Korean Protests:

JANUARY 2004:

According to "Environmental Impacts and Benefits of Regional Power Grid Interconnections for the Republic of Korea: Potential Impacts on Nuclear Power Generation and Nuclear Waste Production" By Jungmin Kang, Nautilus Institute, "Since the first commercial operation of a nuclear power plant (NPP) in the Republic of Korea (ROK) in 1978, the ROK has placed fourteen units of pressurized water reactors (PWRs) and four units of CANDU (Canadian Deuterium Uranium) reactors in operation. These units have a total electricity generation capacity of 15.7 GWe, and supplied about 38.9% of the total electricity generated in the nation as of the end of 2002. Two more PWRs units are under construction, with eight additional PWRs to be deployed by the year 2015. Recently, however, "anti-nuke" movements by local residents and anti-nuclear non-governmental groups have been strengthening in the ROK. As a result, it will arguably be difficult for the ROK government to construct all of the eight additional planned PWRs by the year 2015. Electrical grid interconnections between adjoining countries in Northeast Asia could provide several benefits to the host countries, including environmental and economic benefits. If the ROK could import electricity generated in the Russian Far East (RFE) via a ROK-Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea (DPRK)-RFE power grid interconnection, it could replace the deployment of two or of the planned NPP units, and as such could provide environmental and economic benefits to ROK by reducing the generation of nuclear wastes such as spent nuclear fuel and Low and Intermediate Level Waste (LILW), as well as decommissioned reactors."

The average adult drank 86.6 liters of alcohol last year, a 7.8 percent increase from 2001's 80.5 liters.

According to NSO statistics, the number of registered emigrants was 11,178 last year, 3.5 percent fewer than the year before, at 11,584. A closer look at the internal factors, however, shows that employment was the top reason for leaving the country, cited by 56.5 percent of emigrants. Joining relatives was 18.4 percent, and business was 14.9 percent. Compared to the 2001 figures, the number of overseas job-seekers increased by 3.9 percent, while other reasons for leaving -- such as marrying a non-Korean -- declined. An official at the NSO said that the change is a reflection of the domestic economic slump; more people are dreaming of establishing a new life in other countries through overseas employment.

The average monthly income for city households was W2.79 million, who spend W1.82 million of their total salary. The householder -- usually the husband -- accounted for 68.2 percent. In 1990, however, the average householder earned 73.3 percent of the total income. The proportion of the wife's income was 9.6 percent, 3.5 percent more than that of 1990. The change is attributed to the increased participation of women in the job market.

In addition, educational expenses recorded 10.9 percent of the total household monthly expenditures, the sixth consecutive year that educational expenses went over 10 percent. An official at the NSO said that despite the economic slump, people consider their children's education a priority. They first cut back on other expenses, the official said. However, as the economic conditions worsened, people were cutting back on these expenses as well by December.

Setting the income level for high school graduates at 100 points, college graduates had an average income of 153.8 last year. In 1999, the ratio between high school graduates and college graduates was 100 to 159.5. The income gap between education levels is getting smaller, a result of early retirement and changing work priorities that value ability over education, the NSO said.

The number of marriages has steadily decreased over the last 10 years: last year, there were 307,000 registered couples, 13,000 fewer than 2001's 320,000 couples. With the drop in the number of married couples and increasing rate of divorce, the birth rate was at it lowest point ever, at 1.17. A birth rate of 2.1 is the minimum required to sustain a population.

Korean films find new lot of bad guys

For a new generation of South Korean filmmakers, it's Americans, not the communists, who are to be feared

By James Brooke

NY TIMES NEWS SERVICE , SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA
Monday, Oct 13, 2003,Page 16

The daughter of North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Il, is pouting in the suite of a luxury hotel in Seoul. She has just learned that Daddy has arranged a marriage for her in Pyongyang to a boring old nuclear scientist. Not for the Dear Leader's teenage princess! Donning a tight white blouse and a hot-red miniskirt, she eludes her amiable North Korean police chaperone, and runs away to a disco, where she shouts in English, "Let's party!"

All goes swimmingly in the movie Whistling Princess until the Americans, dressed in black, arrive at a rock concert. As the princess kisses a hunky Seoul rocker, with a unification ballad reaching a crescendo, the Americans blow up the place with hand grenades and rocket launchers. "I thought I took a creative stance, changing the Americans from good guys to bad guys," said Peter Lee, the filmmaker, in the office of his film company here. "Actually, I like the US. I visit the US two times a year."

Such is the world of South Korean cinema, which has seemingly embraced the government's Sunshine Policy, started in 2000 to extend an open hand to North Korea. No longer are North Koreans portrayed as devils; that role now belongs to the Americans.

These new films are popular among young adults, feeding their anti-American politics. Last December, when Whistling Princess was released, Gallup Korea, a polling firm, found that 75 percent of South Koreans in their 20s had a negative view of the US, compared with only 26 percent of Koreans over 50, the generation that lived through the Korean War.

"From those movies, we can sense that North Korea is no longer a competitor or enemy," said Park Sae-na, a 23-year-old textbook researcher. "When we were young, we got a lot of anti-Communist education. However, we are turning toward reconciliation mood."

In fact, for the last three years, South Koreans have seen a number of sympathetic films about the North: Shiri, a romance between a North Korean agent and a South Korean security agent; Double Agent, a love story about two North Korean moles in South Korea; Spy, about a hapless North Korean agent who falls in love with a South Korean art student; and South Korean Man and North Korean Woman, a comedy about a playboy who tries to seduce the daughter of high-ranking North Korean officer.

In the most acclaimed film,

, soldiers from North and South fraternize across the Demilitarized Zone, playing cards and drinking. Six million South Koreans -- or 20 percent of the country's adults -- saw the movie in theaters. And it was shown nationally on TV on July 27, the 50th anniversary of the armistice that ended the Korean War.

"I wanted to say North Koreans are the same human beings as South Koreans, we should see North Koreans as brothers," said Park Chan-wook, the 43-year-old director of the movie, which has won virtually every South Korean film award. "I didn't have any intention to make a movie which repeated those anti-Communist themes of my school years."

While older South Koreans have denounced the movie as naive and unrealistic, the film has had an enormous impact on current attitudes. Last spring, during joint military maneuvers near the border, several American soldiers complained that their English-speaking South Korean liaison soldiers said they would not fire on their Northern "brothers."

Park's next film is an account of No Gun Ri, a massacre in which American soldiers killed about 250 Korean refugees in July 1950, a few weeks after the Korean War broke out. According to a 2001 Pentagon report, the Americans, largely inexperienced soldiers transferred from occupation duty in Japan, fired on the civilians, believing that North Koreans soldiers had infiltrated the group.

Meanwhile, Shin Sang-ok, a renowned director of the Korean War generation, said he has had no luck finding financing for his project, a dramatization of fighting in North Korea near Heungnam Port that allowed for the evacuation of 100,000 refugees and 105,000 troops to safety in the South. About 5,000 American and South Korean troops were killed.

Unlike the younger filmmakers, Shin knows North Korea. In the late 1970s, he and his wife, Choi Un-hui, say they were kidnapped in Hong Kong on the orders of Kim Jong Il. They had to make movies for Kim Il Sung and his son, Kim Jong Il. "In each movie, there has to be a minimum of three appearances of praise of Kim Il Sung," said Shin, who made about a dozen movies in the North in the 1980s. "There cannot be love themes in the film, because love is only with Kim Il Sung, not between a man and a woman. Film is considered the ultimate political tool in the North, because behavior and consciousness can be moved by film."

Shin was jailed three times for trying to flee, before he and he wife finally succeeded in escaping in 1986. "I want to make the Schindler's List of North Korea," Shin said. "People there are suffering like the Jews in Auschwitz. The entire country is a gulag. I want to make a hit with such a movie feature. Then the world will know that North Korea is a land without human rights."

No Major Protests Were Expected Till Spring Protests over the FTA by Farmers faltered. Between 29-31 Dec 2003, a large demonstration of farmers protesting the FTA with Chile protested in front of the National Assembly building. Finally the protests were broken up by police using water hoses. The Chile FTA was in hot water over approval. The approval was postponed until after the April elections thus postponing further protests until it again comes up for a vote.

Small protests by NGO activist leaders were still held, but mostly small groups under 25. The cold weather and worsening economic conditions has dampened the turnouts for protest. Instead most protests in the winter months are taking the form of symposiums with panelists of activists.

The government has backed off the Puan site selection so there is relative calm. The Saemangeum project continues but it has been rather low key. No protests expected until conditions warm up.

South Koreans Consider U.S. Bigger Threat than North According to Research and Research Inc. a Jan 5 poll of 800 adults found 39 percent named the United States as the most threatening country to South Korean defense. 33 percent chose North Korea. Of the rest 11.6 percent of the respondents named China and 7.6 percent said Japan.

Unlike the rather "unscientific" newspaper or NGO activist surveys, the Research & Research Inc. is certified under the "ISO 9001" system. Possible reasons for the negative results is the international tension caused by the US-led war in Iraq and the pressure to send troops to Iraq.

According to the Stars & Stripes article on 16 Jan, U.S. soldiers reacted with amazement. However, what is bothersome is that the story was picked up by the BBC and broadcast on the news on 16 Jan with footage from 2002 showing anti-Americanism at its peak. The BBC TV broadcast gave the impression that anti-Americanism was on the rise in Korea.

Tokdo Stamp Controversy The latest protest by the ROK over the issuance of a Tokdo stamp has created a furor in Japan. The Japanese has stated that it would issue a Tokdo stamp as well. The Tokdo issue is a matter of national pride to the Koreans -- but has been recognized by the U.S. since the 1952 Mutual Defense pact with Japan as a disputed claim. The Congress added an "understanding" onto the 1954 Mutual Defense Pact with Korea that says the U.S. will only go to Korea's aid over areas the U.S. recognizes as LAWFULLY Korean domain. The Tokdo (or Takeshima) issue is NOT recognized as either Japan or Korea -- it is disputed. It is referred to as the Liancourt Rocks by the U.S. in mutual defense pacts with both countries.

However, the Korean editorials continue to pour out "facts" that it is Korean territory because they built a station on the island and posted a sentry station. The editorials NEVER mentions that the main issue of what is at stake. It is the rich fishing grounds that surround the islands. This is why both nations claim the island. Some authorities feel the Japanese have a stronger legal claim to the island, but it has never been taken to an international court.

The ROK's foreign minister has rejected a Japanese protest over the planned release here of postage stamps depicting a group of islets at the centre of territorial dispute, officials said. Japanese Foreign Minister Yoriko Kawaguchi urged South Korea to reverse its decision to issue the stamps during a telephone conversation with her ROK counterpart Yoon Young-Kwan on Monday, officials said. "Saying Tokdo (islets) belonged to South Korea in terms of history, geology and international laws, Minister Yoon refused to accept the request to stop issuing stamps featuring the natural beauty of our sovereign soil," Yang Sok-Hwan, an official working for the foreign ministry spokesman. During the 30-minute talks with Kawaguchi, Yoon "expressed regret over various comments on the postage stamps out of Japan" which have angered ROK people, Yang said.

In Tokyo, a Japanese foreign ministry official confirmed Kawaguchi asked Yoon to halt the printing of the stamps, noting that "Takeshima is the proper territory of Japan." But both ministers agreed to make efforts not to let the issue create friction between the two sides. The Japanese kept their side of the bargain while the Korean Foreign Minister Yoon was fired soon thereafter.

As a side note, there is a sinister tinge to this stamp issue. It is a given that the Tokdo issue will arouse a unanimous feeling of nationalism in ALL Koreans. The timing is also significant in that it is also raised when the anti-American issue is also coming to the forefront with Roh's "independent policy" (meaning not being dependent on the U.S.). Roh had fired his Foreign Minister and some heads of sections for voicing comments not in keeping with his "independent policy". In other words, the Tokdo issue may unite the Koreans in the feeling of "them against us" (U.S. vs Korea).

When the stamps were issued, the stamps sold out within three hours. The on 17 Jan 2004 had a photo with the caption, "People line up to buy Tokdo postage stamps early in the morning at the post office in Gwanghwamun, Seoul on Friday. Currently being sold at 2,820 post offices across the nation, all 1,874,000 stamps were sold within three hours." The following is a16 Jan article on CNN:

S. Koreans stick it to Japan

Friday, January 16, 2004 Posted: 0947 GMT ( 5:47 PM HKT)

SEOUL, South Korea (Reuters) -- South Koreans have shrugged off official Japanese complaints and queued up at dawn to buy out an entire issue of postage stamps depicting islands at the center of a long territorial dispute between the two Asian neighbors.

All 2.24 million stamps -- 560,000 strips of four stamps -- showing flora and fauna of the rocky outcrops Seoul calls Tokto and Japan refers to as Takeshima sold out in about two hours, postal workers said. Earlier in Tokyo, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda told a news conference Japan would repeat a diplomatic protest it had made several times to Seoul to no avail.

"It is truly regrettable that the stamps will be issued despite our repeated requests not to do so," he said.

The islands, which lie between the Korean peninsula and Japan, are inhabited only by a garrison of South Korean soldiers stationed there to assert Seoul's control.

Japan has asked South Korea to reconsider the planned stamps since last year, but Seoul refused, saying it was its sovereign right to issue them.

"From Japan's perspective, they are judging Tokto Island as a disputed territory, but from our perspective and from the foreign ministry's view, we clearly claim that it is not disputed land," said South Korean Director General of Posts Jay Q. Park. The two countries have constantly disputed the ownership of the islets since the end of World War Two. The struggle is felt more acutely in South Korea, which has bitter memories of Japan's often brutal colonial rule over the peninsula from 1910 to 1945.

Their first stamp squabble over the islands was in 1954, when South Korea issued three kinds of Tokto stamps and Japan responded by saying it would not accept mail bearing the stamps.

Asked about the controversy this week, South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun said the neighbors had nothing to gain by fueling the dispute. In any case, Roh added, Seoul already controlled the rocky outcrops.

"Is there a need to constantly emphasize that my wife is my wife?" he asked.

U.S. Diplomat Pleads Guilty over South Korea Visa Charges The Koreans have now been caught up in the immigration scams. In 2003, Korean women were discovered to have been illegally obtaining visas specifically to give birth to children in the U.S. for citizenship. Investigations implicated Korean agencies who submitted falsified documents. There were threats of questioning the citizenship of the children born through this fraudulent scam...but nothing more was heard of it.

But the lingering doubt was that this type of scheme must have had an insider in the embassy to assist in the scam. On 16 Jan 2004 Agence France-Presse reported that a US diplomat pleaded guilty to a charge of making false declarations for visas handed out by the US embassy in the ROK capital, authorities said. Alden Stallings, 56, faces a five-year jail term and a fine of 250,000 dollars when he is sentenced, the State and Justice departments said in separate statements. Stallings was deputy public affairs officer at the US Embassy in Seoul and had the authority to refer non-immigrant visa applications to the consular section. The State Department said he had admitted to one count of submitting visa referrals between April 1999 and February 2001 "in which the applicants had listed fictitious employment." The Justice Department said that count dealt with 54 separate referrals. "On each of the 54 referral forms, Stallings stated that he recommended the issuance of a non-immigrant visa to the applicant because the applicant was an 'important post contact' whom he had 'personally known' since a specified date," it said. "In fact, on each of the 54 occasions, Stallings knew that his statement on the referral form was false, and that he did not personally know the contact," said the department. Stallings, of Arlington, Virginia, resigned from the State Department as part of his plea agreement. He is to be sentenced on March 31.

Stallings has been a spokesman (public affairs) for the U.S. Embassy in Korea AND Thailand, though the outdated Alpha Listing lists him as part of the "OBO" (Office of Overseas Buildings). In a 1997 Embassy Press Release (#160/97 September 8, 1997) from the Embassy in Thailand, "Alden P. Stallings DPAO Hanoi Tel: 84-4-822-5436/9 Fax: 84-4-822-5435 Internet e-mail: apstalling@aol.com" is the releaser.

During the June 2002 World Cup, President Kim Dae-jung decided not to attend the U.S.-ROK game because of possible embarrassing anti-American protests. UPI stated, "U.S. Embassy officials believe there will be no security problems. "We have confidence that the Korean authorities will take necessary steps to prevent possible mishaps" said Alden Stallings, a spokesman for the U.S. Embassy in South Korea." Only a few "death to Americans" signs were displayed and promptly removed and the anti-American demonstrations were censored out of the international press releases. (See "Protests (2002)" for photos.)

Notice that the news article with Stallings name shows that he was still a spokesman for the Embassy in June 2002. The question is how much more of the visa scams were plea bargained away for cooperation in implicating others within the Embassy and in the Korean populace?

