403개의 게시물을 찾았습니다.
Well, it seems that the eviction of thousands of residents (incl. the "1.20 Massacre") in Seoul's Yongsan district was for nothing at all, as you can learn from the following piece, published in last Saturday's Korea Times:
Yongsan 'dream project' a pipe dream?
Seoul's ambitious plan to turn a 530,000 square-meter site around Yongsan Station into a global business district is about to fall apart, a victim of the sluggish property market.
The real estate owner and the biggest investor KORAIL has threatened to cancel deals with builders if they do not submit a detailed plan to honor overdue payments for use of the real estate by next Friday.
Builders are having difficulty making leasing payments as financial firms have turned negative on projecting financing following a prolonged slump in the construction industry.
KORAIL said it sent an official letter Monday to Lee Kun-hee, the head of the Samsung Group whose construction unit is leading a consortium of 17 builders engaged in the project.
This is the first time the public railway company has sent such a letter to the business tycoon, not the company itself, an apparent move to put pressure on Samsung. The letter reportedly irritated Samsung Group.
The Yongsan developers' consortium, dubbed "Dream Hub" consists of Samsung Corp. and 16 other construction companies as well as 13 other investors, including KORAIL, KB and the National Pension Service.
Builders were to pay a total of 8 trillion won to KORAIL for the use of its real estate, where an old station warehouse was located.
However, the builders have failed to honor the payment of the 701 billion won first installment due last year.
The daily interest arising from the delay is about 180 million won and the total amount of installment payments amount to 4.7 trillion won.
The builders have requested KORAIL to put back the payment date till completion; exempt interest; and ease other building restrictions.
However, KORAIL refused, and instead demanded the 17 companies to come up with payment guarantees.
KORAIL officials said they have relaxed repayment terms several times, but builders are not delivering on their promises.
"KORAIL is a public corporation and the breach of contract means that they are fooling the citizens," it stated.
Construction firms said they might not be able to meet the terms required since the real estate market has tanked over the past couple of years and financing has become ever more difficult. "Since the project is the largest in history for a government-civilian development project, it is a huge risk for the developers, too," a representative from a construction firm said.
With KORAIL threatening to halt the project, the rosy picture of cramming Yongsan with skyscrapers housing hotels, shopping centers, leisure facilities and other amenities now seems in limbo. The construction was supposed to commence in 2012.
Analysts say a cancellation of the project will be a massive blow not only to the real estate market but society as a whole. They note that fewer people will be prepared to make investments, further damaging the market.
The builders have already paid 1 trillion won in non-refundable guarantees.
Some real estate experts say the Seoul Metropolitan Government needs to share responsibility.
The rather "humble" project of redeveloping the KORAIL warehouse grew into a 30 trillion won giant when the city administration pushed to link the Han River Renaissance project to it.
The river renaissance is the major pet project of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon to fill the river's banks with skyscrapers and state-of-the-art leisure facilities among others.
Some pointed to civic movements opposing the projects. "Oh may face further resistance from local residents who feel they have been thrown off of their home ground," a civic group representative said.
Last year, five residents who were being evicted from the area as part of the redevelopment project died during violent clashes with riot police.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2010/07/116_69137.html
The following Hankyoreh report(7.10) illustrates how the MB administration (possibly??^^) is trying to shit the S. Korean public:
Japanese experts say Four Rivers sites
resemble canal construction
The experts question the rationale behind the intense dredging and high number of weirs being constructed
Japanese river and stream experts who visited the site of the Four Major Rivers Restoration project said they understand it to be part of canal construction, no a measure to prevent floods or secure water resources.
On Friday, some 15 Japanese, including environmental movement NGOs, civil engineering and environmental law scholars and environmental lawyers launched their second three-day, two-night on-site investigation of the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project with Korea Wetlands NGO Network. The first was conducted in March. Kyoto University Emeritus Professor Imamoto Hirotake, a 73-year-old river engineering scholar, visited the Nakdong River from the Sangju Weir to the Dalseong Weir, where the Four Rivers project is in full swing. Hirotake said he could not understand at all why someone would do so much dredging and construct so many Weirs at once to prevent floods, boost water quality or secure water resources. He said he understood it to be part of the canal-building process.
He said if the construction is not being carried out for a canal, as the government has stated, then within a decade, demands will grow for the levees unhelpful to preventing floods and improving water quality to be removed and the river to be returned to its natural state. He warned that while construction is underway, if a flood strikes, the levees blocking the flow of the river could fall like dominoes and create a major disaster downstream.
