Peace and Music Camp to End the Korean War/ Sharing Solidarity with Tanegashima/ U.S. nuclear submarines and precarious peace/ Remembering the endangered species killed by forced move/ The construction of Gangjeong Naval Base Access Road/ The Navy’s illegally installed signboards and warning/ 3 days in Woljeong-ri, experiencing communal car/ Stop dumping nuclear-contaminated treated water into the ocean/ The Jeju governor should accept a referendum/ Space Industry and Space Alliance/ Court for Intergenerational Climate Crimes/ Daejeong offshore wind power project rejected by residents/ Korean Democracy Heading Toward Totalitarianism/ Gangjeong activist ruled guilty/ April 3rd is a unification movement/ Watching Crossings in Gangjeong/ Jeju Anti-Discrimination March/ The hope of solidarity glistening in intersections/ PSI in Jeju proves Jeju is outpost for the US/ GEIA on the THAAD completed in a hasty manner/ To hold the US accountable for dropping atomic bombs/ The 24-Hour Peace Wave/ Opposition to Talisman Sabre/ Taiwan Marine Conservation Activists’ Jeju Solidarity Visit/ Sharing about Gangjeong soft corals in the US/ PNG opposition to Defense Cooperation Agreement/ Messages from Hawaii to Okinawa/ East Asia Peace Walk in Taiwan/ Remembering the Killing Fields of Sri Lanka/ Dance of the Stones, Stories of the Gangjeong Jikimi/ Thoughts about participating in ‘Something Peace’/ “From Armistice to Peace” etc.
Gangjeong Says, Stop the War!/ Get Out US warship DDG-115!/ Cruise matters: Jeju aches from over-tourism/ Jeju 2nd Airport and the Endangerment of Indo-Pacific Bottlenose Dolphins/ The struggle against Jeju’s 2nd airport faces a new phase/ Abolish new airport projects across the country!/ Remembrance and connections at Alddreu/ How do we make peace with Alddreu?/ The Climate Peace March in Moseulpo/ We are Songaksan! We are Alddreu!/ Jeju Climate Peace March and Bijarim Road/ Jeju Youth Change the World/ Opposition to wildfire festival in the era of climate crisis/ Stop the oppression of Jeju activists!/ Condemning Korean government detention of anti-war Russian refugees at the border/ Women Cross DMZ visit and Crossings screenings/ Ethics for Enemies, What We Need/Women Conscientious Objectors’ Camp /Prevent Nuclear War in Korea/ War drills make democracy retrogressive/ Jeju and war drills in preparation for the redeployment of nuclear weapons/ THAAD integrates the U.S. MD system / US Space Forces Korea is a US outpost/ Vietnam Survivor Wins Case/ Peace visit to Okinawa: We have each other/ A newly constructed base on Ishigaki/ Strategic is not special/ Opposition to fire festival in the era of climate crisis/ 2023 Korea Peace Appeal/ Activists recovered their qualification as residents/ Place and Displace in Gangjeong Village/ Life in Gangjeong/ Lim Bora, Presente!/ 2023 Korea Peace Appeal etc.
The Jeju 2nd airport construction project nears the brink of falling/ Civilian-Government-Military Cooperation/ Gangjeong stream takes the island government and MND to court/ The 2nd airport still casting shadows after the Strategic Environmental Impact Assessment was rejected/ Opposing Talisman Sabre for a Peaceful Pacific/ Cancer cases in village close to THAAD radar/ Countering the “China Threat”-At What Price? Etc.
Not a Deceptive Apology but Truth Investigation!/ Gureombi Remembrance Pilgrimage/ Despite the lawsuit, military road construction continues/ MOLIT and the Jeju Island Government should respect the result of the public opinion poll/ Resisting Militarization in Jeju and Northeast Asia/ Okinawa update/ Jeju Environmental Declaration/ Jeju Council’s approval of land sale for the Satellite Center/ Song and Ryu’s appeal to the Higher Court was dismissed/ “White Terror, ‘Red’ Island: A People’s Archive of the Jeju 4.3/ US Pressures South Korea to secure land route for THAAD base/ A Dangerous Global Alliance etc.