This is evidence of the souring relations between South Korea and the U.S. This type of investigation would have been hushed up in the past to prevent any embarrassment to the ROK -- not to mention the Embassy. This type of public announcement sends a warning to all embassy officials worldwide. However, it should be noted that this was NOT reported in the Korean press or covered in editorials. The warning did NOT go out to those planning future scams.

Saemangeum Project Continue The following is from WBK English on 29 Jan 2004:

Korean court rules that reclamation can continue. According to the South Korean Daum news website and other news agencies, a higher court in Seoul announced earlier today (January 29) that the decision last July to suspend the Saemangeum reclamation project has now been over-ruled, following the appeal of the Ministry of Agriculture.

The South Korean court today ruled that Mr. Choi-Yul, the former General-Secretary of the Korean Federation for Environmental Movement, and the main plaintiff in the case first heard in July, has no legal basis to participate in the court process - as he is not from the actual area being directly affected by the reclamation - his concerns can therefore not be formally recognised. Lawyers opposed to the reclamation who are contesting the case have vowed that they will appeal the case to a higher court still.

This retrogressive but unsurprising decision (considering the power of money politics domestically) comes at a time when 3 of South Korea's leading spriritual-environmentalists and two respected wetland activists are visiting the United Kingdom, to raise awareness of the issue and to participate in a ritual "samboilbae" (three-steps-and-one-bow) walk at Snettisham RSPB Reserve on January 31st.

FEBRUARY 2004:

"We oppose both the FTA and the additional dispatch of troops because the deployment threatens the Iraqi people's right to live, while the FTA threatens the survival of farmers," said Kim Hye-kyung from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. "We are willing to fight until the end because we have nothing else to hold onto," said Lee Joon-kyung, a member of the Korea Farmers' Solidarity and a local farmer who traveled from Gwangju, South Jeolla Province, to participate in the rally. "The government says it will give us subsidies, but it is far from enough, not to mention how we cannot believe we will get the subsidies they promise."

Economic leaders and chairmen of the four main political parties agreed to deal with the FTA bill in January for the sake of national credibility, which they said would be seriously hurt if the FTA bill was shelved any longer.

The parliamentary Defense Committee endorsed the bill but it remained shelved at the Assembly's plenary session as parties remained at odds on the issue. The Assembly is expected to face another difficult task with a vote on the dispatch of additional troops to Iraq.

Another group of some 1,500 protesters belonging to civic groups opposing an additional dispatch of troops to Iraq joined the farmers in the rally that began early in the morning.

Top: Anti-Iraq Protest; Bottom: Anti-war leaders (10 Feb 04)

Protest over USFK Withdrawal from Yongsan -- Who should pay? (10 Feb 2004)

Approval of ROK Troop Dispatch to Iraq After months-long delays, protests, double talk and much hesitation, South Korea's parliament finally approved a government proposal (155 for -50 against - 7 abstentions) on 13 Feb to send an additional 3,000 troops to Kirkuk to help rebuild Iraq. Outside the parliament, 800 anti-war activists staged a boisterous protest rally. About two dozen young protesters from the group exchanged kicks and punches with hundreds of riot police who formed human barriers. The much-awaited parliamentary action cleared the way for the government of President Roh Moo-hyun to deploy the additional contingent, which will include 800 combatants, to the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk by late April. The new troops will join 460 army engineering and medics already operating in Iraq. The new deployment will make South Korea's military presence in Iraq the third largest after the United States and Britain. The deployment cost is estimated at about 230 billion won (US$197.5 million), they said.

Anti-War No Troops for Iraq (13 Feb 2004)

MARCH 2004:

Activist Groups Protest the new Protest Law According to the Chosun Ilbo on 4 Mar, a coalition of 85 civic organizations including the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions declared that they will wage a campaign to boycott a revised law on assembly and demonstration. "Under the revised law on assembly and demonstration, which passed the National Assembly at the end of last year and became effective beginning this month, authorities could ban marches on major Seoul roads for the reason of hampering traffic and prohibit gatherings near foreign diplomatic missions and military facilities," said a member of the coalition. "In addition, as it contains a clause banning possibly violent and noisy rallies, the legislation violates the Constitution by blocking virtually all assemblies and demonstrations." These groups vow that they will wage a campaign to revise the law by boycotting the new law and holding a signature-collecting drive. "We even plan on rallies to protest the law," the member said.

About this, police responded that some civic groups misunderstood or distorted the meaning of the law, which they say was enacted on the basis of a national consensus to reform the culture of assembly and demonstration. "The revised law is to guarantee the freedom of expression as much as possible while preventing possible inconvenience to citizens at the same time," said an official.

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Mass Pro-US rally in Seoul condemns North Korea Mass rally was held in Seoul on the 1 March Independence Day Holiday. According to Channel News, Singapore "South Korean conservatives have called for a tougher line on communist North Korea and closer ties with the United States at a pro-US rally that drew more than 20,000 marchers here. Christian church leaders and decorated war veterans led the rally in downtown Seoul on a national holiday to mark a 1919 uprising against Japanese colonial rule. Marchers burned a North Korean flag and said President Roh Moo-Hyun's policy of reconciliation with Pyongyang endangered national security. North Korean sympathisers had gained too much influence inside Roh's left-leaning administration, according to some activists. ... Banners called for a harder line against the communist state and improved ties with the United States. ... "Block North Korea's nuclear weapons development through strong ties with the United States," read one banner as demonstrators chanted anti-Pyongyang slogans and waved South Korea's national flag.

On the other hand, President Roh vowed to pursue better ties with North Korea despite the 16-month-old nuclear crisis and Washington's tougher line against Pyongyang. In a speech marking the anniversary of the uprising, Roh urged an end to a rift between "left and right-wing" groups in South Korea. "There should be no more conflict between left and right-wing groups," Roh said He stressed South Korea should "embrace North Korea with a warm heart" despite its "eccentric" behavior.

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Resurgence of Anti-Japanese Protests: Roh visited Tokyo between June 6-9, 2003 for a summit with Koizumi in which the North Korea nuclear dispute and bilateral trade topped the agenda. However, he faced a public uproar over his planned meeting with the Japanese emperor June 6. Politicians and citizens voiced opposition to his plan to attend a dinner hosted by Emperor Akihito on the nation's Memorial Day. For many Koreans, the Japanese monarch remains a symbol of the nation's imperialist past and its colonial rule over the Korean Peninsula in 1910-45. Officials said incorporating the emperor meeting into the itinerary was unavoidable because of the conflicting schedules of Roh and Prime Minister Koizumi. They added that rallying voices fail to recognize how times have changed, with a controversy out-dated in the present context of the two nations putting aside their past enmity and seeking a new "future-oriented partnership."

Roh and Koizumi (7 Jun 03)

For those who witnessed the campaigns to erase Japanese structures from Korea in the mid-1990s, the hysterical anti-Japanese fervor sends a chill down one's spine. It was open and blatant hatred. Many areas of Seoul were "rejuvenated" to erase Japanese structures. The Seoul National Museum was torn down because it was once the center of Japanese power -- but denying its historical significance as the largest structure in Asia during the colonial period. The Koreans claimed the Japanese selected sites with the best flow of energy as though they somehow cheated the Koreans of this mystical source of power. They even claimed that the Japanese sank iron rods to destroy these power centers to deny them for Korean use. The arguments were completely irrational.

Everytime Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visited Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine to the WWII war dead, furious objections were voiced by the ROK at the Ministry level. Along with China, there is mass hysteria when even the topic of Japanese WWII soldiers is mentioned. To the outside world, Korea demanding that another country's Prime Minister act in accordance with their wishes smacks of naivete.

According to Mainichi newspaper on 28 March 2004, Prime Minister Koizumi said a day earlier in a special report program on a private broadcasting TV station that “he could not understand why foreigners oppose my cherishing the memories of our war dead” in connection with the criticism from Korea and China on his worship at the Yasukuni Shrine worship. On the subject of war criminals enshrined together at the Yasukuni Shrine, he added that “those who tell me not to visit the shrine just because some disagreeable people (an allusion to war criminals) are enshrined there are even stranger to me.” He seemed to refer to the war criminals enshrined there as heroes when he said that “one country’s hero is another country’s villain,” and added that “it is absurd to think about history on the same foot.”

Hatred of the Japanese is taught in the elementary schools using the invasion of Japan in 1592-1598 as a basis for how Japanese have ALWAYS been a cruel people. Every Korean student learns to revile the name of Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543-1616), Japanese military leader and statesman, founder of the Tokugawa dynasty of shoguns, but most Koreans condemn him for the invasions of Korea. In truth, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was the one who pursued his futile invasions of Korea for seven years starting in 1592 until his death in August 1598. What is disturbing is that any elementary school student will tell you that they hate "Ieyasu" for his invasion of Korea...very twisted history. Koreans revisionist history attempts to paint a patriotic picture of "volunteer soldiers" and soldier monks defending the country. In truth, the Korean army was a shambles and its only successful army general was executed by the king. Only the shining naval triumphs were by Admiral Shin Yi-sun's in 1592-1594 are noteworthy. However, true to Korean politics of the day, in 1597 the King handed over command to Won Kyun, while Shin Yi-sun was taken to Seoul as a prisoner in a cage on an ox cart. This is NOT what revisionist historians teach. Later Won Kyun suffered massive defeats and was beheaded and Shin reassumed his naval command. (See Shin Biography.) Koreans like to believe that this was the key to victory, but in truth what ultimately brought the Japanese to its knees was the cruel Korean winter and lack of supplies from Japan. Japanese atrocities from this invasion-- such as the ears and noses chopped off as proof of the Korean death toll -- are periodically resurfaced in the press to keep the wounds open. The "historical" melodramas on TV also perpetuate this hatred.

During the colonial period, the freedom movement for Korea created many uprisings that were put down with massacres. It is ture that Japan sought to reshape Korea into its "rice bowl" and treated Koreans as inferiors. No management or upper-level government positions were allowed to them -- and the Koreans were forced to change their names to Japanese with Korean language study suppressed. The Koreans hate the Japanese for this period. Many Koreans are now classified as "traitors" for their aid to the Japanese. (See Kimsoft: List of 708 traitors.) Periodically new "proof" surfaces of Japanese collaboration against some past hero and his statue is torn down. How they come to pick who is a traitor is completely arbitrary. Even Park Chung-Hee, the iron-fisted dictator of Korea, was a former Japanese officer in WWII trained in the Japanese Military Academy. The annual Japanese pilgrimage of the Japanese Prime Minister to the shrine honoring the Japanese War dead ends up in vocal protests from Korea because the convicted Japanese war criminals are also honored there.

The plight of the Japanese "comfort women" -- sex slaves -- is horrific and used to increase anti-Japanese sentiment. Other "wrongs" such as demands for compensation for forced labor or wrongful death suits dealing with WWII are constantly being waged in Japanese courts. However, most of these legal suits in Japan have been normally dismissed -- citing the normalization treaty between Korea and Japan -- and compensation provided at that time -- as settling this matter. On 22 Jul 2003 the Tokyo High Court rejected a damages suit filed by wartime sex slaves and Korean civilian personnel -- though it ruled that the Japanese government failed to fulfill its obligation to provide security for several plaintiffs. The 35 plaintiffs, including bereaved family members, sought 20 million yen in compensation each from the Japanese government for their wartime sufferings due to the former Japanese Imperial Army.

Some myths also abound. Koreans are taught that the 2 million Koreans currently in Japan are descendants of the 600,000 conscripted "slave" laborers that existed at the end of WWII. Koreans feel outrage that the Japanese should treat these people who were brought to Japan against their will so shabbily. This item is completely NOT true. There were 2 million Koreans in Japan at the end of WWII and 1.4 million were voluntarily returned to Korea by direction of the U.S. Army GHQ-- just as the Japanese in Korea were voluntarily returned to Japan. According to an article at From transient to resident: 600,000 Koreans remained in Japan, "It is often said that those Koreans in Japan today are those who were forcibly brought to Japan as laborers and their descendants. Even though there are some such Koreans, this does not apply to the majority of Koreans in Japan today. The vast majority of Koreans who were forcibly brought to Japan from 1939 to 1945 returned to Korea. The Koreans in Japan today are mainly the descendants of those who came in search of employment before the Imperial Japanese government started forcibly bringing Koreans to Japan." In truth, conscripted labor started in 1944 -- not the myth that it was from days prior to the war." These Korean people who remained in Japan with their families after WWII eventually became the 500,000 "Zainichi Koreans," who have special permanent residency in Japan. The remaining 1.5 million Koreans are NOT granted special residency as they arrived AFTER WWII.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism announced they were lifting the ban on Japanese Culture according to a system set up by former President Kim Dae-jung in 1998, following the Japanese Prime Minister's formal apology to Korea for its colonization of the peninsula 1910 to 1945. Kim outlined a four-phase plan to gradually allow Japanese products into Korea. Many analysts feared the Japanese imports would create a deficit with trade and cripple Korean industries effect on the domestic market.

But Kim Dae-jung's actions were only symbolic. The truth was that in the 1990s the miracle of the Han had arrived in Korea and with it -- satellite dishes. The ban on Japanese culture was ineffective as the dishes bypassed the ban. Satellite dishes became more and more prevalent -- and soon the cable companies started offering NHK. Though the government mumbled about its ban and in 1998, it bowed to the inevitable. Only within the past ten years has Japanese music been allowed to be publicly broadcast and NHK allowed to be aired on cable television as the anti-Japanese sentiment ran deep. Through "globalization" the Koreans changed their views of their relationship with Japan as business "partners," but on an emotional level the relationship remained stunted.

There were disturbing anti-Japanese undertones with remarks from the government that the Japanese ideas and values contained in music, movies, comic books and cartoons would corrupt the impressionable youth here raised in a conservative society. However, in the 2000s the internet effectively bypassed any ban as the youth simply downloaded their favorite "animie," Japanese animation, and "manga," Japanese comic books off the internet. Again the ban was ineffective. South Korea would lift its ban on the showing of Japanese cable television programs and satellite broadcasting as of 1 Jan 2004 in a bid to further open the domestic market to Japanese cultural products according to the Culture and Tourism Ministery Lee Chang-dong in Dec 2003. Japanese programs broadcast via new media, including cable television and satellites, will be allowed within the fullest possible scope.

The first three phases of Kim Dae-jungs 1998 policy integrated themselves smoothly without any noticeable impact on the economy or mindsets of the local youth. However, the final phase of opening the market to music and movies has failed to materialize. This deals with the business end of the opening dealing with music, TV and movie rights. The reasons for the government delays are complex. For example, local broadcasters copy popular ideas of successful Japanese shows. "Making a Better World," which invites elderly couples to answer questions on a talk show, bears a remarkable resemblance to a Japanese series. This would bear on intellectual property rights issues. The controversial "censorship" system for movie ratings would also come under attack. In addition, home-grown movie and cartoon industries are still in the fledling stages of growth and fighting a losing battle for market share with American and foreign films.

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism first squirmed at the question of the status of the ban, then replied they are still in talks about when to schedule the next phase of lifting the ban. "Eventually" was the more precise term they used, instead of "this summer, or this fall" -- putting off the failed promise of opening by 2002. The government has been using the delay in lifting the ban on Japanese pop culture as a symbolic protest against Japan publishing school textbooks that reportedly present a biased view of Japan's occupation of Korea. The debate continues today with people trying to strike deals with Japan and anticipate the ban lifting.

However, anti-Japanese sentiment runs deep in Korea. Japanese hatred is taught in schools based on the historical abuses of Japan dating back to Japan's 1598 invasion continuing through constant Japanese pirate raids up to the 1700s and through the traumatic experiences of the colonial period. The destruction of all things Japanese reached its high point in 1995 when the Seoul National Museum was torn down because the building once was the seat Japanese power in Korea -- regardless that it was a classic example of architecture of the period. Former Japanese-residential areas were targeted for reconstruction throughout the nation. However, on an emotional level, the WWII comfort women issues still is alive. This irrational emotionalism caused the cancellation of the Emporer's and Japanese Prime Minister's visit to Korea during the World Cup 2002.

