom in the examination on the CPI.” The prosecutors matter because they pretend that they are the guardians for capital and power not for citizens. The very example appears in their measures on the ‘opposition movement against the Jeju naval base project.’
The navy’s illegal and law-evasive behaviors during the drive process for the Jeju naval base project have been exposed through the audit on the government affairs in 2012. While opposing against an illegal project is citizens’ natural rights and duties, the prosecutors, saying ‘it is a legal project with no problem,’ in their written arrangement, quibbled to strictly punish the citizens that have opposed the Jeju naval base project while giving an indulgence to the project interspersed with illegality and law-evasiveness.
During the process against the Jeju naval base project, 38 arrest warrants have been claimed since April, 2011 to the current. Among them, 16 have been dismissed ( 44% dismissal rate while the avarage dissimisal rate of the Prosecutors’ claims in 2012 was 20.5%). It shows how the Jeju Prosecutors have unreasonably wielded their judicuture power by now. The bigger problem is that tremendous parts of even the cited arrest warrants are filled with lies
For example, in their arrest warrants on July 3, 2012 against Mr. Kim who was arrested for his crane sit-in in protest of ‘uninstalled silt-protectors,’ on June 30, 2012, they stipulated that “since double silt-protectors were completely installed, there is no possibility of floating materials in the vicinity sea. However there has been not once that double silt protectors have been installed in the Gangjeong Sea observed of the regulations in the environmental impact assessment. Moreover, on July 2, just one day before the arrest warrant against Kim, the Jeju Island governor, sending an official letter to the joint chief of naval operation, had directed him to “resume construction after carrying out restoration construction on silt protectors and then receiving the Island government inspection on it.” The fact that the prosecutors manipulated arrest warrants against Kim, ignoring navy’s such illegality but representing only the positions of the construction companies, shows the current status of the prosecutors. Such cases are not limited to one or two.
It is not only in case of arrest warrants. The ‘written arrangements’ are also filled with various lies and distorted facts. The prosecutors defined a citizen who has not done even one-man protest in the Gangjeong field as ‘a professional protester,’ only to demand an imprisonment sentence against him. They have even forcibly indicted a peace activist in Gangjeong despite the proof of a photo that it was a construction company worker who kicked and damaged the construction fence. The prosecutors ‘cancelled indictment against the peace activist’ during the trial. There has been a case that the prosecutors have claimed 10 months imprisonment against a citizen but got the court decision of ‘no guilty on him/her. Not to mention it, a trial of a citizen who was charged for the violence against police ended because of the police violence shown in the screen submitted by the police themselves. The citizen filed later a written accusation against the police. To oppress religious events, the prosecutors over-issued mass indictments against the people who were sitting for the Catholic mass and prayer meetings in front of the gates. They have even demanded a sentence that is not stipulated in the ROK criminal law.
The fact that is especially a problem is that such cold application of law is boundlessly benevolent on the violence by the police and construction companies. The representing examples are: The disposal on non-indictment of a cement mixer truck driver who wielded violence against a woman; a connivance on a police director of criminal investigation who took violence against Yang Yoon-Mo [on April 6, 2011]; a connivance on the navy who took violence against Dr. Song Kang-Ho [in June, 2011]. Because of that, the victims of four times police violence that resulted in their bones being broken have not even filed written accusations against the police. It is because it is obvious that it would result in wasting of paper to file to the Jeju Police and Prosecutor’s office with written accusations, regarding the police violence .
The prosecutors dispose with ‘no guilty’ for the violence by construction company thugs and police even though there are proofs; indict citizens who protest to such violence by construction company thugs and police, only with the police testimony; but demand an imprisonment sentence against the citizens. Such behaviors of the prosecutors show the typical type of judicature violence.
Tens of Asian Human Rights organizations who have visited Gangjeong in 2012 and UN Human Rights rapporteurs have expressed serious concern about the ‘state violence and human rights violations’ that occur in the Gangjeong village. The Jeju prosecutors should not forget that the subject that has brought in the international society’s concern is nothing but themselves.
The prosecutors, abusing their judicature power, have afflicted the Gangjeong villagers and citizens who oppose the naval base project. Even though it is natural that they immediately release the citizens who took just resistance act or protested against police violence but whom the police arrested, the prosecutors used to release them fulfilling the legal limit of 48 hours or used to indict them based only on the police’s lie testimonies or slipshod interrogatory documents without concrete proofs and then used to over-issue unreasonable prosecutions and arrest warrants against them.
While it is the responsibility of the judicature power to measure justice by collecting the claims by the anti-base side with even minimum principle of equity, the Jeju Prosecutors have not only condemned the accused with their subjective hostility and over-issued sexual discriminatory remarks, but also have prosecuted hundreds of imprisonment sentences based on partial value judgement that the citizens ‘should be strictly punished because they oppose the national project.” Further, considering that the case of actual prison sentence is only one (actual prison sentence rate is less than 1%) and there are many cases of no guilty sentence, it is clear how unreasonably the prosecutors have over-issued their judicature powers.