Endo Yasuo, an activist with a water resource development issue group in Japan, said the South Korean government needs to closely consider whether it can maintain and activate without a hitch, particularly in the flooding season, eight movable weirs on the Nakdong River alone. The visitors were at a complete loss for words seeing Gyeongcheondae, a site on the river known for its beautiful scenery, and the Haepyeong wetlands, a resting spot for migratory birds, turned into desert-like sand dunes due to heavy equipment. Lawyer Hori Ryochi, joint head of Ramsar Network Japan, said the construction is already largely underway, but for the ecological destruction to stop, the construction must be suspended and the fundamental issues calmly discussed.
These individuals were at the lead in resolving major environmental issues in Japan such as suspending the construction of the Shitara Dam and bringing about a lawsuit against the land reclamation project at the Ariake Sea, the model for South Korea’s Saemangeum project. Along with South Korean environmental groups, they plan to point out the problems of the Four Major Rivers Restoration Project at the Convention on Biological Diversity conference, set to launch in Japan in October.
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/429771.html
Yesterday's Hankyoreh reported about the actual state of preparation(by the 'authorities') for the next G-20 Summit in Seoul:
Austere measures implemented for G-20
Observers say the “all-out” measures to prepare for the G-20 have prompted concerns over human rights violations
Hundreds of all-but-abandoned public telephone booths have recently been switched out in Seoul. Also undergoing replacement are walkway tiles, which usually takes place at the end of the year. The restoration of Gwanghwamun in Seoul and the opening of the second stage of the Gyeongbu High-speed Line have been moved several months ahead from their previous schedule. The central government and local governments carrying out these efforts explain that they are “in order to successfully host the G-20 summit” on November 11 and 12.
However, observers are saying that some of these administrative measures are unlikely to be intended as preparations for the G-20 summit. In their view, there has been a parade of wasteful “display projects” as the government goes “all-in” on G-20 preparation, while human rights and public welfare languish.
Foreign Leaders Take Precedence over Human Rights?
Street vendors are disappearing from Seoul. The reason is the “street stall cleanup effort” undertaken by the city, which has formed 88 “special street maintenance teams” totaling around 400 people for the G-20 summit.
Meanwhile, migrant workers are quaking with worry about possible deportation. On the pretext of “establishing public order for the G-20 summit,” the National Police Agency recently embarked on a full-scale crackdown on foreigner crime, and the Justice Ministry has been undertaking a focused crackdown on undocumented migrant workers.
A number of measures that have emerged in the name of preparations for the two-day, one-night event attended by foreign heads of state are prompting concerns about human rights violations. Full-body scanners for airport security searches were installed at four airports on June 30, including Incheon and Gimpo International Airports. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) commented on the problematic nature of the scanners, but the government went ahead with plans.
A “Special Law on Escort Security and Terror Prevention in order to successfully host the G-20 summit” passed the National Assembly in May amid objections from civic groups, which called it “an unconstitutional notion of actually using military forces to prevent assemblies and demonstrations from taking place.” Meanwhile, the Justice Ministry will be requiring all foreigners entering the country as of August 15 to provide fingerprint and facial identification information.
The rush to ensure ‘Rising National Standing from the G-20’
Some national projects are being moved ahead to meet the schedule of the G-20 summit, prompting criticisms of “reckless rushing.” The Korea Rail Network Authority made the decision to open the second stage of its Gyeongbu High-speed Line, from Daegu to Busan, in November, a month ahead of the original schedule. The Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs (MLTM) explained that this “would be an opportunity to support successfully hosting the G-20 summit and share the excellence of Korean high-speed rail.”
The completion of the restoration of Gwanghwamun in Seoul, which had been scheduled for December, was moved ahead a full five months to meet the G-20 schedule. Many observers inside and outside the cultural heritage sector have expressed concerns about shoddy workmanship and safety issues stemming from the reckless changes in the schedule.
Since July 1, police have embarked on an aggressive crackdown on violations of basic public order, including illegal disposal of cigarette butts, and are saying they will deal summarily with such crimes. The crackdown has already been taking place with the issuing of warnings, but police are aggressively enforcing the law in order to “enhance national prestige with a successful holding of the G-20 summit.”
Excess of “Display Projects”
There have also been a number of instances where excessive “display projects,” extravagant and unnecessary measures taken by central government organizations and local governments, have sparked citizen discontent. Separately from the police, the city of Seoul is cracking down on gum spitting by citizens, assessing fines of approximately 30,000 to 50,000 Won ($24 to $41). And last month, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (MEST) directed the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education to report on public achievements in connection with the G-20 summit, including catchphrases, posters and writing contests, to elementary, middle and high schools within its jurisdiction.
In addition, other administrative measures, such as uprooting 2,165 utility poles near the summit site, full-scale service to 20,000 vehicle entryways in Seoul, an all-out hygiene crackdown in public saunas, and the reflection of traffic accident death rates in police chief evaluations, are being undertaken “in order to successfully host the G-20 summit.”