A Military Road over the Water Supply Source/ The time has come for the islanders’ decision on the Jeju 2nd airport/ Voices from Seongsan / Solidarity Letters to Peace Prisoners/ Nanjing Seen from Alddreu/ National Satellite Integrated Operation Center in Jeju/ Mouth cancer found in a Jeju dolphin/ The Problem of Returned US bases/ Okinawa Update/ Building More Infrastructure for War with China/ In Memory of George Ogle etc.
President Moon’s emphasis on maritime power and the navy chief’s visit home/ Black Lives Matter in Gangjeong/ THAAD product improvement amid COVID-19/ Can Island Governor Won who dreams to be South Korean President care for the lives of Korea and the Earth?/ Susan-ri, Visiting an Endangered Village/ Divest from Endless Wars: Cancel RIMPAC and End the Korean War etc.
Kim Kyung-bae and Fr. Huh Chan-ran, Sejong City Dec. 20, 2019/ photo by Choi Sung-hee
On the night of Dec. 20, Kim Kyung-bae, a resident living in the Jeju 2nd airport-planned area of Nansan-ri, Seongsan, ended his 10 day street fast as he dramatically met Cho Myung-rae, Minister of Environment (MOE) before his decision to end the fast.
Dec. 20 hit the 10th day of Kim’s street fast. The white letters in the black banner read, ” The 10th day street fast struggle for [the MOE’s] disagreement with [the MOLIT’s] SEA on the Jeju 2nd airport.”
Kim has started
fast to demand the MOE to disagree with the original draft of Strategic
Environment Impact Assesment (SEA) made by the Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure, and Transport (MOLIT).
On Dec.19th, the
MOE sent the MOLIT the 2nd demand of supplements on the SEA. The MOE has
already made the 1st supplement demand this October. And to the draft before
the original, this June, also. Everytime, MOLIT answer to MOE regarding the SEA
was unreliable and insincere.
After the MOE’s such announcement, the greatest issue for Kim was whether the MOE’s supplement demand to the MOLIT included the issue on the legally-protected species. Media articles on the MOE demand did not show that it included the issue. Therefore, Kim decided not to end the fast, which he carried out even without tent on the street in front of MOE and MOLIT building (both are in the same building), government complex, Sejong City, since Dec. 11th.
Snow fell down on the vinyl the two used for cover during the night of Dec. 19. Photo by Choi Sung-hee in the morning of Dec. 20, 2019.Kim Kyung-bae with his friends. Photo by Choi Sung-hee, Dec. 20
And finally, in
the evening of Dec. 20th, Minister Cho heard the new that Kim would not end
fast. Minister Cho met Kim and Kim’s supporters/ friends on the night of Dec.
20th (just last night!). Kim told Minister Cho about the legally-protected
species in the planned area of Seongsan, which are missed in the MOLIT’s SEA.
Hearing Kim, Cho,
who had not been informed of the issue, asked Kim videos of those species in
Seongsan. Minister Cho said to Kim that he would do his best.
Kim who could finally end the fast expressed thanks to everyone, including Fr. Huh Chan-ran, co-executive representative of Islanders’ Emergency Committee to Stop the 2nd Jeju Airport. Fr. Huh stayed with Kim from Dec. 12, sleeping with Kim under the cold sky, and holding a mass for Kim on the sit-in site.
Fr. Huh Chan-ran held a a mass for Kim Kyung-bae at Kim’s street sit-in fast site, Sejong City on Dec. 16th (source)
Kim who has
carried out long term fasts respectively for 42 days and 38 days in 2017 and
the next year, also, wrote the below on his facebook post when he and the
others little expected that he would meet Minister Cho soon in hours.
“I must save not only my life but all the lives along with me. The lives which would be expelled or killed from the planned area for the 2nd airport. [There are legally protected species. Some of those are] Falcon, a natural monument, as well the 1st class endangered species; narrow mouth toad, the 2nd class endangered species; chuckoo, a natural monument.