A Korea Herald editorial on 2 June 2003 stated, "Japan has persistently refused to compensate its Asian victims for its crimes before and during World War II. The question of its extremely slow moral atonement aside, Tokyo has cited the San Francisco Peace Treaty of 1951 and the 1965 agreement with Seoul for normalization of relations, as well as domestic statutes, as the legal bases for its position. Both international accords are clearly flawed, however, because they failed to reflect the voices of the victims of imperial Japan's brutal aggression and exploitation of its neighbors." In June 2003 a Superior court overturned a 2001 Kyoto District Court's ruling to compensate the loss of family members being repatriated after WWII when a ship carrying the members was sunk between Japan and Korea. A family member stated that he would "never forgive the Japanese and would pass this hatred on to his progeny through the millenia." Two earlier rulings in favor of Korean compensation - the first in 1998 for a group of South Korean "comfort women" - were turned down by higher courts.

The anti-Japanese furor runs the gamut of topics from the Tok-do Island territorial issue; to territorial fishing boundaries: to Comfort Women of WWII; to confiscation of wages in WWII; to the controversy of the "Sea of Japan" versus "East Sea"; to the changing of "Korea" to "Corea" because the Japanese supposedly named it with a "K" (which is historically invalid and ludicrous). The intensity can get very heated. In the mid-1990s, the anti-Japanese hysteria peaked and resulted in the destruction of the National Museum in Seoul along with whole areas throughout Korea because of the Japanese construction. At its height, there were claims that Japanese had sunk iron rods into the ground to disrupt the energy flow of geomancy -- and some other very dubious claims. Pick a topic and it will turn anti-Japanese.

Military Buildup of SDF Causes Irrational Korean Fear -- Due to Position of Weakness The Koreans also have an irrational fear of the Japanese SDF military buildup The Japanese have just amended their constitution for war-powers contingencies because of the North Korean threat in May 2003 -- a preliminary step to amending the "peace" constitution altogether. This is as a direct result of the North Korean missile threat. On the opposite side of the coin, the Japanese have an irrational fear of a missile attack from North Korea -- while the South continues its head-in-the-ground disbelief that their "brother" in the North would ever send missiles and WMD against their brethen while accepting that Japan is a target.

The Japan Times reported on 20 May 2003 that the House of Councilors began debate on a set of war contingency bills. Prime Minister Koizumi explained the amended bills, containing a new definition of situations in which Japan would be considered under armed attack. He said the bills "will not change the nation's exclusively self-defensive security policy, and we will continue efforts to generate understanding abroad about the significance and the roles" of the bills. The coalition divided possible military strikes into two categories -- "military attack situations" and "predictable military attack situations." The first is defined as situations in which Japan faces "actual military strikes or apparent dangers," which would allow mobilization of the Self-Defense Forces (SDF), and the second is described as situations in which military strikes can be expected, which would allow the SDF to go on standby.

Officials have said the package provides a procedural framework for Japan's national defense that has not existed since World War II, but Korean lawmakers reacted with alarm and outrage. Some said the bills would allow Japan to escape tight restrictions on the use of its military forces. The laws provide procedural guidelines for Japan's defense in the event that it is attacked. The first law ? the act on response to a military threat ? allows the government to identify the threat and put into operation a war council headed by the prime minister. Citizens and local governments then would be subject to decrees of the central government. The second law facilitates the taking of private property and the conversion of public facilities for military purposes. The third establishes a wartime national security council. Together, the laws will be the basis for further legislation on Japan's national defense, Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said.

Prime Minister Koizumi indicated Japan could possibly attack foreign missile bases if the Japanese government determines that another country intends to attack Japan from them and is indeed preparing to do so. "If we determine that a foreign country has a clear intention to invade Japan...we could not just let the Japanese people be harmed by doing nothing," Koizumi told a parliamentary debate.

In conjunction with the changes to the Peace Constitution, the Japanese are shifting in their attitudes about their forces being engaged in peace-keeping operations. The controversial bill to send forces to Iraq into possible hostile territory is hotly debated. But the point is that the Japanese are now openly discussing such actions where as before this would have been unthinkable. The North Korean crisis has started to change the way the Japanese are viewing their safety. The American "umbrella" is now being seen as impotent in stopping missile threats from hostile neighbors.

In June 2003, it was reported by the Yomiuri Shimbun that the Security Council of Japan and the cabinet would adopt a plan to allocate funds for two types of missile systems -- Standard Missile-3 (SM-3) and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) -- in late July 2003. The SM-3 is to be mounted on Aegis-equipped destroyers to intercept ballistic missiles in outer space. Japan's Defense Agency currently has Standard Missile-2 (SM-2) systems mounted on four Aegis-equipped Maritime Self-Defense Force ships, as well as Patriot Advanced Capability-2 (PAC-2) missiles for 27 launchers, including 24 antiaircraft batteries operated by the Air Self-Defense Force. All the missiles, however, are designed to be antiaircraft and are incapable of intercepting ballistic missiles, which travel at a much greater speed. The plan came after the government unofficially learned that the DPRK had 160 to 170 medium-range Rodong missile units targeting Japan and that the DPRK might have acquired technology to reduce the size of nuclear weapons so they can be mounted on ballistic missiles, the report said. The government intends to begin the 200-billion-yen (1.7-billion-dollar) defense program as early as April 2007. (SITE NOTE: The Japanese Defence Agency decided to seek US permission for a Japanese contractor to build the PAC-3. The PAC-2 is currently assembled under a licensing agreement in Japan by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., the top Japanese defence contractor. Mitsubishi Heavy is the front runner for the contract if approved by the U.S.)

The Japanese plan to create an integrated missile defense force consisting of a Maritime Self-Defense Force Aegis-equipped destroyer and Patriot missile batteries under the Air Self-Defense Force by integrating battle management, command, control, communications and intelligence of the two missile defense systems. The Japanese Defense agency hopes to create the integrated missile defense force as early as 2006 when Japan introduces two U.S. missile defense systems to cope with missile attacks. This would be the first inter-service combat unit in the Self-Defense Forces. The integrated missile defense force would have six Patriot Advanced Capability-3 (PAC-3) batteries and one Aegis destroyer. Deployment of the integrated missile defense force would cost more than 1 trillion yen. The missile defense system based on Aegis destroyers is designed to intercept short- and medium-range ballistic missiles at midcourse. The PAC-3 ground-to-air antimissile system, which will upgrade the Air Self-Defense Force's PAC-2 system, is designed to knock out missiles missed by Aegis destroyers.

In March 2004, the Japanese Defense Research Center asserted that Japan should be equipped with the ability to start an assault in order to prepare for missile launches from the DPRK. In a report titled "2004 East Asia Military Strategies" issued by the research center on March 24, it said that "North Korea will get ready to manufacture more than two uranium enriched nuclear bombs next year," suggesting the logic of a preemptive strike. This was the first time a Japanese governmental agency dealt with the subject of a preemptive strike, OFFICIALLY. As this assertion is directly opposite to the principle of the Japanese constitution, which was designed in accordance with the self-defense rule, heated conflict was expected to emerge.

Prior to his Japan-ROK summit, President Roh Moo-hyun voiced concerns on 4 June 2003 on the recent Japanese move to pass a set of security bills stipulating ways to respond to outside attacks and other emergencies. "Japan should manage its public consensus to ensure that neighboring countries are not uneasy over the bills," Roh said on 5 Jun 2003. On 6 Jun 2003 both the GNP and MDP lashed out at Japan for passing a set of security bills on the first day of Roh's four-day state visit to Japan.

The Japanese are seriously moving towards a different perspective on the use of the SDF. Japanese Air SDF pilots and maintainers arrived in Alaska for Cooperative Cope Thunder on 27 May 2003. The June 5-20, 2003 exercise represents the first time the JASDAF has deployed fighter aircraft to any exercise outside of Japan. Cope Thunder is a Pacific Air Forces-sponsored, air combat training exercise held up to four times a year. SDF Forces have practiced air refueling operations at the helm of a borrowed KC-135 -- something that SDF would not need for strictly Japanese use. Japanese SDF ships were used to refuel allied ships headed to the Persian Gulf during the Iraq War.

While Korea sees nothing wrong in its headlong pursuit of strengthening its military forces -- even with the proposed building of a carrier in 2010 -- it objects to the Japanese building up of its SDF forces. The Japanese have the edge both technologically over the Koreans. The Japanese have had long experience as a blue water navy, while the Koreans are just starting to hone their skills now. While the Koreans built the KF-16 under contract, the Japanese F-16 has a Mitsubishi carbon wing that is far superior to the original. The Japanese have launched spy satellites over North Korea, while the Koreans have only recently started their programs. However, in 2004 the aborted launches of its spy satellite over the North was a major set back to the program. (See Marching to Its Own Drum for the Korean military buildup.)

On 24 May 2003, President Bush and Prime Minister Koizumi issued a statement after their summit in Texas showing their unity in dealing with North Korea. The South has mouthed the words, but their are still differences in approach. The U.S. and Japan reiterated that if the North continues with escalating the crisis increased "measures" would be taken. The threat of economic sanctions and potential of blockades to stop its shipments of drugs and missiles to close off its last remaining source of income was implied. There were no specifics as to what "economic sanctions" meant.

Even the slightest hint of a Japanese force capable of becoming a "threat of invasion" sends Koreans into a frenzy. Though this hysteria is illogical from a common-sense standpoint, it is logical if you consider that Roh wishes for a military "independent of the the U.S." Korea's forces are superior in manning, but the Japanese are vastly superior in hardware. Because the ROK systematically cut their investment in defense from 8 percent in 1980 to 2.8 percent in 2000, the equipment that the ROK has not kept pace with what Japan has. The point is that for years, Japan has played a semantical word game with its SDF units and equipment. New names were invented for Japanese destroyers and cruisers to circumvent the Constitution, but the fact remains that Japan has been a "blue water navy" since the 1960s. The Japanese only need a carrier to complete a carrier group. Korea on the other hand is still in "wishing" phase of becoming such a force -- just recently sending units to RIMPAC exercises in Hawaii. (NOTE: Korea has visions of having a Short Take-Off "carrier" called the Admiral Shin by 2010.)

Japan's weaponry is far superior to the ROK as they have spent heavy amounts to systematically upgrade their forces over the years. Though the Japanese initially balked on joining the US-initiative for a Missile Defense system. They have AEGIS destroyers already deployed and PAC-2 defense systems that will be upgraded to PAC-3 systems. Korea still has nothing with its AEGIS destroyers still under construction...and PAC-3 on-order, but not funded.

The ROK has visions of being self-sufficient from the defense umbrella of the U.S. by 2010 -- but there are some realities that get in the way. However, the ROK has a technology disadvantage and the massive amount of funds required is more than the ROK economy can bear. The ROK has tried to go about using its homegrown technology, but it is not up to the par with the Japanese or American or other established technology centers. It tried technology transfer, but there is more than the technology itself that creates a technology-based society. For example, the ROK sought to enter the aircraft fighter market with its Golden Eagle Advanced Trainer/Fighter -- but even here it had to draw heavily on U.S. manufacturer design support. The Japanese on the other hand, took the JF-16 and turned into a fighter far superior to the original with Mitsubishi carbon-composite wings. The reason was that the U.S. shared its technology with the Japanese starting in the 1950s. Only the constraints of its Constitution prohibits the Japanese from joining the Arms Bazaar race of weapons sales. The ROK is still stumbling in this area attempting to come up with its own versions of cruise missiles, unmanned air vehicles (UAV), and long-range missiles. (See Korea Marches to Its Own Drummer for details on ROK armament efforts.) Its ability to surpass the Japanese in the development of military technology is suspect.

However, in the future what will raise the hackles of Korea is the statements of Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi who hinted in Mar 2004 that he would seek to change the country's outdated constitution to allow for Japan's Self-Defence Forces to be called an army. "Under the Japanese constitution we are not allowed to call the Self-Defence Forces (SDF) an army, but to the eyes of anyone outside the country, they are an army," Koizumi said in an interview with London's Times newspaper. "Several points in the constitution are not quite logical in the light of commonsense," he said. "In the future, when the amendment of the constitution comes up, this question of the naming of the Self-Defence Forces will also become part of the debate," he said. Japan has sent peace keeper forces to UN Peacekeeper missions and now has sent some 550 ground troops to the southern Iraqi city of Samawa as part of the US-led coalition's humanitarian work.

Korea to Hunt Japanese Collaborators ... AGAIN The Koreans are now on a witch hunt for Japanese collaborators. In the face of this anti-Japanese furor this is getting boring. In the past, it has had tragic results when this hate campaign was released. In the hysteria of the 1990s, Japanese buildings, pagodas, and statues were demolished throughout the country. Some of the statues were dedicated to those who had done honorable works for Korea, but who were tainted as being "collaborators" by the accusations of anti-Japanese activist groups. The end was when the National Museum was torn down because it was a former Japanese government building. The same can be expected in the latest rage.

In the intervening years, the Comfort Women issue, territorial rights, fishing zones, etc. kept the issue in the forefront. In 2004, it started up again. First it started with the Tokdo stamp fiasco along with some rehashed Comfort Women fury and then the protests over the Japanese Prime Minister's visit to Tokyo's Yasukuni Shrine for Japanese Soldiers killed in WWII -- that also houses the tribute to Class A War Crime criminals. Prime Minister Koizumi refuses to change his stance on his visits to the shrine which he considers a personal obligation.

Starting in 2002, the national budget allotted funds for a five-year project by the National Institute of Korean History, an organization under the Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development, to produce a who's who encyclopedia of people who actively collaborated with Japanese authorities during colonial rule by Imperial Japan. W200 million was spent on the project in 2002, and another W200 million was spent in 2003. As much as W500 million was proposed for 2004, the third year of the very same project, but it was eliminated in a budget subcommittee. This in turn caused a public outcry from fanatical Japanese witch-hunters who took their fight to the media. OhMy News bragged, "The campaign began on January 8, 2004, and 11 days later, by 10:30 on January 19, some 22,587 netizens had donated W511,364,684. The initial plan had been to raise W100 million by the anniversary of the March First Movement, a national holiday, and then raise the rest of the W500 million by Liberation Day, August 15."

A group of activist groups protested that the law had been watered down and wanted more stringent punishment for those who collaborated with the Japanese. The Korea Herald ran a small blurp on 29 Mar:

A group of civic organizations yesterday demanded revision of a bill passed earlier this month to punish pro-Japanese activities by Koreans in the early 20th century, complaining it was too lenient and allowed suspects to go unpunished.

Some stipulations have been deleted, softened or otherwise altered by lawmakers, damaging the original purpose of rectifying Korean history from distortions by colonial sympathizers, the civic groups said. The groups involved are assemblies of civic activists focusing on honoring victims of the 1910-1945 Japanese colonial eras and the 1950-1953 Korean War.

The special bill, passed by the national assembly on March 2, requires the government to investigate Koreans who allegedly helped the Japanese regime annex the country and collaborated during the 1910-1945 colonial era and compensate those who were forced to serve the Japanese military or companies in Japan.

After the general elections of 15 Apr where the Uri Party achieved majority status, the Uri Party wanted to push for a revision of a bill to identify Koreans who collaborated with Japanese authorities while the Korean Peninsula was under colonial rule. The move is expected to rekindle a controversy between liberal lawmakers and their conservative counterparts, who fear a stronger bill might be used for a witch hunt.

The sad thing about the "collaborators" was that most of the upper class (Yangban class) would have fit into this category of "collaborator." Having assumed Japanese names, most of this class were sent to Japan for higher education. Businesses and other money-making concerns were done through personal contacts with Japanese authorities. The intelligensia -- and later to become chaebol families -- were part of this yangban group. Though the most leaders of the early chaebols in the 1970s were of humble origin, they methodically married off their offspring to yangban families to improve their bloodline connections. The chaebols then became interrelated amongst this elite group of monied families.

According to the OhMy News Chosun Ilbo president Bang Sang Hoon has gone on record saying he will make public information about his company's pro-Japanese activities during Japanese colonial rule.

"I'll accept criticism based on research into the whole of the Chosun Ilbo's history," he told the membership newsletter of the Journalists Association of Korea. But said he does not want "set elements judging us with only select parts" of that history.

"There's no progress if you stay attached to the past," he said. According to Bang, the Chosun Ilbo is currently engaged in a massive research project that includes the Korean translation of 2,000 pages of documents, some from the surveillance records of Japanese colonial police. "We included pro-Japanese behavior in our 'Eighty Years of the Chosun Ilbo,' which we published in August 2000. When there was still debate about what we'd written, we decided then to engage in more in-depth research and disclose our findings." He said the material might be released as early as the first half of this year. "We won't be the ones judging the research findings," he said. "People who look at the results can assess the material for themselves."

Then we have the problem of those who chose the military path and attended the Japanese Military Academy to attain rank in the Japanese military. These were not conscripts, but volunteers. The most notable of these would be the former Korean dictator Park Chung-Hee who was a graduate of the Japanese military academy and low-ranking officer in the Japanese Army when the war ended.