Therefore we strictly warn to:
: Prosecutor Park who has filled written arrangements by manipulating facts to represent the state power and capitalist position and who has directed the judicature violence against innocent citizens to drive them as if they are devils;
(Prosecutor Park was recently promoted to a position of prosecutor in the 2nd criminal department of the Seoul Central District Prosecutors’ office. He is the responsible subject in most cases mentioned above)
Stop all the oppression of unreasonable wielding of judicature power against the citizens, by asserting that there should be no opposition to the Jeju naval base project interspersed with illegality and law-evasiveness! If such judicature oppression is to be continued, the prosecutors will face more tremendous citizens’ resistance than the current.
The press statement that we have read is of tremendous fines, imprisonments, arrests and cries of blood in every line. Now when the voice for the reform of judicature is higher than ever, we demand that the prosecutors take responsibility for their positions with vocation even it is minimum
March 21, 2013
The Gangjeong Village Association
Jeju Pan-Island Committee for the Stop of Military Base and for Realization of Peace Island
Peace activists in Gangjeong
Image source: Rev. Jeong Yeon-Gil/ “Where is the judicature justice?/ The prosecutors do “by law” to the powerless citizens, but “by bribe” to the riches, and the police do “Like dog” to puppet government!
Exposure on the reality of the ROK prosecutors’ oppression in Gangjeong
Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo will end his 52 days long hunger strike on March 24 on Sunday. Eight representatives of SPARK (Solidarity for Peace And Reunification of Korea) peace organization and Fr. Mun Jeong-hyon visited Prof. Yang to Jeju prison on March 19 and pleaded to stop the fast. In a meeting room specially provided to see him face to face, representatives persuaded him and he finally promised to start to eat light gruel from Monday, March 25. This visit was made out of people’s earnest wishes to have Pro. Yang stop the fast.
On the other hand, Rev. Kim Hong-sul(chair of SPARK Busan branch) and Rev. Kim Hee-yong from Gwangju, will do overnight 4 days fast prayer in front of Jeju prison from March 26 to 29 demanding the release of Prof. Yang and stop of Jeju naval base. Both of them also have visited Prof. Yang on March 7 and persuaded Prof. Yang to end the fast expressing their solidarity action at Jeju prison. (Regina Pyon)
Free Yang Yoon-Mo!
Letter to Yang Yoon-Mo:
Yang Yoon-Mo (No. 301)
Jeju Prison, 161 Ora-2 dong, Jeju City, Jeju Island, Korea
………………………………………………………
Here is Prof. Yang’s oral statement on March 23 ending his fast on March 24. The visitors to him on the day dictated his words to share them with the people in the world. You can see the original Korean script, here.
As I think that many people suffer from my fast, I don’t want to transfer them suffering any more.
I have taken fast to urge people concern with Gangjeong, to inform them on disappointing National Assembly, thoughtless Ministry of National Defense, and innocent villagers and activists oppressed by the judicature.
There will be no more fast in my life. Even though I stop fast, my struggle for peace will not stop.
I think I would live by 90 years old (laughter). So I state on my permanent struggle for the remaining 30 years. I will strive for demilitarizing the Island for life and peace.
While I am here in prison, I will return many of your favor and encouragement.
As a peace and unification worker, I will show myself, Yang Yoon-Mo, as a peace activists and movie critic.
I pay gratitude to the concerns for me by elementary school students, parents, Catholic brothers & sisters and protestant devotees and to the letters full of passion for peace, via mail and internet.
Since I am not forgetting those blessings, I think my decision to stop fast is good
I am grateful to all the messages of support and friendship by distinguished scholars, intellectuals, peace activists and artists from the United States, Australia, Okinawa and Japan, France, Nepal etc.
To return your concern, I intend for my complete change. I will exercise hard to strengthen my abdominal muscles (laughter).
I especially thank more than 24 days’ solidarity fast by a Korean woman in Hawai’i.
( * Ishle Yi Parkis a poet and caring mother. See the bottom of here)
I deeply thank her to take a spiritual response as an artist, despite my shallow idea and practice. Since I have received undeserved love, I will strive more for the world of peace, human rights and love.
Otherwise, I thank two men, Reverend Kim Hong-Soul and Reverend Kim Hee-Young for their solidarity fast from March 26 to 29. The two are my true friends and artists, and holly friends that I’ve met in the world of peace. I thank their friendship and will not disappoint them.
The peace of Jeju is the peace of Asia. It contributes for the peace of the world. The agenda of peace is the discourse of the world.