I will not halt my
street fast struggle unless the issue of legally protected species is included
in the MOE’s demand of supplement again to the MOLIT”
And in his another
post on his 4th day fast, he wrote as the below.
” The fourth day of fasting in front of the Government complex building in Sejong City
Last night, my
mother who will be soon 90 years old called me.
She was about to
cry.
“Where are you?”
“Yes, I am
somewhere.”
“Are you OK?”
“I am very fine.”
“Don’t do it so
long and come back home soon.”
“Yes, mother, it
will not be long. I will be back, soon.”
She came to know
of my fast through the news. She must have cried again after she hung up her
phone, just as she cried for a long time to see my cast-worn leg when I was
greatly hurt during the protest this October.
Whenever I am
fasting, she can hardly eat. I feel so bad to exploit my body like this since
my mother took such care of my frail body when I was a child. She tried to feed
me with all the food known to be good for a person with poor health.
However, mother!
I don’t want you
to have to see my outcry when my dearest home is forcefully taken away from me
for the airport runway. And I don’t want you pass away seeing the horrible
sight of being dispossessed of your lifetime beloved house- where you raised
six children with great care, your house which is only 200 meters from the
planned airport and is one of the homes to be moved first.
I think it would
be more unfilial.
Therefore, mother, please be strong.”
A photo of Kim Kyung-bae’ s mother (from Kim’s SNS)
Finishing his 3rd fast, he can finally see his mother and baby falcon in the garden of his house back in Seongsan, before the New Year.
The MOLIT has a final chance. It should answer MOE with the SEA draft supplemented on the issues MOE demanded. The issues include noise and migratory bird sanctuaries nearby the planned area. There is no deadline for MOLIT to give answer back to MOE. And once MOLIT gives MOE answer, MOE should make a final decision. It would be (conditioned) agreement with the MOLIT SEA or disagreement with it. If the MOE answer is former, our struggle to stop the Jeju 2nd airport (air force base)would be much harder because the MOLIT would have a pretext to make public notification on the Jeju 2nd airport project, which would make legal of the project. If it is latter, the MOLIT project on the 2nd airport will be much thwarted, along with the Ministry of National Defense(NMD) greed who covets to install the Southern Search and Rescue unit (air force base) in the planned 2nd airport in Seonsan.
Kim Kyung-bae carries out a banner daily with him, “ falcons NOT fighter planes in the sky of Seongsan!”
“Falcons not the fighter planes in the sky of Seongsan”/ photo by Choi, Sung-hee
Stop the Jeju 2nd
airport(air force base) project!
# Here are links of some of legally protected species Kim Kyung-bae took record himself. He could find those falcon, narrow mouth toads(known to exist 10,000, around the area), nearby his home, Seongsan, early July, this year, just days after the SEA draft of MOLIT was made public at the end of this June. The false SEA draft stipulated that there discovered no habitats of legally-protected species in the Jeju 2nd airport-planned area of Seongsan.
Gangjeong Struggle Reached 4,000 Days & Beyond/ A New Era. No THAAD Base Construction! No Naval Review!/ The Night for the Memories of Vietnam and Jeju/ Kings Bay Plowshares/ Gangjeong Villagers Join Annual Okinawa Peace March/ Women of the Philippines & Jeju Talk Militarization / Gangjeong is April 3rd/ Sewol Ferry Tragedy Remembrance/ No SMA! No Money for USFK!/ Ann Wright Visits Gangjeong Village/ Mang-gi Chose Prison in Refusal to Pay Fines/ Poetry Night: No Jeju 2nd Airport/ Nullify the 2nd Jeju Airport(Air Base) Project!/ International Women’s Day for Peace and Disarmament/ad. On Inter-Island Solidarity Peace for the Sea Camp in Jeju 2018 etc.
In the article on Kings Bay 7 (page 3), a sentence is corrected to “They pled not guilty and expect a trial date to be set in early August.” (rather than “They pled not guilty and are awaiting trial in early August.” Pre-trial hearings are expected on Aug. 3)
