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| Residents of Seongju County, North Gyeongsang Province, hold up signs and chant slogans opposing the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in their town at a protest held in front of Seoul Station, Thursday. The two-hour rally with some 2,000 participants ended peacefully. / Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk |
County delivers protest letter to Cheong Wa Dae
By Kim Bo-eun, Park Jae-hyuk
Some 2,000 Seongju residents gathered in front of Seoul Station to protest the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery in their county in North Gyeongsang Province.
Participants staged a peaceful rally, Thursday, as pledged following one that turned ugly, July 15, two days after the government announced its selection of the county as the THAAD site.
But they were firm in their stance against the government's decision to deploy the advanced missile defense unit. The residents took a four-hour ride in 50 buses to Seoul to make their voices heard.
"The government never properly explained the plan to us or its effect on residents. We can only see this as the government making a fool of us," a farmer surnamed Roh told The Korea Times. "We have not been able to concentrate on our farm work because of THAAD."
A female farmer, who requested anonymity, said, "I have been growing Asian melons for 20 years. The government said THAAD will not harm us or our farm products, but I cannot believe this."
A college student surnamed Lee said, "Nobody will sit idly by when harm is being imposed on them."
County head Kim Hang-gon had his head shaved alongside constituents, demanding the deployment plan be scrapped.
In a speech at the rally, former lawmaker Lee Bu-young said "I am angered when I think of the circumstances Seongju residents are in — putting their farm work behind them and coming all the way to Seoul in the hot summer. The government is interfering with the people's livelihood."
Protesters wore blue ribbons as a symbol of peace and to distinguish themselves from nonresidents and possible extremists who might join the protest. The move follows suspicions that some nonresident, leftist activists led the violence during the July 15 protest in Seongju.
The residents hired 250 members of the Korea Taekwondo Association and the Marine Corps Veterans' Association to maintain order during the protest.
Some 3,700 police officers were also dispatched around the rally site for possible clashes.
Following the rally, county head Kim and two others met ruling Saenuri Party floor leader Chung Jin-suk at the National Assembly and held talks, delivering their opinion on the THAAD deployment. Chung said he and other party officials will soon visit Seongju to listen to the residents.
The South Korean and U.S. governments announced July 8 they would deploy THAAD here, citing the need for better defense against North Korea's growing provocations. The following week on July 13, the Korean government announced Seongju as the deployment location.
County head Kim and residents are demanding the cancellation of the plan, denouncing the government for making the decision without consulting them.
They continue to question the possible health and environmental risks from electromagnetic waves emitted by THAAD's long-range radar.
Asian melon farmers in Seongju claim their crop yields will be negatively affected. About 70 percent of domestic Asian melons are grown there.
Candlelit rallies have been taking place in front of the Seongju County Office every night since the government's announcement. Parents have been refusing to send their children to school and residents are collecting signatures for a petition to the White House. If 100,000 signatures are collected within a month from July 15 when the movement began, the petition against the deployment of the THAAD battery not only in Seongju but on the Korean Peninsula will be sent to the White House, according to residents.
The government has been maintaining that the missile defense system does not pose any risks.
Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn and Defense Minister Han Min-koo visited the county on July 15 to re-assure residents, but they were pelted with eggs and water bottles, prompting them to seek refuge inside the county office.
They were trapped in the building and in their vehicle for over six hours as residents used tractors to block them from leaving.
