Author: GIKorea

Whatever dreams Roh Moo-hyun may have had, President Moon his former Chief of Staff is moving forward with them and considering the current poor economy and state of affairs with North Korea is not going so good:

This year marks the tenth anniversary of the death of Roh, who jumped off a cliff behind his home in Bongha amid the prosecution’s widening probe into allegations that his family members accepted illicit funds.

In his memorial address, National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang, who served as Roh’s first chief of staff, said bidding farewell to the late president was too much of a grief to bear.

[Sound bite: National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang (Korean)]
“Your election on December 19, 2002 was itself the symbol of resolving regionalism.
Three state tasks have yet to be accomplished: ‘The Era of East Asian Peace and Prosperity,’ 
‘Democracy with the People,’ and ‘Balanced Development of a Co-prosperous Society’
We will march again for the dream of Roh Moo-hyun.” 
 
Moon added that South Koreans overcame the anguish of his death and participated in candlelight vigils to create a new nation moving towards peace.

Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon said the late president embraced challenges no one had ever dared to take on and endured setbacks never before experienced. 

Lee said Roh’s existence was hope for the ordinary people and his defiance was the people’s dream.

Also in attendance was former U.S. President George W. Bush, who was in office when Roh was South Korea’s president from 2003 to 2008, and First Lady Kim Jung-sook.

[Sound bite: Former US President George W. Bush (English)]
“President Roh stood for what he believed was best for his country. And may we have some differences but no disagreement ever outweighed our shared belief of the U.S.-South Korea relationship.”

KBS World Radio

You can read more at the link.

If the accusation is true, you would think the Chosun Ilbo would be more careful about not publishing fake news considering the political environment they are dealing with that would look for any excuse to shut them down:

South Korea’s highest-circulating newspaper, Chosun Ilbo, is suspected of inventing the quotes of experts for three articles attacking a polling agency, which it claimed was “untrustworthy” because it is friendly to the ruling party. 

Chosun removed the articles published on May 16 and 17 after the experts said they had never talked with the paper’s reporters. But Realmeter, the agency, has declared no mercy for “fake interviews and unfair reporting,” pledging legal action against the newspaper and the articles’ writers. 

Realmeter CEO Lee Taek-soo said the articles had “seriously tarnished” the agency’s reputation. 

The conservative daily has been at odds with liberal President Moon Jae-in and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) on many fronts, especially North Korea and economic policies. The conflict deepened after Moon ordered the reopening early this year of some cold cases, including a sex/corruption scandal involving Chosun’s top executives. 

The articles were published after Realmeter released the approval ratings of political parties for the third week of May. In the report, Realmeter said the ruling party was 13.1 percentage points ahead of the main opposition conservative Liberal Korea Party (LKP). A week earlier, the gap was 1.6 percentage points. 

Chosun claimed the rapid gap extension was unrealistic. In the articles, the daily quoted media and survey experts as saying Realmeter “could have adjusted its opinion collecting method in a way producing results favorable to the ruling party.”

“I’ve never talked this way,” said Bae Jong-chan, one of the quoted experts. “Above all, I’ve never talked (on the issue) with Chosun reporters.” 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

The fact that the North Koreans are so strongly protesting the seizure of their ship at the UN demonstrates this is an area they are vulnerable:

North Korea’s top envoy to the United Nations (UN) warned that the U.S. seizure of a cargo ship earlier this month could endanger future denuclearization negotiations in a rare news conference in New York on Tuesday. 

“The United States should deliberate and think of the consequences that its outrageous act might have on future developments,” Kim Song, the North Korean ambassador to the UN, said at a press conference at the UN headquarters Tuesday. “And also, the United States must return our cargo ship without delay.” 

The U.S. Justice Department on May 9 announced it had impounded the 17,061-ton Wise Honest bulk carrier and accused it of exporting North Korean coal in violation of U.S. and UN Security Council sanctions. Along with coal shipments, it was also used to import heavy machinery from Yantai Port in China’s Shandong Province to Nampo Port in North Korea, the Justice Department said. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but seizing ships involved in illicit shipments from North Korea is something I have long advocated. After being seized the cargo and the ship itself I believe should be auctioned with the proceeds going to families who have lost loved ones due to North Korea’s terrorism acts over the years.