The hate groups have also started to resurface the idiot routine of the Japanese driving steel rods into the strategic "ki" (energy) sites throughout Korea to sap the power from the sites.

The Japanese started Geodetic surveys in Korea in 1910, establishing 400 first order, 2,401 second order, and 31,646 third order triangulaation stations. Of these, 16,089 are in south Korea.(See http://www.asprs.org/asprs/resources/grids/11-99-korea.pdf)

"Triangulation stations" are benchmarks. Establishing benchmarks is important to create accurate topographic maps which are required for military operations, railroad and highway construction, etc. (See http://gisloungecom/glossary/bldeftrista.shtml.)

WWII Korean Class B & C War Criminals With the Korean penchant for revisionist history -- reshaping the facts and turning a blind eye to hurtful ones it is interesting about a fact that cropped up recently on Korea Media Watch about the Koreans who were War Criminals -- albeit Class B and Class C war criminals. A Chosun Ilbo English Edition editorial had a statement about "young Koreans who were conscripted into the Japanese military only to be executed as Class B and Class C war criminals." This seemed very strange...for a Korean newpaper to state that Koreans committed atrocities -- but were excusable since they were conscripted by the Japanese.

In response to a question on this matter, G. Bevers wrote: "One hundred and forty-eight former Korean prison guards were convicted of war crimes, and 23 or those were executed. On page 104 of his book, "Prisoners of the Japanese," Gavan Daws makes the following comment: "No one could imagine anything worse than a Japanese guard until Korean guards began turning up in the Southeast Asian camps."

Continuing on with this discussion, an editorial from the Joongang Ilbo was brought up. What is surprising about the editorial is that it mentions LT. GENERAL Hong Sa-ik being hung in the Philippines, but then never brings up the causes. (NOTE: Gerry Bevers later stated that Hong Sa-ik was in charge of the prison camps and was one of the 23 Class B/C criminals executed.) But what is infuriating about the Korean writer is that he talks of how the General KEPT HIS KOREAN NAME and wanted Psalms from the bible read to him. The whole editorial doesn't make sense, but it does provide some insight into the Korean writers who conveniently forget the facts.

[FOUNTAIN]War criminal, general, but still a Korean "Wash away all my guilt, from my sin cleanse me. For I know my offense; my sin is always before me. True, I was born guilty, a sinner, even as my mother conceived me." At the gallows in a prison in the Philippines on Sept. 26, 1946, Lieutenant General Hong Sa-ik, 57, of the Southern Army of imperial Japan asked the clergyman present to read Psalm 51. He was sentenced to death by the court as a war criminal for his actions in World War II.

Mr. Hong wanted to listen to the psalm before his death, but not because of his war crimes. Facing death, he wanted to expiate his pro-Japanese behavior. He did not choose to side with Japan. To him, it was destiny, an original sin he was born with. To turn back from the road of sins, he had gone too far.

At age 16, Mr. Hong entered the Joseon kingdom's military academy, which King Gojong established to nurture the future leaders of the self-reliant national defense. In 1909, a year before the Japanese annexation of Korea, the military academy was shut down by Japan, which had already established de facto rule in Korea. At the order of King Gojong, Mr. Hong transferred to the Central Military Youth Academy of Japan. He took Crown Prince Yeongchinwang, the third son of King Gojong and a fellow classmate, under his wing.

After the annexation of Korea by Japan, some Korean students there wanted to join the resistance movement, but Mr. Hong persuaded them to stay, learn and find a better chance to fight in the future. They should accumulate experience in the field and seize a chance later. Among those classmates was Lee Cheung-cheon; after the uprising in Korea that began on March 1, 1919, he fled to Manchuria and became the commander of the resistance movement there.

The two friends communicated secretly even after Mr. Hong became a Japanese military officer. But he rejected Mr. Lee's invitation to switch sides. Later, after becoming a general officer, he still refused to change his name to a Japanese one, a campaign pushed by the Japanese government. Mr. Hong is included in a list of Korean collaborators, but he kept his national identity. When branding someone a criminal, we need to be careful.

The fact-finding investigation that is coming should be accompanied by an understanding of inner character.

Jim Parkins provided some interesting links that covered the "BC Criminals" and explained a great deal of the Korean atrocities of WWII committed while they were prisoner of war guards. The link at http://www.ne.jp/asahi/nadja/bc/frameHISTRYe.html shows a short chronology of the "BC Criminals" who were convicted as Japanese, but then in 1965 after the normalization treaty with Korea, the Japanese stated that they were Koreans did not qualify for compensation. The link at http://www.law.usyd.edu.au/~slr/v21/n2/schmidt.pdf is a pdf file that sheds a great deal of light in detail on the conditions for forced conscription and treatment as guards.

According to "Disabled Colonial Veterans of the Imperial Japanese Forces and the Right to Receive Social Welfare Benefits from Japan" by Petra Schmidt states, "Colonial Soldiers and Military Auxiliaries -- Because of the insufficient results of this voluntary system, from 1941 onwards, recruitment was based on the ‘National Requisition Ordinance’. In a next step, a draft system was announced in May 1942, and from late 1943 onwards Korean students were mobilised. Eventually, the conscription system was applied in Korea, with the first draft in April 1944 totaling 130,000 youths." The footnote 4 reads: "Out of a total of 2,830 students, 2,034 were sent to the frontlines in January 1944. Students could only be recruited as volunteers, but again, only an insufficient number turned up. Thus, the Korean Governor-General declared that those who did not volunteer, were to be regarded as ‘unpatriotic persons’ (hi-kokumin), and sent to labour in mines. Takagi K, ‘Gunjin gunzoku to kyôsei renkô’ (Soldiers, Military Auxiliaries, and Deportation) in Sengo hoshô mondai renraku iin-kai (ed), Chôsen shokumin-chi shihai to sengo hoshô (Colonial Rule in Korea and Wartime Compensation) (1992) at 21–26.

It went on, "209,279 Korean soldiers and 154,907 civilians had served in the Japanese military. 22,182 (9.2 per cent) did not survive the war." The Footnote 12 reads, "Nihon Bengoshi Rengo-kai, Nihon no sengo hoshô (Japan’s Wartime Compensation) (1994) at72–73 gives details: between April 1941 and the end of the war, 154,907 Koreans were employed as gunzoku. According to material submitted to the 86th Imperial Diet, in September 1941, 32,249 Korean gunzoku were sent by the Navy to the South Pacific for construction work. 3,233 were sent by the Army to North China, and 1,320 were employed as transport unit members. Others were sent to Japan and Manchuria. Of these, 7,300 had died as of 1944. Between 1942 and 1944, 31,783 had been requisitioned based upon the Kokumin chôyô-rei and taken to Navy facilities within Japan proper and in the South Pacific. 3,323 worked as guards in PoW camps. For other figures see Lee, n6 at 19."

Footnote 13 states that the figures differ dependent on the source. Footnote 16 states, "The Korean civilian auxiliaries were given two months training resembling that given to Japanese army recruits. It was a spiritual education based on the Imperial Rescript to Soldiers and Sailors and the Combatants’ Code. According to testimonies, not only did they receive no education on the Geneva Convention; they had never even heard of it. Utsumi A, Chôsenjin BCkyû senpan no kiroku (Records of Korean Class B and C War Criminals) (1982)." Footnote 17 states, "Daws G, Prisoners of the Japanese: PoWs of World War II in the Pacific (1994) at 104, 214 cites the testimony of former American PoWs, who were aware of the position of the Koreans as the doormats of the Japanese. However, there are also testimonies that some of the Koreans were among the most brutal guards."

The text covers "POW Guards" and states, "In May 1942, the Japanese Army Ministry passed the ‘Outline on the Treatment of Prisoners-of-war’, upon which Korean and Taiwanese military personnel were to be employed as guards in prisoner-of-war camps, partly due to a chronic labour shortage, partly for propaganda purposes. By force and deceit, within a month, 3,223 Koreans were recruited, and in August sent to camps throughout the Asia-Pacific region. Being the ones in daily close contact with the prisoners, and knowing nothing but the brutal discipline of the Japanese military, they became the object of the prisoners’ hate and spite. .. Usually the camps were commanded by a Japanese officer and several subordinates, and 100 or more gunzoku were employed as guards or drivers, clerks or interpreters. Defeated Japan was well aware of the crimes that had been committed. On 20 August 1945, the following urgent telegram was thus sent by the head of the Tokyo POW camp: "Personnel who have ill-treated POWs and internees or who are very much hated by them should at once be transferred elsewhere, or steps taken to conceal their whereabouts. Moreover, documents which it would not do to have fall into enemy hands should at all costs be destroyed after use." This message apparently was not forwarded to the Korean and Taiwanese guards."

It goes on, "After the war, ‘BC’ war criminals were tried and punished before military war crimes tribunals, held in 49 locations throughout what had been the Japanese ‘Great East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere’.19 ‘BC’ meant that conventional war crimes such as murder of civilians, rape, maltreatment of prisoners, forcing prisoners to work under excessive conditions etc, had been committed. In practice, these trials concerned mainly two categories of war crimes: atrocities by the notorious Kempeitai (military police or secret service), and ill-treatment of the POWs. More than one-quarter of all guilty verdicts resulted from offences against prisoners."

"The trials were focused on the lowest ranks of the Japanese system, particularly the Korean guards, thus increasing ground-level responsibility as actual power in the Japanese hierarchy diminished. The planners, politicians, engineers and officers almost entirely escaped responsibility."

"In vain did the Korean guards defend their actions with the argument that in the Japanese Army non-compliance with an order was unthinkable and severely punished – even with death – under the Army Penal Code. This defence was rejected by the military tribunals both in Nuremberg and Tokyo."

"In total, over 25,000 war crimes suspects had been arrested. 5,700 were found guilty, and 984 sentenced to death. 3,419 were sentenced to prison terms of various duration, 1,018 for life. The number of convicted included 148 Koreans and 173 Taiwanese. In the case of Koreans, 3 out of the 148 were soldiers, and 16 out of the remaining 145 had worked as interpreters on the Chinese mainland. The other 129 had been employed as prison camp guards. They were accused and tried for abuse of prisoners. 23 Koreans and 26 Taiwanese were sentenced to death."

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Impeachment Motion Passed: Roh Suspended (12-19 Mar 2004) On 12 March President Roh was impeached to the shock of the nation. However, he had repeatedly threatened to resign in the past as political ploys -- and it now came back to haunt him. In October 2003, Roh announced he would hold a referendum on his leadership and promised to step down if he lost. The vote, originally proposed for mid-December, was postponed indefinitely amid legal concerns as some suggested it was unconstitutional. Then Roh repeatedly stated that he would resign if the amount of his illegal slush funds for the 2002 presidential election were found to have exceeded a tenth of that for the main opposition Grand National Party (GNP). Though the prosecutors claim that Roh's side took in about 11.2 billion won ($9.4 million) from South Korean businessmen, Roh disputes the claim that they did. The GNP supposedly took in 84 billion ($72 million). The probe was suspended until after the April 15 elections.

But the impeachment was justified NOT by the larger issues, but by a trivial issue. The reason he was the object of the nation's first impeachment motion was that he voiced publicly his support for the Uri Party (Our Open Party). This was against the local election law that states that government officials in office must remain neutral. However, some still question the legality of the ruling. Roh is a politician as well as President. He was ELECTED to office (not appointed) and in that sense has a dual hat -- government official AND politician. Normally, the President is the head of his party -- but Roh is unaffiliated. The election watchdog ruled against him -- a first in itself as it has never been done for a standing President. Though Roh stated that he respects the National Election Commission ruling that bans public officials from campaigning for a political party, he stated he had the right to say what he did. (NOTE: After Roh was impeached, the official ROK news agency, Yonhap News, stated, "The parliamentary row began over Roh's news conference on Feb. 24 during which he said he would do "whatever I can within legal bounds" to help pro-government candidates in the general election. The National Election Commission ruled that it was hard to judge whether Roh's remarks violated election laws but asked him to make efforts to maintain neutrality on the election." These remarks are strange as the NEC ruled his remarks were illegal which started the row.)

The Opposition leaped on this as an excuse to demand an apology. Roh refused to make a public apology which started the ball rolling. The Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) launched the impeachment motion. The impeachment proceedings started on the 9th of March, but legislators from the Uri Party held the Assembly chamber hostage for three days. According to the Korea Herald, "At 4 p.m. 11 March, 160 legislators from the GNP and MDP entered the main hall of the Assembly determined to vote. They decided to take the action after the president was found to have violated political neutrality statutes by calling on voters last month to support the Uri Party in the April 15th National Assembly election. Hong Sa-duk, floor leader of the GNP and Yoo Yong-tae, floor leader of the MDP, said that the necessary two-thirds majority, or 181 votes, to impeach Mr. Roh had been secured." However, the Uri Party members blocked the podium and after the session camped out on the floor of the chamber. Under the constitution, an impeachment bill must be acted on within 72 hours or it becomes moot. Thus the deadline was 6:27 p.m./12 March.

The atmosphere started going insane outside the National Assembly building. On 11 March, Baek Eun-jeong, a 51-year-old member of Nosamo, an Internet-based support group for the President, set himself on fire in front of the gate of National Assembly. Baek suffered burns over 40 percent of his body, was rushed to hospital and is now unconscious. He left a suicide note saying, "No politician can have the right to reprimand President Roh."

On Friday morning (12 Mar), Roh apologized on TV for the turmoil, but he did NOT apologize for his remarks in support of the Uri Party. In a nationally televised news conference, the president flatly refused opposition's demand for an apology for violating a law requiring electoral neutrality. While Roh failed to show remorse for the Elections Law violation, he apologized to the public for controversies over slush funds and corruption scandals involving his close aides and relatives. President Roh Moo-hyun played another political wild card, suggesting he will step down if the pro-government Uri Party failed to acquire due support from voters in the April's general elections. However, he was vague about how well the Uri Party would have to do to give him a vote of confidence. This gave him a way out if the Uri Party took a nose dive. Roh was still officially unaffiliated.

A tragic spin off of this interview is that the former president of Daewoo Engineering and Construction up to 2003, Nam Sang-kook, jumped off a bridge into the Han River yesterday after President Roh Moo-hyun accused him of bribery in the nationally televised news conference on 12 Mar. Nam was suspected by prosecutors of providing 30 million won ($26,000) in bribes late last year to Roh Geon-pyeong, the president's elder brother -- which Roh says was returned. Roh's tactic was to blame the rich guy as evil and portray himself and his brother as the innocent poor. The president's press conference was shown live on all three non-cable networks, KBS, MBC, and SBS, and on the cable news network YTN. According to a Chosun Ilbo editorial, "So when the most powerful man in the land mentions him by name and says that "people from good schools" who have "succeeded in a big way" nevertheless "go to people of no significance in the countryside and kowtow before them and give them money," you can sense that Nam must have felt insulted." Mr. Nam reportedly called a Daewoo aide, identified as Mr. Shin, and said, "My name is on the air. How can I face the world without shame when I've been branded a criminal? I will disappear, taking all responsibility."

The street scenes started getting out of hand dealing with the impeachment proceedings. Outside the National Assembly, Kim Nam-shik, 44, a businessman, protesting the attempt by lawmakers to impeach South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun crashed his car into the main building of the National Assembly early on the 12th and set the car on fire after he poured containers of gasoline onto the car. He claimed he did not support Roh, but rather hated ALL politicians. Hundreds of activists gathered in front of the National Assembly building ahead of a planned vote on an impeachment motion against President Roh Moo-hyun. Some 1,200 members of Nosamo, Roh's internet support group, demanded that the motion be withdrawn, and chanted, "No impeachment and no more political chaos." A similar number of Conservative demonstrators supporting the impeachment bid held their own protest on the opposite side of the street. (See OhMy News Video of Roh Supporter Rally.)

Left: Conservatives Rally (12 Mar 04) Right: Roh Sa-mo Group Rally (12 Mar 04

On the morning of 12 March, the National Assembly passed South Korea's first-ever presidential impeachment motion, suspending President Roh Moo-hyun from office. The pro-government Uri Party's strategy had been to block the speaker's podium to prevent a vote on the motion. When they tried to block the podium and sat in the Speaker's seat so Speaker Park Kwan-yong could not preside over the impeachment vote, Speaker Park invoked his powers to maintain order in the parliament. That's when all hell broke out in the chambers. (See OhMy News Video of Uri Party Taking Over Podium.)