Image source: Ishle Yi Park
From Ishle Yi Park on March 24, 2013 (Fwd)
Thank you so much for this update, sister! I am so happy and relieved to know that Professor Yang Yoon-Mo has ended his fast and is on his way back to good health. I prayed for him often and am in deep admiration of his actions, his principles, and his heart.
I must tell you all that I fasted for seven days, but then my milk ran dry and my daughter cried for more (I am still nursing), so I ended my fast early for her. I don’t want to take credit for more than I am capable of…I want you and the other activists to know this, because to me it is incredible how strong Professor’s heart, mind, and spirit are to endure for so long. He is truly a man whose spirit I admire and love, and I love the people of Jejudo. Wish I could have done more.
I did write a statement of solidarity that asks the powers that be to free Professor Yang Yoon Mo and halt the construction of the naval base, and had it signed by over 30 activists, artists and citizens of Hawai’i ~ any suggestions on who would be the most effective people to send it to? Will try to get more people to sign it before I send it.
In terms of updates ~ any news on when he will be freed, or is he in prison indefinitely? Please let me know. Will continue to keep Jejudo and the Professor in my heart and prayers. And thank you and all the peace activists engaged in this movement for your positive, conscious actions and your huge hearts. The world is a better place because of you. God bless and Aloha.
Han Sarang,
Ishle Yi Park
RE: Thanks so much, Ishle Yi Park. Prof. Yang has got the court sentence of 18 months on Feb. 1. Please see here.
Photo provided by Rev. Kim Hee-Yong/ Photo of Mr. Kim Hong-Soul (front), Mr. Kim Hee-Yong(back left ) and Gangjeong village Mayor Kang Dong-Kyun (back right)
The Posco Consortium became additional main navy-contracted companies along with the Samsung C& T that is in charge of the 1st work area that includes the west breakwater (420 m), South breakwater(1,076 m), and accessory facilities and the Daelim Industry consortium that is in charge of mooring dock(2,235 m), east breakwater(953 m), land area formation (478,500 ㎡) and accessory facilities.
The business size is 300.7 billion won for the Samsung C & T and 202, 2 billion won for Daelim Industry.
Photo taken on April 18, 2011/ The companies that join Samsung C & T in the 1st work area are: Daewoo Construction, Deokyoung General Construction, and Maritime General Construction The companies that join the Daelim Industry in the 2nd work area are: Hyundae Construction, Gyeryong Construction Industry, Daeyoung Construction, Samhwan Corporation, and Beomyoung Inc.
The POSCO construction consortium includes the Jeju-based Deokyoung general construction Inc. that has received orders of three constructions related to the Jeju naval base one after another.
The construction is to build the office and residential buildings inside the Jeju naval base project area.
It is known that the POSCO Consortium had a fierce competition with the Daelim Industry Consortium and win over it on Dec. 4, 2012. You can see some disgusting so called eco-friendly map pictures of landscape architectures designed by the Jteng Co that joins the POSCO here
Regarding Deokyoung General Construction, it is known that it received the order for the 1st work area of the harbor and bay construction in the Jeju naval base project area(outer area construction)-which is about 310 billion won size- in 2009, joining the Samsung C & T Consortium with 5 % share.
It also received an order on naval base related construction one after another by receiving order on the construction on the 2nd work area of the land facility of the Jeju naval base, which is about 82 billion won size, by joining the Hyundae Construction Consortium, with 10% share, last September.
Photo and caption by Inchun Mpark on March 19, 2013/ ‘A villager, riding an auto bicycle, comes to the naval base project building complex every morning and appeals to the people inside the complex to please show his land inside the project area. But he is turned away every time.’
The last tomb inside the project area was moved out.
In the dawn of March 19, the last tomb of a villager’s ancestor was moved to the outside the naval base project area. While many villagers’ ancestors’ tombs have been moved, the villager, Mr. Lee, has been the one who has persisted to keep it in its original place. It is told that there was a traditional ceremony when the tomb was moved this dawn.
It is Prof. Chomsky’s 2nd supporting message for Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo, following 2012 when Prof. Yang was imprisoned for the 3rd time and took more than 42 days’ prison fast. Prof. Noam Chomsky has been a strong supporter for the Jeju Struggle against the naval base and has sent a message during the last Presidential election as well.
We so thank him and Simone Chun, Ph. D to take solidarity for Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo.
The below is Noam Chomsky’s message forwarded by Simone Chun. His message was written on March 16, 2013
‘I understand that Professor Yang Yoon-Mo is still imprisoned for maintaining his opposition to the construction of the Jeju naval base, and is now at the 44th day of his hunger strike in protest against the base and his sentencing. I would like to urge, once again, that Professor Yang be immediately released, and free to continue his just and courageous protests against the base on Jeju Island, designated an “island of peace.”
