This paper analyzes the symbiotic and mutually reinforcing relationship between the anti-American movement and other social movements in democratic South Korea since 1987.

Proposing a new typology of anti-Americanism, the paper formulates and develops an argument that the anti-American movement has substantially contributed to the success and survival of South Korea’s social movements. The anti-American movement should not be classified as one of the many social movements active in South Korea; rather, it is a special movement that performs various functions integral to the rise, expansion, unity, and success of social movements in general. The collaboration of the anti-American movement and other social movements is also transforming the character of the anti-American movement itself.

The metamorphosis of the anti-American movement into diverse new social movements makes it more sophisticated, accessible, appealing, open, and flexible. Thus transformed, the anti-American movement will likely provide an important source of vitality for civic engagement and make significant contributions to South Korean democracy.

Here is the primary thesis of the piece noted in the opening paragraphs:

The main argument formulated and developed in this paper is that the anti-American movement has contributed to the success and survival of South Korea’s social movements at large in the politics of democratic consolidation and deepening since 1987. The anti-American movement is not just one of the many social movements in South Korea. Rather, it is a special movement that performs various functions helpful to the rise, expansion, unity, and success of social movements in general.

Two Catholic priests and two monks in South Korea received suspended prison terms on Friday for obstruction of justice during protests against the construction of a naval base on the country`s Jeju Island last year, the Yonhap news agency reported. Rev. Moon Jeong-hyun was sentenced to an eight-month prison term, suspended for two years, for obstructing justice while protesting. The 72-year-old father climbed onto a police vehicle to keep officers from taking a village head to the police station and assaulted police three times during various protests, according to investigators. “As the construction project was approved by the government, such violent ways of expressing opinion against it should be regarded as illegal,” Judge Lee Yong-woo of the Jeju District Court said in his verdict, as quoted by Yonhap. “He deserves a suspended term, however, as he did not commit the crime for his personal interest.” The second priest, identified only by his surname Lee, and two monks whose identities were withheld, were sentenced to six-month prison terms, suspended for two years, on similar charges of obstruction. Construction is underway to build the naval base in Gangjeong Village on the southern tip of the resort island to accommodate around 20 naval vessels, following a 2007 government decision. However, some local residents and civic groups have staged protests against the project, which is expected to be completed by 2014.  [Europe Online]

In my opinion Moon Jeong-hyun should not be considered a Catholic clergyman and the church should disassociate themselves from him.  How many Catholic priests does anyone know that repeatedly incites violence against authorities? For those that don’t know Moon Jeong-hyun has played a key leadership role in various anti-US protests over the years.  Using religious figures for their protests is a common tactic by the pro-Pyongyang, anti-US left in Korea in order to give their protests a sense of moral cover.  Father Moon along with the Catholic Priests’ Association for Justice that he is a member of worked together to protest in 2002 against USFK in the wake of the Armored Vehicle Accident as well as providing moral cover, like the CPAJ is doing now, for the extremely violent protesters who tried to prevent the Camp Humphreys expansion. The CPAJ has also been quite active in trying to abolish the National Security Law as well.  It should come as no surprise that elements of the umbrella organization that the CPAJ belonged to during the Camp Humphreys riots were later linked to a North Korean spy scandal. So the motivations of these people are pretty clear.

By the way my prediction of the Cheju naval base issue not turning into another anti-US mad cow riot has proven correct.  The protest is too far away from Seoul to attract big crowds and media attention plus the perception of the US military with the Korean public has changed over the past few years due to the North Korean provocations against South Korea.  I just didn’t see the anti-US card working with this issue and fortunately this has proven true.  Never fear they will try and find something else to demagogue before the Korean Presidential election this year.

I did an extensive review (which I no longer have) of the press coverage the last time we went through this process.  It was brutal.  The amount of savaging the US aerospace giant and plane took vs the coverage of the other companies.  One of the other foreign firms got caught in the bribery scandal during the fire storm.  The French government got caught trying to influence the selection process at the same time US congressmen and DOD leaders were having to cancel planned trips to Korea under the daily barrage of negative news coverage about American imperialism.  (I give the Kim Dae Jung administration credit for being even-handed in its treatment at least in the public eye. )

People easily remember the period of the aftermath of the tragic death of the 2 middle school girls in the summer and winter of 2002.  If they look back, they can see the pump was primed for this in part by the massive amount of negative press coverage the last time Korea sought to modernize its fighter fleet in 2001 and early 2002.  (And if you look further back you can see how this was triggered by the historic NK-SK Summit of 2000.)

Well, today, I started reading the Korean press again and caught this:

The maintenance cost for Korea’s F-15Ks has jumped nearly 10-fold over the past four years, becoming a financial burden to the nation’s defense budget, multiple sources said Monday.

Seoul has purchased 60 of the high-end multirole aircraft from American aerospace giant Boeing since 2002.

