Attack on naval servicemen

The village of Gangjeong in Seogwipo, Jeju Island, where a new naval base is to be built, has become a playground for pro-North Korea left-wing groups. When a Dong-A Ilbo reporter visited the place together with nine Navy servicemen in charge of building the base, a large group of people opposing the base had set up camps, with one banner saying, “The stubborn will win” hung on a nearby farm road. As one protestor under the banner blew a whistle, a siren sounded loudly in the village. In an instant, some 30 protesters gathered at the site, resulting in rough wrestling matches. Seamen were not allowed to use force on the protesters and had to be helplessly driven out of the venue by protesters, who kicked the troops in their calves while cussing at them.

The transfer of the ownership of the land where the naval base will be built has been legally completed. Is it normal for a country to have its troops beaten up by protesters at a construction site owned by the government? In June, members of a military task force in charge of building the base were beaten by a group of protesters while videotaping a barge for the construction entering a Jeju port.

Most of the demonstrators, who falsely say Korea will sell the base to the U.S. military, are professional protesters from outside of Jeju. Holding a campaign to urge Jeju residents to put up 1,000 banners opposing the base, they are injecting anti-rational thinking into the island`s residents. A naval official said households opposed to the base construction began to hoist yellow flags on bamboo poles, while those supporting the project had stones thrown at them.

External forces plan to operate “peace buses” from Aug. 27 until Sept. 4 to campaign for the cancellation of the construction plan. Those who sent “hope buses” to the site of a labor dispute at Hanjin Heavy Industries have changed the name to “peace buses.” While the government and the Navy are seeking an injunction against any activity obstructing the base construction, the protesters plan to neutralize a judicial ruling when a court announces its decision. They have threatened to torpedo the project by continuing their protests against it.

The construction of the Jeju naval base was decided in 2007 under the Roh Moo-hyun administration as a state-managed project. The intent was to protect Korean territorial waters, where more than 90 percent of the country’s imported and exported goods were transported. Korea cannot let the anarchic situation in Gangjeong continue in which military personnel conducting legitimate public business are beaten by a group of pro-North Korea left-wing groups. Such an outrageous situation will cost Korea its national security and the welfare of its people.