At around 11 a.m. on March 12, the assembly speaker entered the main hall of Parliament escorted by opposition lawmakers and security guards. Lawmakers from the Uri Party, who were occupying the speaker's seat, were forcibly removed from the podium. Both opposition lawmakers and security guards dragged pro-Roh parliamentarians of ruling but minor Uri Party from the floor of the assembly. The scenes were aired live on national television.

They were physically ejected from the chamber by security guards and legislators -- some leaving quietly, while others screaming and kicking all the way out. The struggle was prolonged as the supporters had to be carried one-by-one screaming and struggling from the room. The Uri members who remained after the podium was cleared continued shouting and throwing things at the Speaker -- while others tried to rush the podium again.

Roh Supporter Ousted from Podium (12 Mar 2004)

National Assembly Speaker Park Kwan-yong Announces Vote (12 Mar 2004)

The National Assembly held the vote on the impeachment motion at around 11 a.m. During the balloting, which lasted for about 50 minutes, opposition lawmakers violently scuffled with Uri Party members. Uri Party members abstained from voting. The motion passed 193-2. Voting to impeach were 129 lawmakers from the Grand National Party, 53 from the Millennium Democratic Party, eight from the United Liberal Democrats and five independent lawmakers. Passage required a two-thirds majority, or 181 votes out of a total of 271 parliamentary seats, to impeach.

The Roh defense team to the Constitutional Court later stated the Uri party had been deprived of the right to vote. In his second opinion submitted to the Constitutional Court on 29 Mar, National Assembly Speaker Park Kwan-yong said he didn't deprive the Uri Party lawmakers of a right to vote because he and the session manager repeatedly asked them whether or not they would vote during the impeachment vote.

The Uri Party retracted their resignations on 22 Mar supposedly due to the problem of getting the unified number of party candidates for the general elections. If the party lawmakers step down, each of its party candidates will receive a randomly picked number instead of unified No. 3 and the party will also have to give up some five billion won in subsidies from the government. According to the Korea Times, "In a statement adopted at the end of a party caucus, the party expressed profound sorrow for failing to keep to their promise they would abandon the parliamentary seats. The statement went on to say ``It would be better to candidly acknowledge and seek for the (people’s) pardon rather than mentally agonizing over the seemingly unfeasible promise.’’ Despite the explanation, the party’s move is expected to trigger severe repercussions from the people at large and the opposition parties, as it presents a taint to the party which has focused on morality and freshness."

Prime Minister Goh Holds News Conference (12 Mar 2004)

The Prime Minister called an emergency meeting of economy- and security-related ministers, as well as an extraordinary cabinet meeting, where he urged ministers to do their best to minimize the impact of the impeachment on the national economy and to maintain consistent economic policies to prevent Korea's international credibility from falling.

Roh Support Rally (12 Mar 2004)

International ridicule abounded as people around the world viewed the footage of the Roh supporters being hauled physically from the National Assembly. MBC news showed clips from CNN, NBC, ABC, BBC to just name a few. CNN.com listed the Roh crisis as its top story with the headline, "South Korean President impeached amid physical battle." The New York Times reported that the impeachment "also raises questions about how the country's budding economic recovery and international attempts to stop North Korea's nuclear weapons ambitions would be affected." The Asahi Shimbun, reported, "South Korea's political circle hit a unique crisis in which the country's top leader is suspended." It predicted that with the president's powers on hold, decisions on crucial issues such as foreign affairs and national security would be of great concern. The Japanese daily warned that major damage to the country's reputation was unavoidable.

A Seoul Times comment read: "The grotesque scenes in the National Assembly last week were beamed around the world for all to see. Scenes of sweaty politicians grappling and spitting while hurling missiles and breaking down into tears made the supposed leaders of South Korea look more like spoilt children than leaders. Of course the Korean media are far too insular to worry about the effect of these kindergarten antics on the rest of the world. "Koreans are emotional," one local pointed out to me with a shrug, as if their lack of emotional maturity was something to be dismissed as a genetic quirk. Those who propose to make Korea the "hub of Asia" should surely be aware that pictures of grown men crying and fighting only makes this country a laughing stock."

(SITE NOTE: The whole impeachement process was stupidity in action. For the sake of their GNP/MDP party pride, the legislators took a step that shocked the country and caused the bourse to bottom out. Instead of considering the effects to the nation, they focused on the April 15 elections and capturing power for their parties. The Korean people are justified in condemning their legislators -- but they are also to blame as they elected them there in the first place.

Though we have no love for Roh and his politics, this was a WRONG move by the National Assembly. However, as an American who watched Bill Clinton get reelected after his philandering and White Water Scandals -- followed by his perjury in his denial of relations with Monica Lewinsky and disgrace over having sex in the Oval Office, the justification for Roh "impeachment" is a triviality. The motion's passage is a fiasco and farce. The justification for this impeachment motion was simply political and trivial, but the impacts to the nation were not trivial. What the GNP/MDP did was wrong!!!)

According to the Korea Herald, "Some were ashamed, others angry and many fearful of how the decision would affect the country. Results of the impeachment vote came at 11:55 a.m. .. Many huddled around televisions in supermarkets and shops around the country. Some sighed at the speaker's announcement, others simply shook their heads. .. "It is so lamentable," office worker Kim Jong-wan, 40, said. "It is so shameful at the same time. The impeachment will cause great disruption. I am afraid that it will endanger our economic and political situation." Said civil servant Lee Dong-hun, "I was so disappointed by the politicians. I am too frustrated to say anything else. The lawmakers' behavior is mean and childish." .. Some agreed with the impeachment and predicted better times ahead. .. "It is the proper decision though some confusion may follow for the time being," homemaker Lee Eun-young, 34, said. "But the country will be soon be stabilized when a good and qualified president takes office instead of Roh." Business owner Lee In-geun, 58, agreed. "President Roh must resign owing to his misgovernment," he said. "If he stays in power, Korean society cannot avoid more confusion." .. Most who spoke with The Korea Herald opposed the impeachment. And a poll taken just days before the vote suggested about 60 percent of South Koreans felt the same way. .. "It is ridiculous," said angry office worker Lee Sun-young, who is in her 20s. "If someone has to be impeached for small things like President Roh was, all politicians in Korea must be impeached. Today will be recorded as a shameful day in our history." Yonsei University student Jamie Kais said, "He did not do anything bad enough to be impeached." Like many others, this foreign student fears the National Assembly's decision will plunge the country into confusion. Roh's immediate predecessor, former President Kim Dae-jung said, "Today's impeachment predicament is a very serious situation," according to his aide Kim Han-jung. "What goes around comes around," former President Kim Young-sam said. "I hope the country stablizes fast," he was reported as saying by Grand National Party Rep. Park Chong-ung, who acts as Kim's spokesperson.

Seoul Crowd (12 Mar 04)

On 15 Mar 2004, the Yonhap News reported "Tens of thousands of South Koreans staged a candlelight vigil in downtown Seoul and other cities Sunday for a third day to protest the parliamentary impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun. About 50,000 people gathered in the Gwanghwamun area of Seoul for a candlelight vigil to show their support for the impeached president as well as to denounce what they called an "impotent" parliament. On 13 Mar (Saturday), an estimated 70,000 protesters participated in a similar rally." Similar protests on a smaller scale were also held in 12 cities across the nation, including Busan, Gwangju, Daegu, Daejeon and Chuncheon. Along with the pro-Roh demonstrations, the conservative ranks turned out in much smaller numbers to support the impeachment. However, by 15 Mar (Monday) the candlelight vigils were down to about 3,500-5,000 people who gathered in the Gwanghwamun area. The protests were peaceful. The 16 Mar (Tuesday) rally was down to 3,000. On 17-18 Mar (Wednesday-Thursday), the attendance was down to about 1,500. The attendance on 19 Mar (Friday) was about 2,000. As a nation, most of the people have remained calm awaiting the results from the Constitutional Court.

Seoul Impeachment Rally (19 Mar 04)

However, the anti-impeachment rallies were taking on the tone of a pro-Uri party rally. Thus the government warned the leaders of the NGO groups that such activities of political rallies must be reported and controlled. The Seoul Metropolitan Police announced that the anti-impeachment candlelight protests being held in the Gwanghwamun area of Seoul violate laws against nighttime demonstrations and are, hence, illegal. To get around the ban on political rallies, the organizers are planning to call the rallies, "cultural events." Cultural events do not have to be reported to the police to be staged at night. This was the same tactic used in 2003 to stage anti-American rallies when street demonstrations were outlawed. The rallies became memorial services (or "cultural events) for the two girls accidentally killed in June 2002.

However, the Police stated that the 16 Mar rally was not a "cultural event" and planned to take "legal measures against the event organizers in accordance with laws on assemblies and demonstrations." Organizers renamed the candlelight vigil the "Impeachment Annulment and Corrupt Politics Liquidation Cultural Festival." Though they did not take up road space, when police looked at the speeches, slogan chanting, distributed literature, song lyrics and other things, they couldn't find any real difference with the 15 Mar political rally.

However, the anti-impeachment groups urge citizens to participate in the demonstrations via email messages and text. Meanwhile at the demonstration scene, 1,000 volunteers make sure demonstrators observe the police line. When the demonstration ends, participators voluntarily clean the scene and collect garbage. They try to prevent candlelight demonstrations from being used as a cause for political attack. This is much different than past "candlelight" vigils which erupted into violence.

Police beefed up their security around regional offices of GNP and MDP out of concern that protesters may attempt to force their way into the offices. Security was also extended to the conservative newspaper offices of the Chosun Ilbo and Donga Ilbo which President Roh had labeled the "Gangster Press." On the internet, both the GNP/MDP and Uri Party bulletin boards have been filled with obscene posts of no substance except to denounce the politicians. Reeling from the backlash, the GNP and MDP have accused the media of formenting the dissention -- particularly the government affilitated KBS and MBC. KBS will do a review of the claims of the lack of impartial reporting as it concentrated on the Roh-supporter side of the story during the initial days of the crisis. According to GNP chairman Choe Byung-yul, the current standoff over presidential impeachment is a "life-and-death fight" between the "radical forces" -- the 550 radical NGO activist groups united under the Pan-Korea activist umbrella -- and the "moderate" elements attempting to protect a democratic society. It appeared that the GNP was shifting its strategy to deflect some criticism by claiming the impeachment was about the illegal campaign promise by Roh AND the illegal contributions issue.

Prime Minister Goh instructed the ministers to maintain three principles - strict neutrality on the part of government officials, cracking down on illegal electioneering and no partisan favoritism in policy planning and administration, according to Joung Soon-kyun, head of the Government Information Agency. "The Justice Ministry will guarantee voters' rights to participate in political activities, but will sternly deal with illegal election campaigns conducted under the mask of anti- or pro-impeachment rallies," Joung said. Police announced they would punish organizers of candlelight vigils for any failure to notify authorities in advance as stipulated by law.

There were no signs of instability along the border with North Korea, but South Korea's 700,000-member military and its 170,000-member police force remained on alert. On 14 Mar, North Korea denounced the South Korean parliament's impeachment of President Roh calling it a "political rebellion" and parliamentary coup.

According to the Stars and Stripes, the USFK maintained a "heightened sense of security awareness" along with the South Korean military after a turbulent week that left South Korea without a president. The heightened security awareness means no changes in the military's status, merely that the command is noting the situation and monitoring it. USFK declined to issue a statement on the impeachment.

CFC chief Gen. Leon LaPorte and deputy Gen. Shin Il-soon met with Defense Minister Cho Young-kil and Joint Chiefs of Staff officials on 13 Mar to relieve the public's anxiety regarding security. South Korean forces were put on a "strengthened posture" after Friday's impeachment but their Watchcon — an intelligence surveillance posture monitoring North Korea — remained unchanged. U.S. bases reported no unusual activity. American Forces Network advised U.S. personnel to stay away from certain areas with protesters.

Candlelight Rallies (20-28 Mar 04) Civic groups announced that on 20 March, they planned to hold a large-scale rally in Seoul, where up to 100,000 people were expected to participate. However, the drops in nightly turnouts between 13 Mar-18 Mar caused some concerns. At this point, Anti-war NGO groups announced on 19 March that they would hold protest rallies against the War in Iraq on 20 March in the afternoon and then join the impeachment rally as the NGO activist groups are under the same umbrella group.

According to the Yonhap News, "The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it will mobilize 10,000 police around Gwanghwamun intersection, where tens of thousands of people have been involved in candlelight protests since the impeachment last Friday. Special security guards will be surrounding the U.S. embassy, which is within meters of the intersection, police said. .. A union of 550 civic groups supporting the impeached president has announced they will start a candlelight protest at 6 p.m. Over the past week, thousands of people participated in the non-violent gatherings. The union said, however, that more than 100,000 people were expected to turn out on Saturday, given the crowd of 50,000 last Sunday. .. The civic groups' move will be strengthened by the nationwide organization of university student unions, Hanchongnyeon, which pledged earlier in the day to fight against the impeachment and join the vigils. .. Another civic protest will take place separately in Daehakno, downtown Seoul, Saturday afternoon. Protesters opposing the government's plan to send 3,000 troops to Iraq in April, will hold demonstrations before they join the vigil, organizers said."

Impeachment rallies (20 Mar 2004)

Though the police stated that the anti-impeachment rally was illegal, Prime Minister Goh asked the police to not "overreact" for fear of escalating violence. The activist group claimed it was a "cultural event" -- more like a family affair to watch performances by famous singers like Shin Hae-chul and Ahn Chi-hwan calling on people to unite to "preserve" democracy.

Officials of the National Election Commission were dispatched into every corner of the area to monitor whether or not rally participants violated election law. They also collected evidence such as phrases and scenes which might be sources of proof of violations.

The MDP asserted on 21 Mar that the Uri Party was behind the candlelit protests at Gwanghwamun on 20 March. The MDP claimed the Uri Party sent text messages encouraging the participation in anti-impeachment candlelit protests in Gwanghwamun at the general election candidates' office, the former party headquarters. The party also "mobilized party members and members of Noamo, the fan club for President Roh Moo-hyun, systematically using buses and other measures" has added additional fuel to the political bonfire raging over the fallout from the impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun. The Vice spokesman of the MDP), Jang Jeon-hyung, displayed cell phone text messages and video tapes on Sunday as proof the Uri Party is mobilizing participants for the candlelit protests in Gwanghwamun at the Uri Party headquarters in Yeouido. The Uri Party refuted this. (SITE NOTE: To think that the Uri Party got out the word to 130,000 people via cell phones is ridiculous, but the use of the internet by the Nosamo group and the activist groups -- including the anti-war sites -- was very effective. They had the schedule of the protest out there well ahead in advance. The media also helped by broadcast the schedule and participants in the protest. The Uri HQ did not really need to do anything.)

Conservative rallies scheduled to be held in the same Kwanghwamun area of Seoul on 20 Mar were called off for fear of confrontations with anti-impeachment protestors. Other groups stated they would stage rallies in other areas of Seoul instead.

However, on 21 Mar the conservative Democratic Participatory Netizen Alliance, the Citizens Alliance Against North Korea's Nuclear Weapons, and the Anti-Nuclear, Anti-Kim Jong Il National Rally, along with 369 other conservative civic groups, shouted slogans supporting the impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun, in front of the Gwanghwamun International Building. According to the Korea Times on 22 Mar, "Two opposing civic coalitions on Sunday held separate rallies in downtown Seoul over the National Assembly's impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun. About 1,500 members from a coalition of civic groups supporting the impeachment decision staged a rally in front of the Dong-a Ilbo building in Kwanghwahun, Seoul in the afternoon, demanding endorsement of the parliamentary decision and Roh's resignation. Hundreds of people from the anti-impeachment coalition also gathered, in a nearby place, and rallied to demand the impeachment be annulled."

The press is starting to hype the opposing protests as a generational issue -- rather than fight over political beliefs and differing views on the threat faced by Korea. The article continued, "Initially, the conservative groups planned to hold their own rallies on Saturday in Kwanghwamun, but pushed it forward to Sunday, due to the massive candlelight vigils planned by pro-impeachment groups in the place. .. The conservative groups are composed of those from war veteran groups, groups that oppose nuclear weapons development by North Korea, and those that cherish relations with the United States, the nation's key ally."

The Chosun Ilbo on 21 Mar stated there were 2,500 protestors. It stated "On the other side of the political divide, a group of about 2,500 calling themselves the "Citizen's Alliance To Support the Impeachment of President Roh," a coalition of conservative civic groups, held a rally in Seoul's Gwanghwamun district in support of the president's impeachment. Holding up cards with slogans such as, "Resign, President Roh," "Expose the Pro-North Leftist Forces" and "Refuse to Pay KBS Subscription Fees," the protestors shouted "We support the impeachment" and "No Moo-hyun, resign!""

