A rchive Date
[ 07-01-2003 ]
Category
[ International Relations ]
sub-Categoy
[ South Korea ]

Anti-Americanism sees growth in S. Korea

Last month's acquittal on the homicide charges of two US servicemen involved in killing two south Korean schoolgirls is provoking a string of anti-US protest actions throughout south Korea.

Public organizations have been formed to accuse the US military of giving "not guilty" verdict to the killers. In the wake of the inauguration of an all-people action committee, Buddhist groups converged in Seoul to form an action committee for eradicating US troop-committed crimes and revising the SOFA.

Referring to the motive of its organization, the action committee stated that the organization was formed to join in the anti-US campaign that is being launched on a nationwide scale after the killing of two schoolgirls and to fight until it would finish with the issues related to US forces. Meanwhile, 15 civic groups in North Chungchong Province formed an action committee.

Earlier, candlelight parades and demonstrations were staged simultaneously in over 40 cities including Seoul and Pusan, which were attended by 50,000 citizens and students to demand the annullment of the acquittal of the killing and the revision of the SOFA. The Catholic church action committee sponsored a candlelight concert for life and peace to demand the punishment of US servicemen and the revision of unequal SOFA at the venue of a hunger strike staged by the priests affiliated to the Catholic Priests' Council for Justice.

The Inchon civic solidarity for democratic reform, the Inchon association of women workers, the democratic solidarity for social progress, the Inchon association of young workers for loving the nation and several other organizations and citizens gathered in front of the US military base in Puphyong to declare the acquittal of the homicide charges invalid and condemn US forces in south Korea. A wide variety of rallies and demonstrations took place throughout south Korea.

Among them were an emergency meeting of representatives from over 70 civic and public organizations in Pusan area, a photo show on the killing of two schoolgirls sponsored by Pomminryon South Headquarters, a 2002 people's solidarity rally, demonstration and students' emergency meeting attended by 4,000 members of the national people's solidarity for national independence, democracy and people's right to subsistence and students of the south Korean Federation of University Student Councils and a religionists' conference for life and peace declaration to urge US apology and revision of SOFA held at a gathering attended by 300 Christians, Buddhists and other religious men.

A wave of anti-US actions climaxed in the candlelight gathering sponsored by the all-people action committee. The rally drew hundreds of thousands of people including students and children. According to the south Korean CBS, candlelight services were held simultaneously in over 30 areas including Seoul, Taejon, Kwangju and Pusan on December 21 to honour the memory of the two schoolgirls killed by the US armoured car.

South Koreans' anti-US campaign was launched abroad or hailed by overseas Koreans. A seven-member group of representatives from civic and public organizations led by permanent representative Han Sang Ryol of the all-people action committee flew to the United States to seek President George W. Bush's official apology for the homicide, reinvestigation of the acquittal, transfer of jurisdiction, punishment of the culprits and SOFA revision.

When they were faced with the US refusal to accept their demands the protesters went on hunger strike in front of the White House and moved to New York, Los Angeles and other places to hold meetings and press conferences to blame the US for its negligence of the homicide. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Zhongnan regional branch of the General Association of Korean Residents in China, chiefs of the League of Korean Youth in Japan, the Korean Democratic Women's Union in Japan and the Committee of Korean Students in Japan published statements to denounce the US for the acquittal on the schoolgirl killing.

According to news reports, the Western media presented the largest anti-US demonstration held on December 14 in Seoul. They commented that the growing anti-Americanism in south Korea assumed a new political colour quite different from in the previous days. They said that so far in south Korea a minority of leftist organizations were opposed to the presence of US troops, but the current protest actions drew believers, athletes and performing artists as well as students. They not only demand

President Bush

's official apology and the withdrawal of US troops, but also give vent to their deep-seated wrath for the maltreatment by US troops and increase voices for restoring sovereignty, they added. "It is very unusual," they emphasized.

They focussed on the fact that protest actions which were gaining momentum when the situation was going from bad to worse after the DPRK's statement to lift nuclear freeze would go over to a demand of concluding the DPRK-US non-aggression treaty and strong criticism of the US hardline stance towards the DPRK.

They noted that array of anti-US actions would significantly affect the future of US forces in south Korea.

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Cross-Indexed:

South Korea Urges U.S. To Talk With N. Korea

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