Save Jeju Now

No War Base on the Island of Peace

Tag: missile defense

  • Gangjeong Village Story: October/ November 2018 Issue

     

    In this October/ November 2018 Edition :

    The Nightmare of a Fleet Review in Jeju/ South Korea to have blue-water navy, imperialist ambitions?/ Resisting Empire in the 21st Century/ Korea and the war in Yemen/ Delivery of Jeju April 3rd Petition to the US embassy/MD system extension in South Korea/ Bijarim Road and the 2nd Jeju airport project/ For more than Recognition of Conscientious Objection/ Soft corals threatened with the plan of new dredging/ Gangjeong Activists receive the “Red Award”/ Exhibitions by Koh Gilchun, Oum Mun-hee and Yang Sang/ The opening of Jeju Dolphins Center/ Trial Updates etc.

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  • Stop ROK-US-Japan missile defense drill!

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    Photo by Pang Eunmi

    “The ROK-Japan agreement [on comfort women] on Dec. 28 is originally invalid. Renegotiate!” “Stop ROK-US-Japan missile defense drill!”

    Since ROK-Japan collusion on comfort women issue on Dec. 28, last year, Gangjeong has carried out a girl statue performance every Wednesday, in remembrance of comfort women under the Japanese imperialism, as well as for the justice of women and lives victimized by militarism and war crimes.

    June 28th hit sixth months from Dec. 28 last year. Is it coincident that a ROK-US-Japan missile defense drill in the name of missile warning drill was carried out in Hawaii on the same day (Hawaiian time) as a part of RIM of Pacific exercises, the recorded war drill in, around Hawaii and south of California from June 30 to Aug. 4? We remind that the missile defense system needs ROK-US-Japan war alliance and comfort women issue is a kind of obstacle to realize such a war alliance.

    The small sign above ‘NO MD’ reads, ‘Immediately renegotiate on a humiliating agreement on comfort women issue, which is for the ROK-Japan military cooperation.’ ( Justice for Comfort Women upon June 28, six month later from Dec. 28)

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    Photo by Pang Eunmi/ One can see the Jeju navy base far in the back ground

  • Dangerous Military Buildup in Asia and Pacific

    Re-blogged from here and here

    South Korea constructs new Naval Base on Jeju Island, U.S. Plans to Expand Military Base on Okinawa and China Builds on South China Sea Atolls

    By Ann Wright

    The international community is extraordinarily concerned about the Chinese construction on small islands and atolls in disputed waters off China, Vietnam, Taiwan and Japan.  Over the past 18 months, the Chinese government has created islands out of atolls and larger islands out of small ones.

    With the Obama administration’s “pivot” of the United States military and economic strategy to Asia and the Pacific, the Chinese have seen military construction in their front yard.

    I’ve just returned from my third trip to Jeju Island, South Korea. Jeju is called the Island of Peace.  However, its where the South Korean military has almost finished construction of a new naval base, the first military base on this strategically located island south of the mainland of Korea that is littered with U.S. and South Korean military bases, leftover from the Korean war and that are a part of the U.S. “defense” of South Korea from  “aggression” from North Korea.

    The Jeju Island naval base will be the homeport for ships that carry the U.S. Aegis missiles.  Many on the island call it a U.S. naval base since it will be a key part of the U.S. “pivot” to Asia and the worldwide U.S. missile defense system. They believe that the naval base will be used as frequently by U.S. warships as by South Korean ships and submarines.  With a naval base on Jeju Island, they believe that Jeju Island  becomes a target should military hostilities breakout in Asia and the Pacific.

    The naval base was built in the pristine waters off Gangjeong Village midst seven years of intense civic outrage.    The destruction of the marine environment off the village where the famous women divers for decades have harvested by hand the “fruits of the sea” is one of the cultural and economic losses the construction of the naval base has caused.

    The destruction by huge dynamite explosions of a unique geologic rock formation called  “Gureombi” is a cultural and spiritual loss to the islanders.  Its tide pools, crystal clear springs and lava rock formations made “Guremobi” a favorite area for villagers and visitors to the island.
    rocks

    Photo by Ann Wright.  Only section of Gurombi rocks left.