The article continued, "Park Chan-seong, head of the "Citizen's Alliance to Block the North's Nuclear Weapons Program," said, "The 'Pan-national Action to Annul the Impeachment and Expose Corrupt Poltics' filled up Gwanghwamun last night thanks to the mobilization efforts of groups like the Uri Party and Union of Korean Student Representatives (Korean: Hanchongnyeon)... They gathered here to intimidate the bench of the Constitutional Court." He told those gathered there, "It might be difficult, but man your stations to the end." Shin Hye-shik of the "Headquarters of the Anti-North Korean Nukes, Anti-Kim Jong-il Youth Movement" attempted to rally supporters, saying, "They say 70 percent of the population opposes the impeachment, but this includes a lot of sympathy votes... We cannot live another four years with President Roh. Let's force out President Roh!" Prominent lawyer Seo Seok-gu and North Korean human rights activist Norbert Vollertsen also attended Sunday's rally.

Donga Ilbo reported that that the crowd was estimated at 2,500 people. It stated, "National Ally Supporting President Roh Moo-hyun's Impeachment," consisting of 369 conservative civic groups including the "Citizens' Ally Protesting Against Nuclear Initiative of North Korea" held a "Cultural Place to Support Impeachment' in front of the Donghwa duty-free shop at Sejong crossroad, Seoul, yesterday at 2:00 p.m. Approximately 2,500 joined. Participants shouted "Support Roh Moo-hyun's Impeachment"; "Stop Biased Broadcasting," and "Remove Pro-North Korea and Left-wing figures." Lee Ki-gwon, the president of Civic Groups for Preserving Sovereignty said, "We delayed the rally from Saturday to Sunday to prevent unnecessary clashes with participants of illegal candlelight protests."

Conservative Rally at Donga Ilbo Bldg (21 Mar 04)

On 22 Mar Acting President and Prime Minister Goh Kun called for an end to impeachment-related street rallies, warning of their negative impact on the economy and its sovereign credit standing, his aides said. According to Yonhap News, "Goh made the unusual comment during a meeting with representatives of civic activist groups that have been staging anti- and pro-impeachment street rallies in Seoul and other major cities since the passage of an impeachment motion against President Roh Moo-hyun in the National Assembly on March 12. "Both pro- and anti-impeachment rallies have to be halted from the viewpoint of national interest," the acting president said in the meeting at his residence in downtown Seoul. "Domestic civic activists have already had their stances on the impeachment fully heard. The protracted street rallies would only have negative effects on economic recovery, as well as on the April 15 parliamentary polls," he said."

On 24 Mar the government said that it has decided to ban supporters of impeached President Roh from staging candlelight rallies from April 2 when the official campaigning period for the April 15 general election begins. The government ordered police to halt any political rallies scheduled between April 2 and April 15, the period leading up to and including election day for a new Assembly. The decision was made at a meeting of ministers of election-related government agencies presided over by Acting President Goh Kun after the nation's election watchdog requested the government ban the rallies during the campaign period. "Until now, the police have been trying to maintain order and peace at the rallies, but they will block the events starting April 2," Jung Soon-kyun, minister of the government information agency, said.

On 26 Mar a Seoul court turned down arrest warrants sought by prosecutors for four civic activists who spearheaded a series of candlelight vigils because these unauthorized outdoor rallies would affect next month's crucial parliamentary elections. Four members stated they would voluntarily appear before the police next week. However, they also stated that the rallies scheduled for the weekend of 27-28 Mar would take place. Later this action to seek arrest warrants caused a rift between the Justice Minister Kang Gum-sil and the Prosecutor General. Kang was reportedly upset after learning that the prosecutor's office filed its request with the Seoul District Court on 26 Mar.

The conflict raises questions about whether the prosecution, which is supposed to be independent, is overly influenced by the ministry, which is in charge of appointing individuals to the prosecution's top positions. The two sides have had a series of power struggles in the past. They have fought over a measure by the ministry to punish prosecutors and the move to transfer the right to inspect prosecutors from the prosecution to the ministry. Previously, tension had arisen between the justice ministry and prosecutors over issues like taking the outlawed student leaders of Hanchongnyeon off the wanted list and taking legal action against Professor Song Du-yul, a German university professor who received a seven-year jail sentence on 30 Mar because of his direct links to the North.

Two rallies, one supporting and the other opposing impeachment, were scheduled for 27 Mar, but the pro-impeachment rally was put off until Sunday in fear of a clash with those opposing the impeachment -- though there were reports that the rally did take place, but a street apart. With candles in hand, tens of thousands of South Koreans chanted and sang in downtown Seoul on Saturday to protest parliament's impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun. The rally marked the last of a series of massive candlelight vigils that have been held since the opposition-controlled National Assembly impeached Roh for alleged election law violations on March 12. From the reports, it was basically in the same format as the past rallies with a big screen set up on a truck with performances and chants. The USFK urged its troops to stay away from the candlelight rally. "We have made a similar recommendation whenever a mass rally was scheduled," a USFK official said.

Anti-Impeachment Protest on 27 Mar 04

Anti-Impeachment Protest on 27 Mar 04

The rallies in support of the Roh Impeachment continued on 28 Mar as thousands of conservative South Koreans rallied in downtown Seoul. About 5,000 people shouted slogans and sang songs in the Gwanghwamun area near City Hall, waving red cards with such words as "Down with Roh Moo-hyun," and "Purge pro-North Korean leftists" on them. The organizers for the Pro-Impeachment and Anti-Impeachment rallies have decided to stop the rallies. Both agreed that the April 15 elections would determine the future of Korea.

Organizers Suspend Impeachment Rallies to Safeguard Election

A pro-impeachment rally attended by 5,000 members of the “Anti-Nuclear, Anti-Kim Jong Il National Rally,” “Korean Defoliant Fellow Soldiers’ Alliance” and 150 other organizations, convened outside the Donghwa duty free shop in Gwanghwamun, Sunday.

The chairman of the steering committee Bong Doo-wan said, “Though it is getting harder to make a living, there is no one taking responsibility (for the nation) and both sides are fighting day and night.” He added, “Let’s make the right decision at the general election on April 15 and safeguard Korea’s power and the rule of law.”

A day earlier, pro-impeachment and anti-impeachment demonstrations were held at the same time, just one street apart in Gwanghwamun.

The "Pan-national Movement to Expose Political Wrongdoings and to Nullify the Impeachment Bill," said at a Saturday press conference, “We support the national wish for the nullification of the impeachment. But to avoid any needless conflict during the general election, we will suspend the candlelit demonstrations from today.”

(Bang Jun-oh, juno@chosun.com )

Pro-Impeachment Rally in Seoul (28 Mar 04)

On 29 Mar the “Pan-national Action to Annul the Impeachment” started organizing a candlelit rally at a “candle tower” in front of Myeong-dong Catholic Cathedral. In response, the church officials said that they would not approve its construction nor the gathering. The organizers stated they would go ahead with the construction anyway.

Impeachment Divides Opinion in Nation The impeachment left South Korea, a nation of 48 million, badly divided along ideological or generational lines. The younger generation is more critical of the impeachment which they regard as a political ploy linked to the elections. The opposition party's impeachment motion enraged the public in the lead up to the April 15 legislative elections. All public polls showed that more than seven out of every 10 South Koreans opposed the impeachment. Even the opposition political parties are split with heated debates over retracting the impeachment before the April 15 elections.

43 members of the Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths -- about half of the 101 man commission -- released a statement Friday that called the presidential impeachment vote a "parliamentary coup disguised as legality" and "a frontal assault on democracy and people's sovereignty." Those making the announcement are all employed in the civilian sector, but are considered civil servants and are given the same respect and working conditions of civil servants while they are on the commission and doing their research. Because of this, their announcement caused a stir as it is in violation of laws forbidding civil servants' collective action demanding political neutrality. In a statement entitled, "Condemnation of the Usurpation of the People's Sovereignty," the group said, "The Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths, a body symbolic of the democratization movement, will do all it can to block the impeachment." They also said that as a presidential commission, they oppose conducting their fact-finding work in a situation without a president. As expected the opposition GNP and MDP parties condemned their action as illegal. The problem comes as they issued the statement in the name of the Commission -- not as private citizens.

According to the Chosun Ilbo, on 20 Mar acting President Goh Kun called the chairman of BAI, Jeon Yun-Churl, and requested an “Objective, prompt, and accurate investigation on the employees of the Presidential Commission for bringing on public criticism for their group actions.” The prime minister's senior press officer, Kim Duk-bong, delivered the message that “Acting President Goh thought the group's actions broached official discipline at a sensitive time, and he was very concerned about the situation.”

After the Korean Federal Bar Association (KFBA)’s issued a statement opposing the impeachment of President Roh Moo-hyun, local bar associations have begin to take issue with their parent group’s act. The local Bar Associations protested that the KFBA statement gave the impression that local BAR members supported the statement.

The Korean Teachers and Educational Workers' Union, a union that claims 94,000 members, declared in the statement on 23 Mar that the impeachment was invalid and made a call for clean politics. The declaration criticized the opposition party saying, "The 16th National Assembly is full of corrupt, ignorant and ineffective officials who are unworthy of impeaching the president," and that "true democracy" would be fulfilled "if the people used their right of resistance and removed such officials from the National Assembly." Union members also said that the people want political change to make room for "truly progressive and reformist political powers." They stressed that the upcoming general elections are a valuable opportunity to change the political situation and root out corrupt politicians. However, the Constitutional Court strongly emphasized the "neutrality obligation" of public service personnel specified in the constitutional law and has ruled that even teachers must follow it. Thus, the court has clarified the "neutrality obligation" for all public service personnel. The government began investigating the action of 17,000 teachers who signed the declaration. The government said the declaration was in violation of the law that bans public servants from acting collectively. On 24 Mar several South Korean university professor groups held press conferences to call for the withdrawal of the recent impeachment of President Roh. One group of 88 professors from Seoul National University issued a statement on 24 Mar criticizing the impeachment. Unfortunately, the NEC ruled on 30 Mar that the campaign by the KTU to get signatures from citizens to protest the impeachment of President Roh is against election laws. "Unlike university professors, teachers at primary, middle and high schools are required to remain neutral in politics and the elections," said an NEC official. The official cited a clause of the election laws requiring public officials and those whose status is similar to civil servants to remain politically neutral so they do not affect the elections.

Prime Minister Goh said, "The education ministry will soon have to make a judgement on whether the incident broke relevant laws so that it can punish those involved under the law if they are found to be guilty of a violation." On 24 Mar the government announced it would punitive measures against members of the teachers' union who recently issued a statement asking for the nullification of the impeachment, an official of Goh's office said, noting that they violated the law calling for government officials to remain neutral in politics. The Constitutional Court handed down a decision on 25 Mar in which it unanimously ruled that provisions in the "Political Party Law" and "Public Servant Election and Unfair Election Prevention Law" restricting political activity on the part of public education workers were constitutional. On 4 April the Korean National Police sought arrest warrants for the leaders of the teachers union, but the Prosecution denied the request for arrest warrants.

(SITE NOTE: The whole problem rotates around the idea that if the teachers expressed individual opinions, it was permitted. However, they chose to express it as a unified group which makes it a violation of the law. Their statement that the people must "use their right of resistance" certainly is a call for violent action if necessary. This makes one wonder about the caliber of the teachers who take it upon themselves to enter politics and place themselves above the Constitutional Court in rendering a judgement that the impeachment is invalid. For foreigners who have observed Korea for a while, the actions of these dissidents teachers doesn't surprise anyone. Dissidents make their home at the colleges -- students radical leader "outlaws" reside on the campuses safe from the police -- and the radical teachers have been blacklisted for years because of their violent actions over the years.

Concerning political activity by civil servants, the court ruled, "The constitution is very clear that it's not a civil servant's place to work for the interests of any particular political faction or party, and moreover, it stipulates that civil servants must remain politically neutral so that administration is not swayed by the servant's political creed." In its decision statement, it said, "The article of the law that bans elementary and middle school teachers from joining political parties or participating in election campaigns does put restrictions on their basic political rights, but when you consider the effects such activities may have on impressionable elementary and middle school students who are given to imitation, one can see teachers' political activity as infringing on students' classroom rights." The court added, "Therefore, when you consider that we must put the public interest first through ensuring the basic educational rights of the citizens, the restriction of political activities on the part of civil servants can be justified as constitutional."

It is strange that the ruling comes now -- but not when in the violent Mar-May 2003 anti-American/anti-Iraq War demonstrations in Korea, the middle school teachers in Kunsan were handing out "peace buttons" to their students and distorting lessons on American involvement. My daughter sported this button when she came home from school.)

The Korean Government Employees Union (KGEU) made up of lower-ranking officials and public works employees in government came out against the impeachment motion and endorsed the Uri Party ahead of the April 15 general election -- flying in the face of Prime Minister Goh's direction that government officials must remain neutral. A standoff deepened between the government and union with the government seeking stern measures against what it said was an illegal move. Government Administration and Home Affairs Minister Huh Sung-kwan ordered police to look into any breach of laws, but the Union refused the police summons. On 4 April, Senior members of a public workers' union which endorsed a political party faced arrest on charges of violating election law.

In a related story, the conservative coalition had held rallies in front of the state-run KBS and the MBC, the two biggest broadcasting companies, denouncing what they called biased reporting against opposition parties. In the past, the KBS head was replaced by a Roh reformist supporter -- and the other stations are known to have liberal stances -- and during the impeachment process, the broadcasts were interpreted by the opposition parties as critical of the GNP/MDP while sympathetic to the Uri Party. The GNP chairman was resigning over campaign funding missteps but the TV stations refused to televise any debates for selection of a new head.

On 22 Mar two large civic coalitions, "Civil Solidarity" and "Mulgari (overturn) Union," announced that each would resume its campaign for selected politicians and will exclude 193 lawmakers who agreed on the president's impeachment from its list of support, which is scheduled to be made public on April 6-7. There is some question of this being a legal tactic, but so far it has not been challenged in the courts. Some previously identified politicians for non-support by the civic coalitions did not make their parties cuts for the upcoming elections, such as an MDP and a URI politician charged with bribe taking. On 24 Mar a Seoul criminal court handed down prison terms of up to three years to two lawmakers for receiving illegal political funds before the presidential election in 2002. Park Myung-hwan of the major opposition GNP was sentenced to three years in prison with a fine and Lee Sang-soo of the pro-government Uri Party to a one-year imprisonment. Their terms of office will expire after the April 15 general elections.

On 20 Mar, the three main broadcasters, KBS, MBC, and SBS, revised their earlier stance and said they will provide live coverage of debate sessions between candidates vying for the top GNP post. The about-face by the broadcasters was to cool escalating tensions between the GNP and the TV stations over allegation of biased reporting -- especially over the way the TV stations broadcast the impeachment proceedings. The opposition party had threatened to stage mass protests in Seoul and other major cities over the weekend to appeal directly to the people for the "unfair" treatment they were receiving -- including empassioned pleas to the state-run KBS hierarchy. On 18 Mar about 4,000 pro-impeachment demonstrators gathered in front of the KBS television headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul, and angrily protested what they said was biased reporting by the network. The National Election Commission's (NEC) recent ruling that TV stations have the right to air political party activities made it hard to ignore the GNP demand. However, the MBC labor union protested the broadcast. (SITE NOTE: Incidentally, the broadcasts were boring. They had as much pazazz as a Gore debate with himself.)

The internet is considered a major source of information for the upcoming elections and it is being monitored by the Consultation Committee for Online Election Coverage, an independent organization under the NEC umbrella. The Committee has authority only to investigate the internet -- not newspapers where the same content may appear. According to the Donga Ilbo on 25 Mar, the websites of five media companies have received warning restraints and precaution from the NEC as a result of violating election laws and rules of consultation for the election coverage. The areas of concern are impromptu polls and polls shown without margin of error statements. The NEC also asked for fair broadcasting to the KBS Internet and iMBC claiming, that they might cause confusion to the electorate if the media showed preferential coverage to one candidate over another. iMBC was also pointed out for its judgmental reporting manner.

For the first time since the anti-American campaigns that pushed Roh into office, the nation seemed to be united in their opinion again -- this time many sense that the impeachment process endangered the democracy won by street demonstrations in the 1980s. Young and old were turning out making it a family form of protest -- grandparents, mothers and fathers and children. Many of the Roh support group were from the 386 Generation (thirty-year old, college in the 80s, born in the 60s) again turned out with their families in tow. The GNP chairman called the demonstrations mostly jobless people -- and the 386 generation took offense with his statement. However, to outsiders it appears more of middle-age businessmen trying to relive a part of their past by fantasizing that this is really a demonstration for democracy. The truth is that if they allow the Constitutional Court to do its job and decide the fate of President Roh -- that is democracy. To support the political institutions that came about because of the democracy movement would be support for democracy. We believe that this is the reason that the rallies have been "peaceful" as the former radicals have now mellowed into solid middle-class family men. The candlelight vigils was just an opportunity to relive their halcyeon days of college.