I haven’t been reading the press enough to know if this is the first shot fired, but this will be something to watch in the coming months.  Last time was a hoot…

It took delivery of 40 by 2008 and 13 more as of the end of 2011. An F-15K crashed during a night training flight in June 2006 off the east coast, raising doubts over the reliability of the aircraft.

How long has the US been flying this death trap?  And in how many wars?

South Korean police say nearly 40 officers were injured during a rally opposing the ratification of the country’s free trade deal with the United States.

Hundreds of protesters have been staging near-daily demonstrations since the ruling party railroaded the U.S. trade deal last week. The protesters believe the deal favors Washington over South Korean workers.

About 2,200 people rallied in Seoul on Saturday evening. Police say some of them punched and kicked officers trying to disperse the crowd.

Police say the violence left 38 officers injured. Most of the injuries were minor, but it was the most police casualties at a single rally since June.

Protesters say they’re looking into whether police also used violence during the rally.  [Associated Press]

Look what they did to the Seoul police chief:

The chief of a Seoul district police station was assaulted over the weekend by protesters against South Korea’s free trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S., police officials said Sunday.

Park Geon-chan, head of Jongno Police Station in central Seoul, was punched and kicked after getting surrounded by some 100 protesters near the Gwanghwamun area around 9:30 p.m. Saturday, officials said.

Officials at the Jongno station said some protesters tore away Park’s insignia on his left shoulder, while others stripped Park of his hat and broke his glasses.

Plainclothes officers escorted Park away from the protesters and he was treated for wounds at a nearby hospital.  [Yonhap]

This is outrageous but I am sure these anti-US thugs will receive little if any punishment for this.

South Korea and the U.S. will discuss introducing new guidelines on investigating American soldiers suspected of crimes in a meeting of the South Korea-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement Joint Committee.

In the meeting slated for Wednesday, Seoul will ask Washington to “positively consider” South Korean investigative authorities’ request to transfer American suspects accused of crimes into the custody of the South before indictment.

The new guidelines will be similar to those that the U.S. and Japan agreed to after a rape case involving a U.S. soldier in Okinawa in 1995. After the rape case, the U.S. agreed to “favorably consider” handing over suspects accused of heinous crimes to Japan before they have been indicted.   [KBS Global]

I long ago showed the problems with the anti-US activists complaints about the US-ROK SOFA and I am still awaiting for one person to point out an example of a crime committed by a GI off duty and the USFK refused to hand him over?  The anti-US activists keep complaining about GI’s getting away with crimes and can’t point out a specific example of when this happened.

37-year-old office worker Mr. A went to Itaewon last weekend for an office dinner when he was shocked by what he saw in the street.

A foreigner and a Korean woman were sitting in a corner on the sidewalk, embracing each other so heavily it was as if they were having sex. Mr. A said: “I had thought I was going to see the Itaewon of the past, and to have to see that shocking scene made my co-workers feel awkward…. I had the thought that Itaewon has changed so much in just a few years.”

The atmosphere in Itaewon has changed drastically in the past few years. The change is the consequence of the increasing number of foreign tourists, but is also because of the increased number of US soldiers. Local office worker Mr. B said that “since a year ago when the curfew on US soldiers was lifted, the streets are something you don’t want to look at, and you frequently see foreigners talking loudly or having an argument.” [Korea Beat]

Read the rest at the link, but that is (sarcasm on) some pretty scare stuff foreigners talking loudly and arguing on the street. You never see that in Korea.(sarcasm off)

Robert Koehler who lives in Itaewon says he hasn’t really seen any difference in Itaewon with GI’s. Likewise when I spent some time in Itaewon earlier this summer it seemed like Itaewon was actually getting fixed up and less rowdy.

Anyway ROK Heads may remember how SBS a few months ago tried to push the evil GI’s in Itaewon meme claiming increased crime. However, they didn’t mention that overall crime has increased the past few years because USFK allowed servicemembers to drive cars.

Anyway the English teachers in Korea should be thankful for all of this because now the Korean media focus is back on GI’s instead of English teachers. Like I have always said the Korean media shifts focus regularly from GI’s, to English teachers, to 3D workers. This is just the continuation of this cycle. After a few months it will likely shift to 3D workers unless an English teacher does something really outrageous to shift it back to them.

Two mid-ranking police officers have been disciplined for failing to protect the U.S. ambassador to Seoul from demonstrators during a public event held in Seoul earlier this week, police said Friday.

The disciplined officers, whose identities were withheld, are accused of failing to stop a group of anti-American protesters from throwing plastic bottles at the car carrying U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Kathleen Stephens. The incident happened as Stephens was leaving a ceremony to celebrate the unveiling of a statue of former South Korean president Syngman Rhee in central Seoul on Thursday, police said.

Stephens was not injured in the incident.Two mid-ranking police officers have been disciplined for failing to protect the U.S. ambassador to Seoul from demonstrators during a public event held in Seoul earlier this week, police said Friday.