    The construction of the naval base in spite of strong local opposition is a part of the history of oppression of the people of Jeju Island from the mainland government. After the Korean War, South Korean and United States military forces which conducted the infamous April 3 massacres of over 30,000 islanders who were believed to be opposed to the right wing Syngman Rhee government, dissidents and sympathizers for reunification of Korea.  The April 3 “incident” left a deep scar on the people of Jeju Island and made them very sensitive to mainland government policies, particularly those which “target” them again.

    The South Korean government has built the naval base in one of the most inhospitable areas of Jeju Island.  The naval base faces the open ocean and has already been battered by two typhoons which have displaced huge concrete caissons which form the foundation of the quarter mile breakwater created to protect the base from the sea.  The government attempted to put the base at two more favorable geographic locations on Jeju Island but were deterred by citizens who successfully refused to allow the base to be constructed in their part of the island.

    Despite large and continuing protests in Gangjeong village against the construction of the naval base, the South Korean national government reportedly with intense pressure from the United States decided that they had to begin construction somewhere on the island and chose to ignore the strong local opposition.

    However, the decision has come at a great cost to the national government.  Daily demonstrations and frequent large demonstrations with planeloads of mainlanders flying into help islanders, have resulted in the government having to deploy hundreds of police from the mainland to counter the demonstrations.  Local police on Jeju Island are felt to have too much sympathy for the demonstrations and therefore police from the mainland are needed.  Islanders see this as an historic throwback to the April 3, 1948 oppression of opposition to mainland government policies.

    Each day at Gangjeong village begins with a 7am demonstration of 100 “bows” at the front gate of the naval base.  Protesters block one lane of the base forcing a slowdown of traffic of concrete trucks and other vehicles entering the base.  For almost an hour, the demonstrators silently offer thoughts on the militarization of their island as they bow or kneel.  At 11am Catholic priests and laywomen conduct a daily mass across from the front gate as other priests and activists sit in chairs blocking both lanes into and out of the base.  Every 20 minutes, a platoon of young police men and women march into the seated protesters and carry the chair and the person sitting in it to the side of the road, opening the road for traffic for five minutes.  Then the police march back into the base and the protesters immediately move their chairs back to block the lanes into the base. After an hour of blocking the entrance, the protest ends with an energetic dance—and traffic resumes.  Long time activists recognize that the hour protest is a small delay in the construction of the base, but consider the two daily protests as extremely important actions to remind the national government of their continuing opposition to the military base.

    mairead

    Photo with Ann Wright’s camera.  Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Maguire, Ann Wright, Catholic sisters and other Gangjeong activists after having been lifted up and carried in chairs out of the road to allow steady stream of concrete trucks to enter the naval base.

    My first visit to Jeju Island was in 2011.  At that time, activists still had their camp on the  Guremobi rocks on the edge of the ocean.  The camp consisted of a long educational tent, a sleeping tent and a cook and eating tent.  Every day activists would conduct workshops and ceremonies on the rocks.

    When I returned in 2013, despite the intense efforts of the activists, the Guremobi rock formation had been blown up with dynamic and construction had begun with two huge facilities built on the remains of the rocks to create the massive concrete caissons that would be lowered into the ocean to form the quarter mile long breakwater to protect the base from the open ocean.

    Returning two years later in 2015 with eight women from the Women Cross the DMZ walk www.womencrossdmz, including Nobel Peace laureate Mairead Maguire and CODEPINK co-founder Medea Benjamin, I was devastated to see the vastness of the naval base which is nearing completion.  Although statistics on the amount of concrete that has been poured into the ocean and into the buildings on the base are unavailable, the sheer scale of the base leads one to guess that a road around the world could have been built with that volume of concrete.

    horror

    Photo by Ann Wright      Jeju Island Naval Base Huge Breakwater

    And its not just on the base itself that construction has proceeded.  As villagers suspected from the beginning, the base would expand into other parts of the community.  More land near the base is now being condemned by the government so it can be used to build housing for military personnel and their families.