Noam Chomsky‘
Simone Chun, Ph. D with her graduate students in the human rights class being solidarity with Yang Yoon-Mo (Photo fwd by Simone Chun, Ph. D)
The Jeju Sorireported on March 5, 2013 that the planned land area for the military residential house for the Jeju naval base project was changed. The navy has originally planned to build it in the E area (violet part in the northwest, in the map) but recently changed to the B area (pale blue part in the south, in the map) as the villagers in the E area have strongly opposed it.
According to the article, the companies who received layout order from the navy have originally chosen the E area as the best to build the apartments of more than 600 households as the area is adjacent to an about 100,000 ㎡ road. The navy plans to build a large size apartment complex that can accommodate 616 households in 99,500 ㎡ area by 2015, the planned year for the completion of the Jeju naval base project.
Another benefit of the E area for the navy has been there are no houses that should be demolished.
However, the protests by the villagers who have lands in the E area have been strong. The villagers there refused to sell their lands to the navy. The Gangjeong villagers including those in the E area have already dissipated the navy’s presentation on the military residential house project on May 29 and June 15, 2012.
On the contrary, the B area is where many pro-base villagers (about 25~20 % of the whole village population) reside. It is a west south area that starts from the Gangjeong elementary school to the Gangjeong port. A road is located between the area and naval base project area.
Gangjeong elementary school/ The photo was taken on a rainy day, March 17, 2013Photo: A road from the elementary school to the port
The article says the difficulty of the B area for the navy is there are relatively more vinyl houses than in the E area so the navy should be burdened by compensation land purchase costs.
The navy plans to hold again the presentation on the military residential building in the E area within March (around March 26), 2013.
The villagers’ struggle to stop the navy’s military residential housing project will be hot again in coming days.
Source: Go Gwon-Il (Original: ROK navy)/ the navy’s disgusting picture of the village in the future that is to be transformed by the naval base project.
It was March 11, 2013 that Mr. Kim Hak-Ku was injured by the police’s violence to him. The police intentionally pulled down the chair he was walking on as part of his protest/performance. Mr. Kim Hak-Ku has already been injured many times during his protests especially during the blast period last year.
Photo and caption by U-Jin Kang/ On March 11, 2013, Mr. Kim Hak-Ku was injured as the police intentionally pulled down a chair underneath him. ‘The peace activist fell down from a chair in front of the naval base project bldg. complex and was carried by ambulance to hospital. When the police allowed the cement truck before ambulance, the people protested to it. then a policemen let the ambulance go first..’
You may watch the Dungree video here.
As the navy enforcement on the 24 hour entry/ exit of construction trucks restarted on March 18, after it posed for about two weeks, more injuries of people are concerned about in coming days.
“You cannot love holding weapon.”
Photo fwd by Saltcandy Yohan on March 14, 2013, around 2:56 pm / Activists holding pickets in front of the naval base project building complex: “The cement cannot make a flower bloom” and “You cannot love holding weapon.”
Photo by Andy Duk-Jin Kim on March 15, 2013/ People visiting Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo in the Jeju Prison
Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo hit 45th prison fast day as of March 17, 2013.
On March 15, the National Network of Korean Civil Society for Opposing to the Naval Base dispatched some representing people to the Jeju Prison. They are Fr. Mun Jeong-Hyeon, Fr. Mun Kyu-Hyun, mayor Kang Dong-Kyun, Mr. Kim Duk-Jin (Secretary of the Catholic Human Rights Committee) and Jang Hana(National Assembly Woman). The group urgently appealed Prof. Yang Yoon-Mo to stop his fast, very concerning about his deteriorating health.
As 70 day period ended on March 11 and Governor Woo Keun-Min signed an agreement with the government on the Civilian-Military Joint Usage on March 14 (see the Korean articles on it and whole protocol here in Korean language)and , it is expected that the new Park Geun-Hye government would accelerate the naval base construction with false promise of local development.
It is known that Prof. Yang did not make a clear answer but said that he would seriously consider it in the group’s meeting with him specially given for 30 minutes on March 15.
Kim Duk-Jin, Secretary of the Catholic Human Rights Committee delivered the condition of Prof. Yang, saying, “he became tremendously thin at first glance. He looked very energy-less but seemed to endure by mental power.”
The group will visit Prof. Yang either on Tuesday (19) or Wednesday (20) again.
Currently Ishle Yi Park, a mother, poet and activist (Poet Laureate of Queens, 2004-2007), Hawai’i has been taking solidarity fast with Yang Yoon-Mo. If it is right, she hits her 18th day fast as of March 17. She ‘plans on fasting as long as Professor Yang is fasting.’ (See the bottom of here)
We very concern both of their health and strongly hope they would stop fast.