The disciplined officers, whose identities were withheld, are accused of failing to stop a group of anti-American protesters from throwing plastic bottles at the car carrying U.S. Ambassador to Seoul Kathleen Stephens. The incident happened as Stephens was leaving a ceremony to celebrate the unveiling of a statue of former South Korean president Syngman Rhee in central Seoul on Thursday, police said.

Stephens was not injured in the incident.  [Yonhap]

There was a S. Korean Nuclear Scientist who studied in America. Supposedly he died in a car accident in America when he was about to make a nuclear bomb for Korea. During the 70′s this incident was reported all over Korean newspapers. Anyone have any information about this?

The scientist died in 1977 – which brings up some interesting trains of thought:  that was after Park Chung-Hee had firmly established the continuation of his rule after the earlier changes in the South Korean constitution – called the Yusin period.

It was also immediately around the time President Carter tried to fulfill a campaign promise to remove all US troops from South Korea.

There isn’t much at that the link above, but it sums up what I was told about the case when the students would explain why South Korean society disliked the US “interference” in Korean society and wanted USFK out (but not just right now, I eventually discovered).

It wasn’t something I heard brought up nearly as much the idea US soldiers are "never” held accountable for the many bad crimes they commit in Korea each year but just fly away home.  (GI Korea has done a good job covering this issue.  By the way, the first time GIs were found guilty in a Korean court was 1968…)  But it did seem to be a widely believed truth.

Today, I googled and found out a highly likely reason why this myth was in their minds back then:

Some months ago I was reading Kim Chinmyŏng’s bestseller The Mugunghwa blossoms(무궁화 꽃이 피었습니다, 1993). When this alternative historical novel came out it quickly sold around 4 million copies. And indeed, for Koreans the story must be an entertaining read.

In this novel, an investigation into the death/murder of the scientist by evil forces leads to the peaceful unification of the peninsula, I guess as North and South unite against their true common enemy:

Meanwhile Japan is trying hard to keep Korea from unifying, since they feel threatened by the vast economic power Korea might then become. In the end Japan sees no other way but to destroy Korea’s economic facilities and start a war.

Read the whole of link, because it covers the case far more than I know:

The story itself was based on the life of scientist Yi Hwiso who indeed died because of a car accident in 1977. A huge debate arose between the writer and family members of Yi Hwiso on the way his life was depicted in the book. In the novel Yi was working together with Park Chunghee on establishing a Korean nuclear program, however in reality Yi was very critical of Park’s dictatorship rule.

What I do know is that in the late 1990s, this “evidence” was brought up more than once as part of the list of reasons South Korean society didn’t like the US-SK relationship and USFK.

The man’s English name was Benjamin Lee.  In Korean it is 이휘소 for any with Korean language skills (unlike myself) who want to look up info.

The post quoted above goes on to say last year KBS did a documentary to explore the facts and fictions about this death.  It doesn’t tell which way the piece leaned.  Maybe someone with Korean language skills will check it out.

Hopefully, it moved viewers away from the idea the CIA murdered the man to prevent South Korea from getting The Bomb – which is what I was told happened back in the late 1990s…

Also SBS did get some basic facts wrong which is nothing new in the Korean media.  They mention that crimes by American Soldiers increased by 15%, but don’t tell you what the increase in crime was from.  Was it from traffic related incidents which has been the biggest increase in USFK crime in recent years after the driving ban was lifted? SBS than makes the claim that assault, rape, and theft are up which is partially incorrect.  In 2010, assault and theft were up in Korea overall, but not the more serious crime of rape.  There was in fact no rape convictions in 2010.  If a reporter is going to make such claims than statistics with a source should be given so it can be verified.  I had to really laugh at the claim that GI’s lay down where ever they want.  Does this SBS reporter ever ride the subway?  I have seen drunk Koreans completely passed out taking up whole seats or lying on the ground on the subway or in the subway stations.  This is not something representative of Koreans in general just a few drunken idiots, just like a GI laying down in Itaewon is not representative of all USFK servicemembers.

Must be a Korean Presidential election coming up.  I wonder when the next Dokdo flare up will happen?

You can read more about this topic over at the Marmot’s Hole.

Captain America will keep its patriotic full title in most of the world when the superhero adventure hits the big-screen.

Paramount Pictures and Marvel Studios gave distributors around the world the option of shortening the title of “Captain America: The First Avenger” to simply “The First Avenger,” out of concern about anti-American sentiment.

But the only countries that took them up on it were Russia, Ukraine and South Korea.  [Associated Press]

In China they are still debating whether to even allow the showing of the movie.  What I don’t get is that why would anyone who is anti-American even watch the movie considering the hero is literally wearing the American flag no matter what it is called?

Also South Korea’s decision to use the alternate name has gotten plenty of the commenters at the link riled up considering the ROK is a US ally.