    After seven years of large protests against the construction of the military base, the base has been built—and the Chinese know it as they have watched the construction—up close—as, remarkably, the South Korean government allows Chinese tourists to visit Jeju Island without a visa.  The Chinese tourist trade is large—as is the purchase of land by Chinese on Jeju Island.  A big area on Jeju Island is now a Chinese “health” vacation area with condos and other facilities for Chinese—even the road signs in the area are in Chinese!

    The Chinese are watching another construction project in the Pacific.  This time a United States military base on the southern Japanese island of Okinawa.  Despite massive Okinawan opposition, including a visit in May 2015 of the governor of Okinawa to Washington, DC, the U.S. is planning to begin expansion of Camp Schwab, a U.S. Marine Corps base and construction of an airfield runway on Okinawa.  The runway will project out into the South China Sea into pristine waters with endangered coral formations and into the habitat of the dugong, a manatee-like marine mammal.  Okinawa makes up 1% of Japan’s land mass but is the location of 74% of all U.S. military bases in Japan.

    okinawa

    Okinawans have been protesting for years the expansion of Camp Schwab, a U.S. Marine Base.  Only last month, over 35,000 Okinawans gathered to voice their opposition to their national government’s approval of the base despite the opposition of all levels of the Okinawan provincial government and island civil society.  http://rt.com/news/259373-okinawa-protest-us-base/

    In 2007, I visited the activists on Okinawa at their seaside camp where they have a daily presence to remind the U.S. military that they do not want the naval base.  The senior citizens of the village of Henoko moved their Senior Citizens center to the beach so they could participate each day in attempting to preserve their village from another military base.  (RT footage)

    The Chinese have been watching the process for the building of another U.S. base in the Pacific, as they have watched the expansion of U.S. military forces on the U.S. territory of Guam.  The projected increase in U.S. military personnel and their families is expected to increase the population of the small Micronesian island by 30 percent.

    In another interesting economic considerations versus foreign policy posturing between sparing countries, Russian tourists to Guam do not need a visa to the United States to visit the island.

    The bottom line is that the Chinese see the expansion of the United States military forces and capabilities in their front yard and are constructing their own projections of power on the tiny disputed islands and atolls off their coast.  Neither the United States nor China need any of these bases as both have more than enough air capability in the form of aircraft or missiles to initiate or counter any military move by the other.

    All of this construction is another example of the never ending, massively expensive war mindset of political leaders and their financial backers who profit from a hostile world.

    About the Author:  Ann Wright served 29 years in the U.S. Army/ Army Reserves and retired as a Colonel.  She served 16 years as a U.S. diplomat in U.S. Embassies in Nicaragua, Grenada, Somalia, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Sierra Leone, Micronesia, Afghanistan and Mongolia.  She was on the small team that reopened the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan in December, 2001.  She resigned from the U.S. government in March, 2003 in opposition to the war on Iraq.

  • THE KIRUNA CONFERENCE STATEMENT

    The below is a re-blogging from here and here.  The statement includes a content on Gangjeong. 

    To see the report from High North Space Conference, see here. 

    To see ROK’s involvement on the Arctic development, see here.

    Kiruna_map

     

    Kiruna_13_1170
    For more details on the Kiruna conference, see here.

     

    PROTECTING THE HIGH NORTH, DEMILITARISING OUTER SPACE AND REMOVING THE THREAT OF NUCLEAR ANNIHILATION

    The International Conference on the High North and International Security was held in the city of Kiruna, Sweden, on 28-30th June 2013. Representatives from a wide spectrum of civil societies and public movements from a number of Scandinavian, European, Asian and Latin American countries, Russia and the United States of America attended and agreed the following:

    Conference members recognize:

    that we are facing major threats to our survival through the continued pretence that security can be obtained through aggressive foreign policies and military action;

    that the ultimate consequences of these policies is the continued development and threatened use of nuclear weapons and the exploitation and militarization of environments that should be protected for the benefit of all humankind – such as the Arctic and outer space;

    that the High North is being used by an expanding NATO as a military practice ground in which to rehearse future war fighting strategies and to test and develop new killing technologies;

    that the US has established a satellite ground station in the Svalbard islands in Norway which is used by the military and therefore violates the Svalbard or Spitzbergen Treaty that requires that the archipelago is not used for military purposes;

    the rapidly increasing deployment of space based military systems and the global network of ground based stations (including radars, downlink and surveillance facilities) that support and supplement them;

    that the uncontrolled and irresponsible use of outer space has resulted in that environment being littered with debris that could eventually render it impenetrable;

    the destabilizing effects that the deployment of space based, ground based and sea based missile defense systems have on undermining international stability and that they are risking the possibility of reaching further agreements on nuclear disarmament;

    that all states who have signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty should honour its Article VI and “pursue negotiations in good faith on effective measures relating to cessation of the nuclear arms race at an early date and to nuclear disarmament, and on a Treaty on general and complete disarmament under strict and effective international control”;

    the negative consequences stemming from the stationing of US tactical nuclear weapons in a number of European nations;

    that US President Obama’s focus on his “pivot to Asia”, the sending of missiles and warships to the region and the encouragement of the construction of support bases in the region (such as the one threatening the lives of the Gangjeong villagers on Jeju Island, South Korea), is aimed at containing China and is increasing international tension.

    We therefore call on all governments, political parties, members of civil societies and public movements all over the world to share these concerns and urgently request them to call upon:

    the leaders of the Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council to arrange an urgent meeting on the revival of stalled arms control processes and to embrace all key areas, including nuclear weapons, missile defense and conventional weapons stationed on the ground, at sea, in the air and in outer space;

    the members of the United Nations to firmly work towards the adoption of a Nuclear Weapons Convention, leading to nuclear disarmament,  and we call upon the nuclear weapon states not to obstruct the discussion of the Nuclear Weapons Convention in the General Assembly of the UN;

    all nations possessing or about to possess missile defense components should recognize their destabilizing nature and seek instead, through diplomatic processes, to reduce international tensions and work towards a situation where cooperation, mutual trust and understanding;

    all space-faring nations should engage immediately in high level talks on the Prevention of an Arms Race in Outer Space and the adoption of outer space as a de-militarized zone;

    all states to respect and renew their commitment to protect the unique and vitally important regions of the Earth, such as the Arctic and Antarctic, and reconfirm that they are not the property of any one nation, and never should be, but are to be protected as a common heritage for all humankind and never used for military purposes.

    The money and material assets that will be gained from the above steps and other arms control and disarmament measures should not then be redirected to other military projects but used instead to help convert our militarized societies to peaceful ones that work for the betterment of the social and economic well being of all people – for human rather than state security – and for dealing with our common problem of climate change.

    As declared at the conference in Kiruna, Sweden,

    29th June 2013.

  • Aegis: Guard of the Guardians Themselves | notonlyformyself

    Reblogged with permission from: Aegis: Guard of the Guardians Themselves | by notonlyformyself *

    There are so many issues and causes to care about in the world.

    Tigers going extinct, homeless folks, religiously motivated settlers in the West bank. And then there is world politics, armament races and wildly differently opinions, conclusions and analysis aimed at explaining how to keep the citizens of the world safe.

    Issues that the villagers of Gangjeong have been forced to care about.

    They have filed cases. They have sued. They have chained themselves to cars. They have lobbied and demonstrated. They have been beaten and put in jail. Been black listed and thrown out of convention centers and meetings. Arrested for refusing to leave when demonstrating quietly outside a SAMSUNG(one of the biggest construction companies on the base) owned hotel during a UN/ROK joint conference on disaster and nonproliferation in Jeju. The are still fighting for the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, adjacent to the proposed military port. They have been called trouble makers, communists and North Korea supporters.

    Somebody hijacked their democratic process and their votes didn’t count when they said no to the naval base.

    They even walked from Jeju up to Seoul in what turned into a 5000 person march. That is how much they care.