“Measures like full-body scanners and basic public order crackdowns are a ‘window-dressing’ style of administration that is of questionable effectiveness and even includes elements of human rights infringements,” said Citizens’ Solidarity for Human Rights Secretary General Oh Chang-ik.
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/429239.html
"Opposition parties and civic groups held a large-scale rally in Seoul on Saturday, stepping up their offensive against the controversial Four-River Restoration Project...
The river plan, a key item on President Lee Myung-bak’s policy agenda, is expected to become the next big thing on the political scene..." Korea Herald wrote y'day.
Today's (conservative/reactionary) JoongAng Ilbo reported the following:
Opposition groups call for vigils all month
An alliance of five opposition parties and civic groups gathered at Seoul Plaza on Saturday night demanding President Lee Myung-bak halt his four rivers restoration project.
The alliance said over 20,000 people, including Democratic Party Chairman Chung Sye-kyun, Democratic Labor Party head Kang Ki-kab, former Prime Minister Han Myeong-sook, South Gyeongsang Governor Kim Du-kwan and South Chungcheong Governor An Hee-jung, participated in the candlelight vigil from 6:30 p.m.
It was the first time in two years that people with candles poured into Seoul Plaza as they did in 2008 to rally against President Lee Myoung-bak’s decision to resume U.S. beef imports.
“We can save a tremendous amount of government money if the four rivers restoration project is halted,” DP head Chung Sye-kyun said. “With that money, we can create jobs to ease youth unemployment and it can also be used to convert temporary workers into regular workers.”
The alliance has designated July as protest month and encouraged participants to join nightly vigils starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Cheonggye Stream.
Police dispatched some 900 police officers in case of violence, but the rally ended peacefully at 10:10 p.m.
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2922706
Related reports by ☞ Korea Herald, ☞ KCTU, ☞ VoP, ☞ OMN...
And here you'll find some nice pics about last Saturday's protest!
Last Friday I added to my latest contribution, related to the PSPD/Cheonan stuff, Hankyoreh's updated news report "Far-right groups launch violent protests against PSPD"...
A while later The Marmot's Hole also took notice of the same report:
☞ Hani Upset at Violent Far Right Protests
And until now 29 halfway interesting comments were posted...
Well, although I'm not agreeing (more about it later this week...) with most of the stuff - it's worth reading!!!
Related articles:
☞ Scholars call for end to PSPD witch-hunt (Hankyoreh, 6.22)
☞ Violent protests unjustified (JoongAng ilbo, 6.21)
People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD) sent a letter, raising suspicions about the cause of the Cheonan sinking to the U.N.S.C. - and S. Korea's "rulers" and their supporters are really pissed off...
Here the latest developments in regard to PSPD's letter:
Today: During a parliamentary session S.K.'s prime minister Chung Un-chan called PSPD's letter questioning the U.N. over investigations into the sinking the Cheonan warship “an act against the nation,” forewarning punishments against the largest left-leaning group...
Tuesday: Members of war veterans’ groups (i.e. f*cking old reactionaries!!) clash with police
while trying to storm the offices of the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy in downtown
Seoul. The veterans were angry about the group’s letter to the UN disputing the government’s
investigation of the March 26 sinking of the Cheonan warship.
Wednesday: F*cking old ractionaries "protesting" in front of PSPD's office...
Conservatives blast PSPD (Hankyoreh cartoon, 6.16)
Prime Minister Chung Un-chan, a public prosecutor and a representative of the conservative media jointly blow vuvuzelas, a long-standing tradition in South Africa’s football history, at a member of the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD). The vuvuzela is labeled “redbaiting.”
The PSPD member is taken aback at the collective “aeng!” coming from the vuvuzelas and covers his ears. In his pocket, there is the letter to the member nations of the UN Security Council.
Meanwhile, President Lee Myung-bak stands alone and blows a Vuvuzela labeled “The enforcement of Four Major Rivers Restoration Project,” seemingly caught up in his own world.
Prior to the joint civilian-military investigation team’s briefing at the UN Security Council on the sinking of the Cheonan on June 14, the PSPD submitted a letter to the U.N. highlighting contentious aspects of the investigation’s findings on June 10.
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_entertainment/425908.html
Related articles:
☞ Which country do you belong to? (Hankyoreh, 6.16)
☞ Legal sanctions against PSPD unlikely (K. Times, 6.16)
☞ South Korean "NGOs" Attack PSPD (DailyNK, 6.16)
☞ A question of loyalty (JoongAng Ilbo, 6.17)
☞ Chung blasts group for Cheonan letter (K. Herald, 6.17)
Updated news report:
☞ Far-right groups launch violent protests against PSPD (Hankyoreh, 6.18)
People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy submitted few days ago a letter raising suspicions about the cause of the Cheonan sinking(*) to the UN Security Council and the MB administration and its supporting (conservative/reactionary) media (Chosun Ilbo, JoongAng Ilbo etc.) reacted - surprise, surprise!! - quite pissed off...