The following is from the OhMy News

'Back To Street as Fathers and Mothers' -The June Struggle Revisited

OhmyNews interviews 386 generation on the streets of Seoul -- Kim Ji Eun(internews)

You'll meet people of all ages at the candlelight cultural festivals taking place in Seoul's Gwanghwamun and at similar gatherings around the country, but for one age group in particular the parliamentary coup d'etat carries unique meaning.

Many of the people who joined in the June Struggle of 1987 see recent events as an extension of that movement, when millions took to the streets to protest when President Chun Doo Hwan's declaration that presidential elections would be held through an indirect voting process, a decision that was later overturned when Chun's hand-chosen candidate, Roh Tae Woo, announced he would only run under direct elections.

OhmyNews talked with members of the "386 generation" holding candles in Gwanghwamun. "386 generation" is a popular term coined to denote an age group in their thirties, attended colleges in the politically turbulent eighty and born in the sixty. Many "386-ers" have been coming to the candlelight events with the families they've created since 1987.

"We've got to finish off the June Struggle," says "Song" who was a university student at the time. Now he's a father, a white-collar man in his forties. Song reminisces about the mood in 1987, Bak Jong Cheol died in January while being subjected to water torture and on April 13, President Chun made his initial announcement about holding the presidential election without amending the constitution.

"Things are very different now," said Song. "The people can openly express their resistance, and everyone looks full of hope. In 1987 it was about democratization, but now, ironically, it's about recovering lost democracy.

"The social atmosphere is different, but the passion for democracy is the same. For our generation, the rage we feel about impeachment comes from the feeling something we worked so hard for mustn't be taken away."

Yi Jung Gi was a third-year university student in 1987. He compares the candlelight gatherings to a "picnic."

"The mood in 1987 was combative and grim. Now you can join in like you would a picnic. It's like a cultural festival," said Yi. "But then and now, the calls from the people are the same. Just because people's hearts don't feel as grim doesn't mean people don't have the same passion. I thought our democracy had been properly settled in, so now that it's shaken the passion within can grow even greater than it was back then."

Something else that is different about the current situation compared to 1987 for these individuals is that they now carry full-time jobs. And they're offended by Grand National Party (GNP) floor leader Hong Sa Duk's recent suggestion that many of the candlelight protesters are unemployed with nothing better to do with themselves.

In response, some people have been collecting name cards. The idea is to gather as many as possible from working professionals, then send them to Hong.

Saturday's candlelight festival is expected to be the largest so far. Civic groups are predicting there will be 1 million citizens participating, and there are rumors that there will be a surprise appearance by a major Korean singer as well.

The phenomenal of this impeachment process is that it has awakened the political awareness of the normally apathetic twenty-something generation. OhMy News had a very interesting article of this phenomenal on 25 Mar. Angry young voters at candlelight rallies shouted, "We will punish you on April 15!" and the polls indicate that 52 percent promised to turn out to vote. In addition, the computer generation may make use of their computer savvy to get the word out to vote against the GNP/MDP.

'Oops We Pissed Off The Kids'

Impeachment sparks interest in politics among twentysomethings
San Beon-sok (Interviews)

Koreans in their twenties have frequently been characterized a lack of interest in politics. Theirs has been the most apolitical of all age groups, absorbed as they are in their mobile phones, a luxury afforded them because of the relative political freedom not enjoyed by previous generations.

In a country where there are said to be generation gaps even between siblings, most other Korean age groups actively participating in the political process spent their twenties under dictatorship. Though the battles were different, each fought for democracy in their own way.

That has not been the case with voters currently between the age of 20 and 29.

In a National Election Commission (NEC) survey taken in 2000, 9.4 percent of respondents said they were "very interested in politics," and 25.9 percent said they were "somewhat interested."

During the government of Kim Dae Jung, the conservative DongA Ilbo went so far as to run a whole series of articles that show Koreans in their twenties are at once more apolitical and conservative than their seniors.

Then came the "parliamentary coup d'état" of March 12, 2004.

In a poll of 500 people in their twenties taken March 23, 52.2 percent of respondents said they would "definitely" vote in April's National Assembly election. The poll was performed by the marketing company Embrain and on behalf of The Hankyoreh, a liberal Korean daily. In an earlier survey taken by Research Plus on March 16, shortly after the National Assembly passed the impeachment bill against President Roh Moo Hyun, 55.3 percent said they would vote "without fail."

Compare those figures to before impeachment. In a Hankyoreh poll taken March 6, 40.7 percent said they would vote in April, not all that different from NEC figures from March 2000, which showed 42.9 percent would be voting in the 2000 Assembly election.

Now, in addition to the 52.2 percent that would "definitely vote," another 39.1 percent said it was "likely" they would vote, meaning a total of 85.2 percent will probably cast ballots April 15. Only 10 percent said they will not participate in the election, including the 1.4 percent who will "absolutely not."

In the same Hankyoreh poll, 43.6 percent said they "had not intended to vote, but decided to after the impeachment bill was passed." Only 10.6 percent "had intended to vote, but decided not to after the impeachment bill was passed."

When asked what party they would vote for, an overwhelming 48.8 percent will vote for Uri Party. Only 12.6 percent intends to vote for Grand National Party (GNP) candidates, 5.6 percent for the Democratic Labor Party (DLP), and 4.4 percent for the Millennium Democratic Party (MDP).

OhMy News on 25 Mar had an article about how the computer generation may make use of their computer savvy to get the word out to vote against the GNP/MDP. The first time appearance of young cyber addicts on the real space looked so out of place on the street, and predictably generated quite confusion among the older generation. Members of dcinside.com, a leading cyber hangout where tens of thousands of Korean cyber addicts are burning midnight oil exchanging Photoshop retouched wry satires on everything ridiculous including the even more ridiculous Korean politics, got so enraged at Roh impeachment that they finally broke out of their cyber dungeon.

Have Computers, Will Fight For Reform

Moon Ihlwan, Businessweek Seoul correspondent interviewed last January the head of seoprise.com, the leading Korean political webzine. Seoprise.com, together with OhmyNews was one of the most frequently visited cyber platforms by Roh supporters. The two Internet news media are credited to have played a decisive role in pushing Roh Moo Hyun back to the winning position in the last presidential election. - OhmyNews

Can Web-savvy activists topple the old guard in parliamentary elections?

With just eight weeks until parliamentary elections, South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun's approval rating hovers around 30%. Several of his close associates are behind bars on corruption charges. There's a continuing nuclear standoff north of the border, and Roh's foreign policy has been roundly criticized by both the Right and the Left. And with 1 in 12 Koreans facing overdue credit-card bills, consumers are in no mood to spend. Sounds like a prescription for defeat for any candidate allied with the President, doesn't it?

On the contrary, Roh's camp is oozing with confidence. That's because in a country where 73% of homes enjoy high-speed Internet access, the battle for National Assembly seats will likely be won or lost in cyberspace -- an arena where Roh and his youthful allies have strong advantages over their older, less wired rivals. The Uri Party, formed last November by ardent Roh supporters pledging radical political reforms, is counting on Korea's Net-savvy thirty- and fortysomethings to fuel an election triumph in the Apr. 15 vote. This is the same group of supporters that helped sweep Roh to power in December, 2002, in a surprising come-from-behind victory. The technology-smart generation largely backed the 57-year-old Roh because of his promise to clean up politics. Now this same group sees the upcoming poll as the best chance to toss out the old guard that dominates Parliament.

It's a tall order. The Uri Party today has just 47 seats in the 273-member National Assembly, compared with 147 for the conservative Grand National Party (GNP). But the young party's adherents have declared war on the corruption endemic in Korean politics -- and they're fighting most fiercely online. Uri members have fostered cyber-communities by building Web pages, sending out e-mails to recruit new members, and soliciting contributions online. "We want to at least double our parliamentary seats," says Uri lawmaker Rhyu Si Min, chairman of its e-party committee.

Uri can expect help from plenty of like-minded activists. On Feb. 3, nearly 300 civic groups ranging from environmentalists to proponents of shareholder rights launched a joint "ClickNClean" movement to oust sleazy politicians from Parliament. Calling their movement a "voter's revolution," they created a Web site where they will list names of politicians they see as corrupt or otherwise "unfit," such as those who cooperated with former military regimes. Anyone on the list who is nominated for the upcoming campaign will be targeted by the groups.

Politicians have reason to take the warning seriously. In a similar action four years ago, 59 of 86 blacklisted candidates were defeated. And this time the campaign may be even more powerful. Unlike in 2000, when activists took to the streets carrying banners with names of dishonest politicians, the focus now will be on the Internet. Thousands of volunteers plan to send e-mails to friends asking them to forward to other acquaintances reports on the candidates' shady dealings. "Such a chain will have a devastating effect," reckons Kim Min Young, a leader at People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, one of the civic groups.

Another tactic will have a more positive focus. In a movement called mulgari -- which translates to "change en masse" -- some 2,000 people from all walks of life plan to select a list of candidates whom they believe deserve their backing. The group will then launch a similar electronic chain-letter campaign to drum up votes. "We are witnessing the explosion of participation by voters in the task of replacing corrupt, old blood with fresh faces," says Chung Dae Hwa, a Sangji University political scientist who heads the mulgari movement.

IDEAS AND STRATEGIES. The e-campaign may already be paying off for Uri. In a January poll by Taylor Nelson Sofres PLC and SBS TV, 30.2% of respondents backed Uri, vs. 20.6% for the GNP and 13% for the Millennium Democratic Party, which most of Uri's members quit last year. Although some of the Uri Party's rise is the result of new corruption probes against the GNP, and many voters remain undecided, the poll showed a dramatic improvement for Uri, which in November was backed by just 15.6% of those polled.

To keep track of the action, Koreans are flocking to politically oriented Web sites. Many of the sites' visitors are younger voters who don't trust Korea's political and media Establishment. Instead, they prefer more liberal Web media upstarts such as seoprise.com, OhmyNews.com, or PRESSian, where they not only read opinions close to their own but also have the opportunity to post responses to the columnists. Seoprise, for instance, is run by journalist Seo Young Seok, who built his reputation as an online columnist for the daily Kookmin Ilbo, one of a half-dozen conservative newspapers that have long lorded over South Korea's media landscape. The paper's management took umbrage at Seo's pro-Roh tilt, and last May Seo quit to devote himself to seoprise. The site has become a major online forum attracting tens of thousands of daily visits from Roh supporters, who swap ideas and help shape strategies for the Uri Party. For instance, a recent comment suggesting Uri back reforms to the university system drew more than 100 responses within hours. "Volunteer workers will massively turn out and make full use of the Net to reshape politics," predicts Seo.

Feeling the pressure, the GNP is now vowing an online campaign of its own. The party has revamped its Web site to appeal to younger voters. One new feature, with the tongue-in-cheek name "Thank You Seoprise," carries rebuttals to columns from Seo's site. "We recognize the importance of appealing to Netizens," says Jung Tae Yun, chairman of the GNP's cyber-committee. "We have decided to run two official sites, as our original one is too formal for younger voters." True, the GNP retains a strong power base among older voters. But that -- even when combined with its new Internet efforts -- may not be enough to counter the Uri Party's tech smarts. / By Moon Ihlwan in Seoul

Seoul Decides to Change Iraq Troop Location On the eve of the anniversary of the Iraq War -- with international protests scheduled for the March 20th Global Day of Action against War -- the Seoul government decided to change the location of its troops bound for Iraq. Anti-war protests were scheduled throughout the country -- and the anti-war groups promised to join the impeachment protests to held on the same day. An anticipated 100,000 protestors were expected in Seoul from the combined numbers, along with smaller rallies throughout the country.


Anti-War in Iraq demonstration (20 Mar 04)

According to official data, a growing number of Iraqi insurgents had been gathering in Kirkuk, particularly in Hawija, as U.S. forces have stepped up anti-guerilla operations in the "Sunni Triangle" and Baghdad areas. The troop dispatch plan was unpopular among South Koreans. Some say the dispatch would solidify the half-century Seoul-Washington alliance, while others argue that the U.S.-led war in Iraq is unjustified and voice concern about possible Korean deaths.

On 19 Mar, the South Korean government decided to change the location of its 3,000 soldiers set for deployment next month, from the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk to the south-central region. Though Seoul used the excuse that Washington sought to co-station its own troops with the Koreans in parts of Kirkuk as a tactic to take command of the South Korean soldiers there. To it would effectively redirect the aim of the mission to Kirkuk. The Koreans claimed that it would amount to a "joint offensive" to stabilize the area.

The key point is that Seoul wishes to distance itself from the U.S. as a means to say to the Iraq terrorists, "I'm not really supporting the Americans. I am only here to support the Iraqi reconstruction." As a result of this declaration, a comprehensive review of the South Korean troop dispatch plan will have to be prepared and the dispatch of troops, which was planned to be carried out beginning April 7, was expected to be delayed by more than two months at least.

A possible candidate site was Najaf in southern Iraq, where Spanish troops are currently stationed. Spain's new prime minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, said he would pull 1,300 Spanish troops out of Iraq unless the United Nations takes control of peacekeeping operations there. However, this posed the same problem as the American joint operations in Kirkuk. The area is controlled by the Polish Army and most likely that the Korean troops will not choose to take orders from Poland as it demands "independent operations." Therefore, South Korea found itself in a position where it might NOT send troops to Iraq, despite promising the U.S. that it would.

It was interesting that the Civil Authority in Najaf stated that they do NOT want the Koreans there on 22 March. At the same time it was announced on 22 March that a Korean Company, NTS, specializing as bodyguards, was awarded a contract to train Iraq police in defense. NTS had provided security for Jordan royalty.

However, the Americans first stated that they wished to station some of its personnel at the airport as it is a resupply link to the area. Later it was mentioned that these would be counter-insurgency units. According to Yonhap News, "The US cited inevitability for offensive operations to keep security in order in the Kirkuk area and proposed a certain number of US troops would remain in Kirkuk to continue to conduct stabilization operations under the tactical control of South Korea." The key point was that these forces would be under the "tactical control" of the ROK. The ROK, however, want to distance themselves from the U.S. in Iraq.

The ROK government said it saw the U.S. proposal as not in line with South Korea's intention to keep its own independent operational command system and conduct peaceful reconstruction. According to Chosun Ilbo, "Korean troops, originally scheduled to leave for Kirkuk, Iraq, will be going to another region instead. Although the Ministry of National Defense calls this change of plan the “South Korea-U.S. agreement,” it was, in reality, an alternative plan that both parties had come up with, as narrowing their differences seemed quite impossible. Opinions clashed as South Korea refused to cooperate with the U.S. Army in the mission to sweep out guerrilla fighters in Kirkuk." In March alone, a total of 12 terrorist attacks and 24 U.S.-led anti-terror offensive had taken place in Kirkuk. Intelligence data shows a growing number of Iraqi insurgents have been gathering in Kirkuk, particularly in Hawija, as U.S forces stepped up anti-guerilla operations in the "Sunni Triangle" and Baghdad areas.

(SITE NOTE: To gain an insight into the dangers of the area, go to Stryker: Jan 2004 duty in Mosul, Iraq. The 3rd Battalion, 2d Infantry Division (Stryker) is part of the Multinational Task Force Olympia. In reading the reports the unit is receiving massive amounts of Iraqi munitions turned in by "concerned parties." The overall picture is that the majority of the populace wants peace and to rid their countryside of munitions that are crippling their children. However, there still exists fanatical elements who are committed to attacking the American forces with iImprovised explosive devices (IED) -- ie, mortar shells rigged with a garage-door opener detonator.)

A sign that the media attention of the worsening conditions in Iraq has had some effect is shown by 173 volunteers who have changed their mind. More than 170 soldiers of the South Korean contingent selected to serve in Iraq have withdrawn their bids to join the contingent -- most likely over concerns of their safety from either their perspective or from their parents.