    In addition, the main tourist bus driving from the airport in Jeju city to nearby Saegepo was re-routed so as not to expose the bus passengers to the demonstrations during the International Union for Conservation of Nature conference in 2011 and the participants were warned not to have any contact with the activists as they were dangerous. What actually happened at that conference is another story but basically the Korean government had, in exchange for a considerable amount of money, struck a deal with the organisation not to allow talks about the environmental consequences of the naval base construction. It became known and an unwelcome but unstoppable arena was created for the Gangjeong activists.

    But this is is not a Gangjeong issue, this really does concern you. Wherever you are. And I will tell you why.

    2011 the Obama administration announced a military strategic turn around, a whooping 60 percent of US military resources being shifting from Europe and the Middle East to the Asia-Pacific region in what is called the South Asian pivot. A new frontline of defence and the enemy has a new name. The WOM discourse has not completely gone to bed with the Bush camp but Red China is now the scary man of the mouth.

    Still wondering why you should care? Well, a new battle field is in the making in one of the most heavily populated area in the world, with the US as a main actor. Regions and nation states are being courted and divided up according to the old cold war logic.

    The United States already has 219 bases on foreign soil in the Asia-Pacific; by comparison, China has none. The Jeju base would augment the Aegis-equipped systems in South Korea, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam and the US colony of Guam. The Pentagon has also positioned Patriot PAC-3 missile defense systems in Taiwan, Japan (where the United States has some ninety installations, plus about 47,000 troops on Okinawa) and in South Korea, which hosts more than 100 US facilities. Source

    Many military analysts are saying it, the US naval and missile defence logic is morphing and sliding into the Asian region.

    As far as Gangjeong goes, about 6000+ US/ROK navy personal are moving in if the construction goes as planned. And Aegis is coming with them.

    They also bring:

    2 submarines

    20 large destroyers, equipped with the above mentioned sea-based Aegis ballistic defence system

    2 aircraft carriers

    What are we really talking about here? Well, there are numerous types of these warships. One type looks like this:

    The AEGIS is an integrated combat naval weapons system which uses powerful computers and radars to track and guide weapons to destroy enemy targets. Japan already have three of them, as do Spain and Norway. And the US of course who had them first. Looking at the technique behind it, this is basically how it works:

    The Aegis Combat System is controlled by an advanced, automatic detect-and-track, multi-function three-dimensional radar (the AN/SPY-1). Known as “the Shield of the Fleet”, the SPY high-powered radar is able to perform search, tracking, and missile guidance functions simultaneously with a track capacity of well over 100 targets at more than 100 nautical miles (190 km).

    The Aegis system communicates with the Standard missiles through a radio frequency (RF) uplink, but still requires the AN/SPG-62 radar for terminal guidance. This means that with proper scheduling of intercepts, a large number of targets can be engaged simultaneously.

    In other words, this system is both able to track as well as engage a massive number of targets at the same time. Their radar systems work independently even though they are sometimes referred to as Aegis class cruisers.

    Remember yesterdays blog entry. The simulation that was supposed to take place inside the base. Bringing cruise liners into the harbor. Not very likely.

    The activists here tell me that submarines that are coming to town are armed with nuclear missiles.

    The villagers may know this. Some do. But really. You don’t need to know the tech info. Exactly what kind of Destroyer is coming in or how the Aegis ballistic missile defense (ABMD)was started by President Reagan in the 80s and how it initially was supposed to be use in space.

    What it comes down to is this, do we really want another place in the world massively invaded by war ships and missile systems? There are other ways to deal with conflict and fear, like an improved level of communication.

    By the way, the blog title refers to the motto written in latin on the emblem. A guard for whom?

    *Reblogged posts do not necessarily reflect the opinions or views of Save Jeju Now

     

  • Rocket launch? Missile Defense System is to be tested

     

    Image source: Yonhap News, Oct. 22, 2012

     

    The below is the translation of a Korean article in the Asia Gyungje (meaning Economy).

    Very important article, I think…

    ………………………………………………………………………….

     

    Asia Gyungje

    Two Aegis destroyers will trace the space rocket, ‘Naro’ at the same time.