As Japan found out in 2010, countries depend solely or mostly on China as a source of critical materials at their own peril https://t.co/x68FSuTYv4

— Patrick Cronin (@PMCroninHudson) May 22, 2019

I would love to know who is the person in North Korea that comes up with these statements?:

North Korea’s official news agency has bristled angrily at former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden’s criticism of leader Kim Jong-un as a dictator and tyrant, lashing out at the Democratic presidential hopeful as a “fool of low IQ.”
Biden made the remark during a campaign speech over the weekend, claiming that the United States shouldn’t be embracing “dictators and tyrants” like Russian President Vladimir Putin and the North’s Kim, as President Donald Trump does.
“The presidential candidate from the Democratic Party during his recent election campaigning reeled off rhetoric slandering the supreme leadership of the DPRK,” the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said in a commentary, using the acronym of the North’s official name. “What he uttered is just sophism of an imbecile bereft of elementary quality as a human being, let alone a politician,” it added.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

If you find yourself in trouble in Hongdae there may be a foreigner on patrol with the police to assist you:

Amid a rising number of foreign residents, tourists and multiracial families here, Mapo-gu Office in western Seoul has launched a patrol unit comprised of foreigners, to offer help to foreign residents and tourists in the areas around Hongik University Station.

The district office said, Monday, that it held a welcome ceremony for the unit, Friday, consisting of 20 volunteers including foreign residents from Nigeria and China. 

The move follows an influx of more and more foreigners in the district. 

According to the population and housing census in 2017, the number of multiracial family members living in Mapo-gu was 5,585. Also, the Hongdae area is one of the most popular tourist destinations visited by many foreigners and local residents, together with Yeonnam-dong next door which has gained popularity recently. 

The unit members will patrol twice a week for four hours. The patrol course will include Yeonnam-dong and the area near the university, known colloquially as Hongdae. Their main jobs are to provide translation to tourists and listen to their complaints as well as solve conflicts among foreign residents.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It looks like President Moon is trying to assuage any concerns USFK may be having in regards to the appeasement of North Korea by the ROK government:

“Despite the failure of the second summit between the United States and North Korea, they have continued to pursue avenues to maintain their nuclear dialogue, which I believe is thanks to U.S. President Donald Trump’s personal trust in North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, and vice versa,” Moon said.

The allied commanders invited to the luncheon were Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo, Republic of Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Park Han-ki, USFK chief Gen. Robert Abrams, USFK Deputy Commander Lt. Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach, USFK Assistant Chief of Staff for Plans and Policy Maj. Gen. James W. Lukeman, Special Operations Command Korea Commander Maj. Gen. Tony D. Bauernfeind, and Eighth Army Deputy Commander Brig. Gen. Patrick J. Donahoe, according to Cheong Wa Dae. 

This is the first time that high-profile USFK and South Korean military generals have attended a single event together, presidential aides said.

President Moon said the recent launches of short-range missiles by the North haven’t impeded the joint military readiness of the United States and South Korean military forces. 

“What we’ve achieved so far [for inter-Korean progress] was based on a stronger joint military readiness and commitment for a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula. I want to thank you for your thoughtful and concerted rapprochement in handling the North’s recent missile launches. As we responded calmly to the recent launches, nuclear diplomacy is expected to remainon going,” Moon said, adding the presence of the USFK will continue regardless of the level of the peace process on the peninsula, given its pivotal role as a “balancer” for security in Northeast Asia. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but President Moon has been saying all the right things that USFK will remain after any peace treaty is signed, to include claiming Kim Jong-un understands this as well. However, this is likely just rhetoric to prevent energizing South Korean conservatives against a peace treaty. 

Remember Moon is a very skilled politician that needs to keep the Korean right at bay and public anxiety down.  If he openly advocated for a USFK withdrawal, that would give the South Korean right an issue to strongly attack him with and cause much public anxiety after decades of security guarantees provided by US forces.  That is why I think the Moon administration will publicly say they support USFK staying, but will then have surrogates do things to make life difficult for USFK. The anti-US groups in South Korea have already said they plan to do this.

Since the #MoonJaein administration took over 2 years ago, its policies have yielded many public enterprises to go in red. This time, it's the post office. $168M loss. The first time in 135 years–that's even older than #SouthKorea. https://t.co/mHDO4VPluq

— Tara O (@DrTaraO) May 21, 2019