According to the Yonhap News Agency, "South Korea has shelved that plan because of Washington's request that troops of the allies operate jointly to help stabilize the deteriorating security situation in the Kirkuk area, said Defense Ministry officials. .. "The U.S. side offered to keep a certain size of U.S. troops in Kirkuk, citing the inevitability of offensive operation to keep the worsening security in Kirkuk in order," said Nam Dae-yeon, a ministry spokesman. .. The proposed joint operation requires a revision of the original South Korean troop dispatch plan which was approved by its National Assembly. General elections are scheduled in mid-April to form a new parliament. .. Nam said approximately two weeks would be needed to select a new site, indicating that the South Korean troop dispatch could be delayed beyond April. .. "There is a possibility that the timing of the troop dispatch is delayed. There are some problems such as the timing of an advance team and shipping of military hardware," he said. .. The spokesman said new survey teams will have to be sent to Iraq to choose a new site.

To many outsiders, this signals will Seoul inevitably change its deployment plans again on any fabricated pretext as its deployment date again nears. Korea watchers worry that Seoul may inevitably be "losing face" in the international arena due to schedule changes. On the other hand, to Koreans the move to renegotiate its commitment is seen as an attempt to take control of its own war against terrorism.

To offset this impression of "stalling", the Prime Minister's Office said on 20 Mar that no significant changes have taken place that warrant a change in policy about sending troops to Iraq. Minister for Government Policy Coordination Han Duck-soo stressed the timetable for the dispatch could be delayed because of the need to select a new area for the deployment, but said it is only a technical matter. Han, who is the top official under Prime Minister Goh Kun, also said that any delays are not deliberate. The U.S. State Department said that Washington is holding detailed talks with Seoul on the upcoming deployment of South Korean troops to Iraq and if there was a delay in sending troops, it would be the result of things that had to be resolved on the logistical front.

(SITE NOTE: This scenario is the typical "stall-and-conquer" technique that Koreans have used since the 1970s. Basically it amounts to promising everything to stall for time until the other side is at a disadvantage -- and then yank the carpet out from the other side and demand to renegotiate everything from the start. A variation is to negotiate until generous concessions are made, then sign the agreement. Upon implementation of the agreement/contract/MOU/MOA, immediately demand renegotiations while keeping all the concessions intact.

This has been seen in ROK business dealings with company acquisitions; negotiations over opening of the closed protectionist markets of Korea (despite WTO and trade agreements); and most recently, the relocation of the Yongsan Garrison. Since the 1970s this Korean technique has been well-documented in U.S. college business textbooks dealing with Asian markets.

Many outside observers saw this in the same light. Thus the ROK quickly issued a statement that it still intends to send more than 3,000 troops to Iraq, despite scrapping the immediate deployment plans and rejected reports that ROK could follow Spain's lead and consider pulling out of the US-led mission in Iraq. "One of our concerns is that by changing the location, we may give the wrong impression to the public and friends that South Korea may back-track on the commitment or that South Korea is trying to delay the actual dispatch," a ROK official said. "That is something that we have to make clear ... we are not moving in that direction."

REMEMBER THAT THIS HAGGLING IS STRICTLY POLITICAL. THERE IS NO QUESTION OF THE COMPETENCE OF THE ROK MILITARY NOR THEIR BRAVERY. (SITE NOTE: The commitment will make the South Korean contingent the third largest foreign contribution in Iraq after the United States and the United Kingdom. The unit to arrive would be a "hybrid" specializing in reconstruction consisting of a mixture of logistics types. The unit will contain engineers, medics, truck drivers and other reconstruction skills. But the unit will also contain security and civil affairs personnel. There are currently 500 South Korean soldiers based in Nasiriyah, mostly engineers and medical personnel. They will deploy with the rest of the arriving troops. The unit will report directly to Combined Joint Task Force 7, and a major general will command it. There were 50,000 South Korean volunteers for the 3,000 spaces in the Zaiyatun Unit. South Korea has had a wealth of peacekeeping experience. It has participated in operations in Cambodia, the Western Sahara, Afghanistan and East Timor.)

What is especially galling to some observers is how the Korean media is now reshaping the story. According to the Joongang Ilbo on 21 Mar "Last week, South Korea and the United States agreed not to send the Korean contingent to Kirkuk in northern Iraq." In other words, the U.S. was agreeable to this change in plans at the last minute -- and in some stories, was the one that proposed it.)

The government started preparations for the troop deployment last December by setting up the "Zayitun" unit. But it is now wrangling with the United States over several untimely issues, including where to station the troops and the purpose of the mission, just weeks before the actual deployment.

To outsiders, the worsening safety conditions in Kirkuk is the PRIMARY reason for the change. (See January 2004: Approval of ROK Troops to Iraq.) The Korea Herald headline read "Troops to go to safer place." Politically it would be a hot issue if Koreans were killed in the operations -- with resultant protests from the anti-War factions sure to result. Their are growing concerns in Korea over the increasing level of danger that South Korean troops will have to face in Iraq.

The government now faces many new tasks, not only in deciding when and where to place the 3,000 soldiers, but the cost of keeping them in training during the stand-by period. The overall budget for the training and deployment of the "Zayitun" unit was estimated at about 67 billion won ($57 million), but if the postponement continues in the long term, then that cost may jump by a huge margin.

On 24 Mar, Yonhap News stated that The United States was expected to propose several Iraqi areas where it wants additional South Korean troops to be stationed to help rebuild Iraq. South Korea will then review the proposed locations to find an area which conforms to its principle of conducting peacemaking and reconstruction missions under an independent command. Lt. Gen. Kim said South Korea hopes to send the extra troops to an area where the "supply route is short," remarks widely seen as preferring southern Iraq. The South Korea military has said it would set up a logistical support base in Kuwait, which is adjacent to southern Iraq. According to local press reports, the candidate deployment sites are Sulaimaniyah and Irbil in the north and Najaf, Karbala, Qudisiyah and Basra in the south.

(SITE NOTE: The Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (GSDF) deployment has beat the Koreans to Iraq. The humanitarian relief mission in the southern Iraqi city of Samawah visited two suburban elementary schools to take requests for repairs. Classrooms with peeling paint, damaged roofs and so on "can be repaired within our capacity," Colonel Masahisa Sato said after viewing the schools. The ROK already has a 450-man construction battalion in Iraq, but has not sent a larger contingent because of disputes over location -- but really over political realities in Korea. (NOTE: The GSDF deployment has not been without protest. Tens of thousands of people joined the worldwide protests of the anniversary of the Iraq War at more than 100 locations across the country on 20 Mar. All told, about 60,000 attended rallies at Hibiya and Shibakoen parks in Tokyo.))

On 29 Mar the ROK government stated that ALL areas in Iraq were being considered for a deployment location with the exception of Kirkuk. In other words, the ROK was back at the negotiation table -- and stalling for time. On 2 Apr it was announced that the Korean troops were considering deployments to either Sulaymaniyah or Arbil -- both in northern Iraq -- rather than Kirkuk as originally planned. The government planned to send a survey team to Iraq in the middle of April to select an area of deployment; so that the troops could be sent by late June at the latest.

Korean editorials feel that perhaps the ROK has stepped into a quagmire in that the Kurdish areas may be peaceful now, but may become hot spots later. In July, Iraqi sovereignty will pass from coalition headquarters to the Iraqi provisional government, and with that the nation building process will begin in earnest. The possibility that political tensions between the Kurds and the central government may increase as the Kurds demand autonomy. The Korean military may become embroiled in strife brought about by those tensions.

The Chosun Ilbo editorial on 3 Apr stated, "The United States is still welcoming, at least verbally, the Korean deployment -- a deployment that will be the dead last of the 34 countries that have contributed troops in Iraq. But feelings of genuine thanks have already passed. From the very beginning, we didn't want this situation to get any worse, but one wonders if taken a turn for the worse again."

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Old News: South Koreans Wary of U.S. An article in the Stars and Stripes says something that we've known for years. It takes think tanks to spend lots of money to find out what the newspapers have been expressing for years. Their findings were put out on our site in 2002 a long time ago. (See South Koreans Consider U.S. Bigger Threat than North in Jan 2004.) The following appeared in the Stars and Stripes on 25 Mar:

Study: S. Koreans increasingly wary toward U.S.

By Jeremy Kirk, Stars and Stripes
Pacific edition, Friday, March 26, 2004

YONGSAN GARRISON, South Korea — South Koreans have a “deep ambivalence” about the presence of U.S. military forces in their country and how it affects relations with North Korea, a new RAND Corporation study has found.

The nonprofit think tank’s report, released earlier this month, included two public opinion polls covering 1,710 South Koreans. Most South Koreans said they believe U.S. forces are important for security but also believe the 37,000 U.S. servicemembers stationed in their country may halt unification efforts with North Korea, the study said. And younger, better-educated respondents said they believe America poses a greater threat than North Korea.

A pivotal incident was the acquittal of two U.S. soldiers in November 2002 in a fatal armored-vehicle accident that killed two South Korean schoolgirls. That incident caused a 16 percent decline in those holding favorable views, down to 37 percent, the report found.

Favorable attitudes also took a hit in February 2002, when an American speed skater won an Olympic gold medal after a South Korean skater was disqualified, RAND researchers found.

Attitudes recovered slightly after the United States began its military campaign against Iraq in March 2003, the study found. But two of three South Koreans characterized their country’s relationship with the United States as “pretty bad” or “very bad.”

Sizable percentages of educated South Koreans hold an unfavorable view of the United States — a sentiment that could increase as the percentage of older people with favorable attitudes declines, the report stated. Those in their 20s and with a college education said the United States poses a greater threat to their country than North Korea, while those with only a junior high school education and are older than age 50 said the opposite.

“If the current trends continue, public attitudes toward the United States could worsen in the years ahead,” the study said.

Participants in the RAND report, “Ambivalent Allies? A study of South Korean attitudes toward the U.S.,” included two former U.S. ambassadors to Seoul: Stephen Bosworth, Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy dean, and Richard L. “Dixie” Walker, ambassador-in-residence at the Walker Institute of International Studies of the University of South Carolina. Members also included other prominent South Korea scholars. The report recommended ways to improve the relationship, including:

• • Persuade South Koreans that American interests go beyond North Korea and that the United States has a long-term interest in a stable Northeast Asia. (SITE NOTE: Good luck...given the other factors, the young South Koreans have stopped up their ears to anything that conflicts with their self-image and self-importance in the world structure. They have a problem which they cannot accept that is even more important. To have a viable society, they must have a birth rate of 2.1, but their birth rate is 1.5. If this continues, their society cannot survive. There are more divorces than there are marriages. The list goes on and on. The society is in trouble -- and this is the reason that most educated people are emigrating in droves to the U.S., Canada, and Australia.)
• • Develop a public diplomacy strategy focusing on legitimate grievances while not trying to change ideological anti-American views. (SITE NOTE: In a society that reveres the Student Revolution and other forms that pit the idealistic young against the retrenched governments, it is hard. Violent street demonstrations have been accepted as a vehicle for societal change.)
• • Explore intelligence sharing and harmonize views of threats and responses. (SITE NOTE: South Koreans reportedly don't share intelligence from defectors, though they rely on U.S. satellite intelligence.)
• • Determine whether South Korea’s education system propagates anti-American attitudes and how the South Korea media shapes views. (SITE NOTE: This has been hashed and rehashed that the teachers from elementary through college teach anti-American attitudes. During the March 2003 debate whether to send U.S. troops to Iraq, my daughter came home wearing an anti-American pin given out by her Korean middle school teacher to students. The Korean Federation of Teachers Union is a radical element in control of the education process. The Korean media only accepted a standard of ethics two years ago -- and even then tabloid-type "yellow jouralism" is the standard, not the exception in Korea. Currently the media is producing articles that are biased against conservatives -- and espouse the reformist, anti-USFK articles reminiscent of the anti-American frenzy days of 2002.)

South Korean Court Jails German Scholar A ROK court sentenced Song Doo-Yul, a German scholar of Korean origin, to seven years in prison here for maintaining unauthorized links with the DPRK's Stalinist leadership. Song was prosecuted on charges of voluntarily entering North Korea in 1973 and joining the Workers Party, engaging in pro-North Korean activity in Germany, being selected to the Worker Party politburo in 1991 and spreading North Korea's Juche ideology both in Korea and abroad and visiting North Korea 22 times since 1973 in order to receive instructions from the communist country. Prosecutors had demanded a 15-year jail term for Song, 60, charged under the ROK's national security law for unauthorized visits to the DPRK and taking a senior position in the DPRK's ruling politburo.

"The court confirms the fact that the accused has acted as an alternate member of the politburo of the Korean Workers' Party," Seoul District Criminal Court said in a statement. It is necessary for the court to hand down a heavy sentence on the accused who recklessly spread the ideology of (late DPRK leader) Kim Il-Sung and his son (Kim Jong-Il) in the ROK, thus harming the cause of a peaceful unification of the South and the North." The court stated that Song disguised as a 'border rider,' uncritically disseminated Kim Il-sung's dynastic ideology in South Korea and worked against the peaceful North-South reunification. Song's legal team, which argued for acquittal, denounced the proceedings as a "political show trial" and said an appeal would be filed. "This is a shame on Korea, which is supposed to be a democratic society," Song's wife, Chung Jung-Hee, told a press conference. Song himself was "calm and proud" when he received the sentence, she added. Song has consistently denied his deeds and according to the court decision, "refused to apologize or reflect upon his biased academic activities."

Following the announcement of the conviction, the German government voiced concerns over "several" items. The major problem is that Song is a German citizen. The second problem is that he was "invited" by a pro-North group under suspicious circumstances that point to the Roh government tacitly approving his highly publicized arrival. The third problem is that Song himself continued to portray himself as a victim of national division, but stated that he wanted to face the charges and would accept any penalties in his trial. He was given the opportunity to leave the country under his German citizenship, but chose of his own free will to remain to face the court decision.

At first the media hype was that he worked for the unification of the Koreas and turned him into a pop-hero whose convictions forced him to remain in Germany since the Park Chung Hee days. Though he openly admitted his visits to North Korea, he stated it was in the aims of reunification. He attended academic lectures in North Korea. However, then the bomb shell hit when defector groups denounced him as being a member of the North Korean Worker's Party Politburo. This was confirmed by the highest ranking defector from the North, Hwang Jang-yop, a former secretary of the Korean Workers Party, and a telegram sent to Pyongyang by Kim Gyong-pil, a former secretary at the North Korean Interests Section in Germany.

At first Song denied the accusations, but it was proven that he had received about $300,000 from the North Korean regime while in Germany. Documents proved that he was the #13 man in the Politburo. Song claimed that this was simply "publicity" on the North's part without substance. Song claimed that his joining of the Korean Workers Party was nothing more that a formality performed when entering the country, saying that even in the North, only figures recognized for their ideological purity are allowed entry into the party. The court countered that, "The defendant used the North's ideologically slanted academic writings and media selections to provide an ideological basic about the 'Juche' ideology in the South, and contributed to the growth of blind pro-North Korean forces... When that kind of matter is outwardly expressed, even academic freedom and freedom of conscience can be limited in order to maintain security and order."

The case then became a highly politicized case causing rifts between the Minister of Justice Kang who did not wish the case to go to court versus the prosecution who did. President Roh and Justice Minister Kang backed Song's presence in Korea, but soon distanced themselves after the revelations of Song's North Kroean ties were revealed. In the meantime, the leftist groups in South Korea used Song as a tool to justify their own ideological beliefs. Song was awarded a peace prize in the name of patriot Ahn Jung-geun which seemed strange given the circumstances of his case.

SITE NOTE: The Song case in our opinion was an attempt to neuter the National Security Law -- but failed. Early on in his tenure as president, President Roh replaced the heads of the National Intelligence Service with "north-leaning" individuals and open sought to remove the critical portions of the National Security Law -- including pardoning long unrepentant communist who were political prisoners, seeking to pardon outlaw student leaders who promoted the Juche philosophy in the Hangchongnyeon organization, and more. Into this atmosphere, Song appeared on the scene in South Korea under circumstances that are very clouded as to who REALLY invited him to Korea. He was offered the out to leave the country as he was a German citizen, but chose to remain seeking to make the National Security Law look ridiculous -- painting himself as a fighter for reunification. His actions illustrate that he intended to become a martyr for a cause. However, it all exploded in his face when information was revealed that he was the #13 member of the Korean National Workers Party Politburo in North Korea. In our opinion, he gambled and in the end, lost.

However, we are certain that he will be offered again the opportunity to leave the country. The ROK would rather have him gone than stay as a martyr for the Juche factions in the student movement. Hundreds of scholars claimed his conviction was a "jump of logic" calling the 7-year sentence a traversty of justice.

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Go to Kunsan AB Protests: January-May 2004.Go to Kunsan AB Protests: April-June 2004. Go to Kunsan AB Protests: July-September 2004. Go to Kunsan AB Protests: July-September 2004.

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