    Oct. 23, 2012

    2012.10.23 10:27

    Image source: Asia Gyungjeo, Oct. 23, 2012

     

    It is expected that on Oct. 26, the top-of-the-line fighters and Aegis destroyers will be gathered in the sea of Yeosu and Goheung, Jeolla province (Southern part of Korea), ahead of the planned launch of the Naro (KSLV-I), a space rocket, [ which is launched by the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, Daejeon)

     

    On Oct. 23, a ROK military personnel said, “The F-15K, the top-of-the-line, of the Air Force will be on air patrol and Aegis destroyers will carry out the duty of path-tracing on the Naro.”

     

    The navy has supported the Naro with the mobilization of the King Sejong, the Great, an Aegis destroyer in its 1st launch (* Aug. 25, 2009, failed); Yulgok Yi Yi, the 2nd Aegis destroyer, in the 2nd launch (* June 10, 2010, failed). At this time of the 3rd launch, two Aegis destroyers are positioned in the west south sea of the Jeju Island and step to trace its path at the same time.

     

    The Aegis ships of the navy is loaded with the Aegis combat system of long distance defense, anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare and ballistic missile defense system. Using that combat system, the Aegis ships can detect the ballistic missile flying from approximately 1,000 km and can intercept it with the Standard Missile-2 equipped to the vessel when it approaches within in-range.
    Since the applied launch technique is same in the space projectile and ICBM, with only difference that the space projectile is loaded with the civilian satellite projectile, but the ICBM with the nuclear and conventional warhead, it is a good chance to check the preparation ability of the ballistic missile.

     

    The Air force supports with the fighting planes of the F-15K, KF-16. It is to block the civilian and military airplanes that may approach in the upper air of the Naro Space Center set for the temporary no-fly-zone. The F-15K fighting planes using the TIGER-EYEs Targeting Pod, will film the launch orbit of the Naro (2 km to 12 km in the upper air) from the 10 seconds before the launch of the Naro and 70 seconds after the launch of it.

     

    The images that will be provided to the Naro Space Center are planned to be utilized as the source material of the data analysis for the development of the rocket, Naro. Also, there is a plan to provide weather, flight information in real time by dispatching the Air Force personnel to the Space Center and maintaining hot line with the Master Control and Reporting Center(MCRC), Osan, Gyeonggi Province.

     

    The Coast Guard is joining, too. The security ship No. 3002 (3,000 ton class) belonging to the Jeju Coast Guard left the Jeju port at 9am in the morning of Sept. 22 toward the international waters east of Philippine. The No. 3002 will move to the international water 600km east of Philippine, which is 1,700 km south of the Jeju Island. It will support the tracing of the projectile after the launch of the Naro and telemetering monitoring on the flight condition information. It will also take charge of duty to grasp the location of the projectile after it is separated from the satellite and to support on the maritime safety management such as controlling the vicinity in the Pacific Sea area to prevent the damage for the falling objects.

     

    The Jeju Coast guard ship (Jeju Sori, Oct. 22, 2012)

     

    ………………………………………………………………………..

    # The Osan Airbase (actually based on Songtan) is known to be the biggest in the region of the Asia Pacific since the closure of the Philippine Clark Air Force base, Philippine in 1991. It is also a headquarter of the 7th Air Force of the United Sates under the US Pacific Air Force. Currently in the Osan base, the ROK Air Force Operation Command Headquarter and MCRC 1 exist together in the Osan base. The MCRC 2 is in Daeku, Kyungsangbuk-do province, beginning its operation in 2002.

    ( Reference from here and here)

     …………………………………………..

    # Save Jeju Now adds on Oct. 26

    Image source: Yonhap News

     

    Reference

     

    http://www.asiae.co.kr/news/view.htm?idxno=2012102310255171056

    이지스함 2척 ‘나로호 궤도‘ 동시 추적

    최종수정 2012.10.23 10:27기사입력 2012.10.23 10:27

     

    …………………………………………..

    See also

     

    http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2012/10/113_122831.html

    S. Korea to add submarines, Aegis destroyers