Korea: Priest sends eyewitness report from Jeju Island

Daily Mass at the gates

Columbans are among peace activists, villagers and religious involved in the struggle against a controversial naval base being constructed on Jeju Island. Daily Mass is said and prayer vigils are held at the site.

This has been another difficult and trying week, and we're face another critical week ahead. The drilling continues, although surreptitiously and sporadically, given the sensitive political nature of the upcoming parliamentary elections and the increasing local and international attention surrounding the construction of the US backed naval base in Gangjeong, Jeju. The blasting and drilling has been mostly concentrated on the farmland section of the site - parcels of land which was illegally confiscated by the authorities from the farmers as they refused to hand over their land and accept the compensation that was subsequently offered.

The blasting on the Gureombi rock area itself could begin as early as Tuesday 20 March.

Over the last number of days, while I was there, we awoke each morning to the siren call announcing that another batch load of explosives had left the storage facility and was making its way to the coastal rocks area! We as helpless spectators witnessed the arrival of these box loads of explosives on to the coastal rock area; they are now being transported by sea as the route by road has been blocked by protestors' vehicles!

The activists gather daily at 10am at the Metburi rocks which is of course cordoned off by fencing and razor wire. Activists and reporters/photographers alike equipped with cameras and long lenses begin the daily ritual of counting the number of boxes from afar and become increasingly incensed as the count rises -23..24..25..26..27. There is this terrible sinking feeling of helplessness as the boxes are being handed up one by one on to the gureombi rock.

Protestors are determined to stop this destruction having suffered so much and having made in some cases numerous visits to the police holding cells and to prison - as many as 400 people have been detained and some including the Mayor Kang have served sentences and in the case of Professor Yang Yoon Mo, after 36 days into his second hunger strike has thankfully (given his very frail condition having been off water and salt for 10 days) decided to come off his hunger strike.

Daily Mass continues in front of the naval office gate of the construction site and is a source of strength and healing for many who gather and the evening candle light vigils/song and dance is another means by which people are updated/briefed on the days actions and events and of course is a therapeutic means whereby activists are able to get some release and are free to sing and dance away the stresses and strains of the daily round of struggles and confrontations with the police!

Having spent a number of days this time one could be forgiven for thinking that this is a police state where there is nearly one police officer for every villager (1,500 police). The non violent resistance and amazingly upbeat nature of the protests has amazed the international activists who continue to arrive and is I believe the hallmark of this incredible David versus Goliath struggle-they refuse to be beaten down!

I attended a press conference in front of the gate where Veterans for Peace Korea issued a strong condemnation of the Government's most recent attempt to break the back of the resistance by refusing to allow the entry of three Veteran's for Peace activists from the USA who arrived at Jeju airport from Shanghai! They were met off the plane by Immigration officials and hastily bundled back onto a flight to Shanghai after travelling nearly three days from their home towns. Their airfares were raised through a fundraising campaign initiated by Bruce Gagnon (Chair of the Global Institute against Weapons and Nuclear Power in Space). They travelled to lend their support and solidarity to the non violent struggle to rid Gangjeong of this destruction to their community and the beautiful pristine environment and peaceful way of life that used to be a feature of this tranquil village.

Jeju happens to be home to three UNESCO World heritage sites as well as UNESCO Biosphere reserve and is now being undermined by this destruction.

There was an emergency meeting of the Catholic Religious JPIC Committee Korea on Friday 18 March to discuss the recent turn of events. We reviewed together a statement formulated to protest the recent arrest and ongoing illegal detention of one of the Korean Jesuits Fr Kim Jong Yook, as well as a Presbyterian Minister Rev Lee Jong Hoon, and demanded their immediate release.

This statement was read at the 7pm Mass at Sogang University, organized at short notice to protest the arrest and detention of the two clergy and to express our ongoing solidarity for the villagers and peace activists involved in the struggle. They have been charged with causing damage to government property (fence) and illegal entry onto the construction site where the dynamiting of a unique laval rock formation is taking place! The villagers' identity as a people is closely intertwined with this beautiful basalt rock formation-(gureombi-'a living rock') which was formed millions of years ago from the volcanic mountain of Hallasan from which one can get a magnificent view of nearby!

While there I had the opportunity to visit the detainees including two international peace activists - Benjamin Monnet from France who has already been deported, Angie Zelter (initially issued with a deportation order and was subsequently reduced to an Exit order for 22 March when she is due to leave anyway). Needless to say it was indeed an opportune time to meet these two inspiring international activists - Benjamin who has devoted the last nine months of his life to this struggle and has played a crucial and pivotal role in the by undertaking often daring and brave actions by resisting police attempts to apprehend him and climb up to the top of a large excavator inside the destruction site itself. His leadership in this struggle will sorely be missed so I guess it is understandable why the authorities want a leading figure like him out of the picture!

The authorities are determined to use the full force of state power to crackdown and literally beat the resistance into submission but I think they have severely underestimated the steely nature of the villagers and peace activists. The struggle needs all the international attention it can get as the villagers are facing D Day tomorrow- 20 March - with the prospect of seeing their beloved gureombi-the living rock being blasted away by the Navy and the lead contractor in this demolition-Samsung C&T! Yes, Samsung Electronics who manufacture mobile devices are the principal deviant in this destruction! Should we not think twice before purchasing Samsung products in the future! Even Samsung with all their technology, expertise and know how will not be able to restore gureombi rock once they begin the destruction tomorrow.