[Jeju Update] Movie Critic Yang was released on Jan. 9/ Navy cleans wire fences? / Navy’s propaganda in the Jeju Airport

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A movie critic Yang Yoon-Mo was released from the Jeju Prison on Jan. 9
영화 평론가, 양윤모 선생님, 제주 교도소에서 1월 9일 석방

(* Images thanks to Mr. Go, Gangjeong, Jeju Island)

* Image source: Headline Jeju, Jan. 10, 2011 헤드라인 제주, 2011년 1월 10일(클릭)

Yang Yoon-Mo, a movie critic who has been doing the tent vigil against the Jeju naval base construction in the Joongduk coast for near two years and has been imprisoned since Dec. 27 when 34 people were arrested by the Jeju police during their peaceful press interview against the entry of about 60 construction trucks but released on the same day except for him was eventually released on Jan. 9. The navy had indicted him with the charge of the destruction of the navy propaganda boards when the ex-Minister of National Defense, Kim Tae-Young visited Gangjeong, provoking the villagers’ protest against him on last March 20, 2010. Yang had not paid the navy the fines of 1,900,000 won for the protest against the naval base construction that had not been welcomed by the local residents and had only brought their resistance against it. You can see the images of his tent and the destroyed navy propaganda boards HERE.

When he was arrested on Dec. 27, the prosecutors imprisoned him for the unpaid fines. Even though he expressed his will to be jailed instead paying fines, the villagers knowing his bad health due to his long tent life and struggle, collected their pocket moneys and eventually saved him from the jail. Beside the villagers, the members of the Pan-Island Committee and some citizens gathered money for him. The scanned banking tables in the above are the items of the contributors in detail.

Some villagers held the humble party for him and Yang expressed his thanks and delight to the villagers. According to Mr. Go living in the Gangjeong village, who sent the story on his release, Yang expressed his decision to live more earnestly as a Gangjeong villager (He had moved his address to the Gangjeong village months ago) and his will to join the villagers’ relay one man protest in front of the Island Hall, that starts on Jan. 10.
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Navy cleaned the wire fence in front of the makeshift naval base gate area. Why?
( Jan. 7, 2011)
해군, 해군 기지 가설 게이트 앞 철조망 치우다. 왜? (2010 년 1월 7일)
(* Images thanks to Mr. Go, Gangjeong, Jeju Island)

The letters on the top of the navy gate read:

'A new hope being together with the Jeju Island people
THE JEJU NAVAL BASE (Civilian-military complex tour beauty harbor) SITE'
Logos of the ROK Navy, Samsung and Daerim are shown at the bottom.

The signs read:

No Jeju Naval Base that fakes as a civilian-military complex tour beauty harbor
-by the Committee against the naval base of the Gangjeong village people’s council

For the future of our children, let’s prevent the construction of military base
that destroys the Peace Island, Jeju!
- by the Pan-Island Committee for the Prevention of the Jeju Military Base
and for the Realization of the Island of Peace

The Gangjeong villagers have repulsed that the navy has not kept its promise of not installing wire fence around its planned base site. The navy has built the makeshift fence right after Jan. 18, 2010 when it raided the village early in the dawn on, accompanied with the police who arrested 47 people (most of them were villagers). At the time, the villagers, having lain their bodies on the ground, resisted against the naval base construction. Since then, the navy has also built up the ugly wire fences around the gate along with its propaganda boards.

It was witnessed around 5 pm, on Jan. 7, 2011, that the navy was removing the wire fences it had installed around the gate. It was the next day that the officers of the Prime Minister office visited the site during their two days and three nights’ schedule in the site. The Prime Minister, meeting with the Gangjeong villagers in November 2010, had pledged them the Joint Chief of the Navy’s apology to the villagers for the rushed procedures of the base construction without the righteous consultation process of hearing opinions by the villagers who had been against the base construction. The pledge has, of course, not been realized and on Jan. 7, 2011, the villagers sent the Joint Chief of the Navy their official letter on their request to stop the naval base construction during the period of the lawsuit appeal on the disposal of the annulment of the absolute preservation area [in the Gangjeong village]. In the letter, the villagers said, “Regarding the point that you, Joint Chief of the Navy visits the Gangjeong village yourself and express your regretfulness, we inform you that we cannot accept your expression of it because the villagers have decided to deny conditional acceptance of the naval base and to oppose against its construction, as a result of our emergency village meeting on last Dec. 22, 2010.”

Do the Central and Island governments and navy are trying to mitigate the villagers’ fury on the base construction? The symptoms of such tactics seemed to be shown here and there in the village and Island. Or do they have any other plans to further infuriate the villagers, removing the wire fences around the gate?

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Navy's propaganda Exhibition in the Jeju Airport
해군, 제주 공항에서 선전전
(* Photos taken on Jan. 7, 2011)

The letters read:
'ROK Navy/ Marines
Photo exhibition for public information
Defense headquarter of the Jeju, Republic of Korea Navy'

* 아래는 고권일 선생님께서 2011년 1월 9일 양윤모 선생님 석방 소식과 관련, 보내신 글입니다.

눈이 많이와서 제주시와 서귀포간의 교통이 두절될지도 모른다는 생각에 양교수를 석방하기위한 발걸음이 빨라졌다.

교도소에서는 나올때까지 밖에서 기다려야한다고 했고 눈을 맞으며 5분여간 기다리자 잡혀갈 때 옷으로 갈아입고 웃으며 나오는 양교수를 만났다.

가지고간 두부를 받아먹으며 “그래도 나오니까 좋네” 하며 활짝웃는 양교수.

돌아오는길에 점심을 먹으며 술을 한 잔 기울였다.

앞으론 강정주민으로 더욱 열심히 살아야겠다는 결심을 했다고 한다.

일인시위 참가자 명단에도 꼭 끼워달라고 한다.

교도소에서 만난 바닥인생들과 대화하며 제주민의 사고방식을 조금 이해 할 수 있었다고 한다. 그 안에도 현재 사회의 축소판인 모습이 있어서 수감자간의 위계질서를 느낄 수 있어서

조금 씁쓸하기도 했다고.

저녁때 환영회가 열렸다.

조경철, 서울식당부부, 김종환, 고종인등이 술을 사들고 와서 떠들썩했다.

감기기운이 있던 양교수는 사람들과 포옹하며 “강정이 내 생명의 근원인 것 같다”며 내내 싱글벙글이다.

내일부터 강정주민들은 일인시위에 돌입한다.

어려운가운데도 2주간의 일정이 잡혀졌다.

날씨가 걱정이지만 어렵게 시작되는 투쟁이니만큼 끝까지 가야된다는 기세가 높다.

한참 해군기지싸움이 달아오를때에도 일인시위는 참가자를 정하는 문제가 어려웠다고 하며

이정도만 모여도 어떻게든 해낼 수 있을 것 같다며 다들 낙관하는 분위기다.