But (also unsurprisingly) today's Honkyoreh reported more affirmative:
Civic group takes unresolved Cheonan issues to UN
PSPD says the government should not submit a matter to the international community if there is still no internal consensus
Prior to the joint civilian-military investigation team’s briefing at the UN Security Council on the sinking of the Cheonan on Monday, the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD) submitted a letter to the nations of the Security Council highlighting contentious aspects of the investigation’s findings. The Lee Myung-bak government has slammed the move as interference in diplomacy, while the PSPD called it a justified action by a civic group.
PSPD sent the letter on June 10 via email to Mexico, which currently holds the presidency of the Security Council, and the 15 member nations. The opinion statement consisted of an official PSPD letter written in English and a 27-page attachment detailing the problems with the investigation findings.
The letter, signed by PSPD Representative Lim Jong-dae, said the final investigation results into the Cheonan sinking were not announced. It also expressed concern that the response plan announced by the Lee Myung-bak administration could cause serious political and diplomatic controversy. It also conveyed hopes that the UN Security Council would make a rational and fair decision for peace on the Korean Peninsula, taking all matters into account.
The attachment, a translation of the “Cheonan Issue Report 1 and 2” released by PSPD on May 25, asks eight questions about unresolved issues in the investigation results. These included questions about insufficient explanations about the water column and cross section, and six issues regarding the investigation process.
In response to the PSPD letter, Foreign Ministry spokesman Kim Young-sun said in a briefing Monday that he believed that the letter was an extremely regrettable action blocking diplomatic efforts currently being put forth by the government. He also said the government plans to resolutely deal with the issue, including having the joint investigation team faithfully brief the UN Security Council. Some government officials, however, slammed PSPD in more relentless terms, calling the move “traitorous” and “messing things up.”
In response, PSPD said it is a group qualified to convey opinions and statements to the UN Human Rights Committee and UN Economic and Social Council as an NGO in consultative status with the U.N. It said the Lee administration has claimed that the civic organization’s activity seeks to divides public opinion. However, PSPD said the responsibility of the Lee administration, which has taken a matter about which no internal consensus has been reached to the international community, is even greater.
http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/425686.html
* PSPD's "Cheonan Warship Reports" you can read here!
Related stuff:
☞ I Suppose It’s Not Treason, But It Still Stinks (Marmot's Hole, 6.15)
☞ No objections from U.N.S.C. members... (Yonhap, 6.15)
☞ N.Korean culpability or fuzzy politics? (Hankyoreh, 6.15)
☞ NGOs Urge EU to Step Up Efforts (DailyNK, 6.15)
One of today's leading stories in the morning edition of the Israeli (bourgeois) newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth:
S. Korean activists protest Peres visit
Demonstrators deface Israeli flag with palm prints stained in color of blood during president's visit to Seoul
Protesters denouncing Israeli President Shimon Peres as a "killer" rallied Thursday in the South Korean capital as Peres held talks with his counterpart Lee Myung-Bak.
Some 50 activists gathered outside the Israeli embassy to protest at last week's deadly raid on a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. Some defaced an Israeli flag with palm prints stained in the color of blood. Four busloads of riot police were on standby, but there were no clashes.
"We are here to denounce the Lee Myung-Bak government for welcoming the internationally criticized president," priest Choi Hun-Kook said beside a banner reading "Shimon Peres the Killer".
"Lift the siege on Gaza immediately," read another banner held by Choi and his colleagues...
The visit has become controversial since Israel's raid that killed nine Turkish activists and sparked worldwide condemnation...
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3903081,00.html
Pics from the 'event' you can see here!
Somehow related articles from the German (bourgeois) magazine Der Spiegel:
☞ 'First It Was Piracy, and Then It Was Kidnapping' (6.07)
☞ A Closer Look at Israel's Terror Accusations (6.09)
Updated (6.11):
☞ IDF-hired driver: 'Why did they kill so few?' (y.net)
Oops... a protest ('press conference') in front of the Israeli embassy on Shabbat???
Well, it's just a "great idea" - at least it ensures that the recipient of the protest (the Israeli ambassador and his staff) isn't "at home"!!
Anyway, here some articles, related to the protest's subject:
☞ Hamas refuses flotilla aid delivered by Israel (Guardian, 6.03)
☞ The day the world became Gaza (al-Jazeera, 6.03)
☞ We are all Gazans now (Asia Times, 6.02)
☞ 'A war for world’s future' (Yedioth Ahronoth, 5.31)
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