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savePTfarmers   pm.10:57, Wednesday ( 2620hit )
Korean government forces an "agreement" from Daechuri residents

On February 13, Daechuri residents agreed to leave Daechuri by the end of March. The following article, translated from Chamsaesang, lays out the details of the villager's impending displacement. But like most press coverage of the displacement, the article uses words like ¡°agreement¡± and ¡°resettlement¡± to describe what is essentially a coercive, forced displacement.
Villagers were forced into "accepting" their forced displacement after a brutal year: the destruction of their school, the demolition of vacant and re-occupied houses, dozens of politically motivated arrests (including of former village leader Kim Ji Tae), repeated police attacks, the fencing off of their fields with barbed wire, and arbitrary police checkpoints on the roads leading to the village. After most of their fields were occupied by the Korean army in May, villagers had come together to collectively farm the few fields left to them. But in November, the police returned to fence off the few fields that had been left free of barbed wire. Since then, the villagers find themselves with no way to support themselves, and an increasingly desperate financial situation.
Finally, during negotiations between the resident's committee and the government, the government gave villagers an ultimatum: leave now and take our (inadequate) offer, or wait until April and leave with nothing. The government made it clear that either way, the village would be destroyed in April.
Meanwhile, other Koreans will continue to fight against the base expansion. The reasons for opposition to the base expansion are the same as ever: rejection of US intervention on the Korean peninsula and US imperialism in Northeast Asia, and now more than ever, the forced displacement of Daechuri residents. On March 3 (see previous post), Pyeongtaek Jikimis (volutary supporters) will meet in Daechuri. Some Jikimis will continue to live in the village and resist the expansion even after the original residents leave. The KCPT, an alliance of Korean social movements and organizations, also continues to actively oppose the base expansion.
Although some press reports and Korean government statements have announced the residents' ¡°voluntary¡± departure, there is nothing voluntary about it. The ¡°peace¡± that the government proudly announces is a peace without justice, achieved through physical and economic violence. The Korean government gloats that it ¡°look[s] forward to putting an end to this conflict..." But as long as US imperialism tramples on people's rights, in Korea and around the world, people will keep on fighting against the global empire and the states that support it.


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The Daechuri residents and the Government agree on resettlement
After 12 rounds of discussions, residents agreed to resettlement by the end of March

On February 13th, the office of the Prime minister and the Ministry of Defense gave the following press release :  "The residents of Daechuri and the Government have drawn up a mutual agreement to bring an end to their conflict and allow for a peaceful resettlement."

This was the result of talks that began on January 2 between the Paengseong residents' committee and the government.  The Paengseong residents' committee proposed talks last Jan 1st, announcing, "We are proposing talks with the government to reach a peaceful solution to the problem of the U.S. base expansion.  We urge the government to earnestly and progressively attend this discussion in order to find a peaceful solution to this problem and to make sure that the pain and loss of our residents do not go on."

Thereafter the negotiations proceeded over 12 rounds until the Paengseong residents committee and the government reached an agreement on Feb 13.


Resettlement to Peangseong Nowha-ri and Namsan-ri

Kim Ji Tae, chairman of the Paengseong residents' committee, and Kim Chun Suk, head of the U.S. Base Relocation Project, signed an agreement that outlined the following :
- The resettlement of the residents must be completed by March 31, 2007.
- The residents will move to Paengseong Nowhari and Namsanri where rented land will be parceled out.
- Elderly persons in a low-income bracket will be provided 10 million won in financial support for resettlement and a monthly allowance of 200,000 won until 2014.
- The government will issue an apology.
- The Ministry¡¯s accusation of illegal farming will be withdrawn, and the residents being held on criminal charges will be released immediately.
- When the housing complex in Nowha-ri is completed it will be renamed as Daechuri.

Although the residents put up a strong resistance for nearly 4 years, the residents' fatigue, the forceful demolitions continued by the government, and the residents' inability to find a clear strategy to continue their struggle seem to have had an influence on their decision to sign the agreement with the government.

In order to ensure the fulfillment of the agreement, the agreement also notes that "before the residents leave Daechuri, the government will make every effort to avoid causing discomfort for the residents due to the construction and the residents will not obstruct the government's construction operations" and "an administrative committee made up of the Ministry of Defense, the Pyeongtaek City Government, and the representatives of the residents' will manage the agreement until Dec 31, 2008."

...

The Pyeongtaek Anti-Base Expansion Committee : "We respect the residents' agreement, but the fight will continue."

The Pyeongtaek Anti-Base Expansion Committee cautiously admitted that "while not all of the residents' demands were met, we will respect their agreement."  Choi Yun Chul, director of the Pyeongtaek Anti-Base Expansion Committee, said, "We respect that the [Daechuri] residents' committee approached the negotiations with their own demands," adding "We didn't hear about the results of the negotiations but found out about it through the internet, so we still have to verify the details.  However, we believe that not all of the residents' demands were met."

Meanwhile, as the residents of Daechuri agreed to the resettlement, the fight against the U.S. military base relocation in which Daechuri has been the focus for nearly 4 years, must now find a new direction. Choi Yun Chul said, "We must continue to point out the problems of the U.S. base expansion."

- Chamsaesang. Translation by Radical Language Exchange.

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