Navy makes move today on Jeju Island in South Korea

Posted by Bruce Gagnon

As recent experiences have repeatedly shown, increasing militarisation in the South has been quite successful at preventing North Korean belligerence, as well as bringing North and South closer together.
Following this brilliant strategy, the construction of a new naval base is under way on the southern island of Jeju, which will be apparently large enough to host permanently visiting U.S. warships.  No doubt that China is also thrilled to have more American belligerent potential so close to its coastlines.

And beyond geopolitics, what's missing from the equation is the impact that further militarisation has had on the average Kim on both sides of the 38th parallel.  From where we live, we won't have much trouble believing that northern Kim has been suffering in his garrison state, but we shouldn't dismiss either the hardships endured by southern Kim in the name of American-made freedom.  What can we expect around the new military base on Jeju Island?  A dramatic increase in prostitution, violence against women, traffic accidents, environmental degradation, trafficking, etc.  And who would be unpatriotic enough to protest after the killing of four South Koreans by the North Korean shelling of Yeongpyeong Island recently? 

The plan to construct this naval base well predates the recent exchange of deadly fire.  Like in South Korea and the U.S., it is bound to benefit the elite classes in North Korea, whose well-being and viability depend on the permanent state of tension between the two Koreas.  As for the commoners, they'll foot the countless bills.

You can read more about the people's struggle against this new military base here and here.

No, they won't be sent to a goulag, but is that the measure of our sense of ethics?

South Korea show of delight

Christian Science Monitor, 23 December 2010

Not sure exactly why they are cheering.
Because they're finally going to get that war they've been training for?  Because they're going to have the opportunity to die or be maimed in the name of an ideology? 
Something to celebrate.

The latest military drills by the South Korean and U.S. militaries, amongst the largest since the end of the Korean War, are intended to punish Pyongyang for its shelling of Yeonpyeong Island and the killings of four South Koreans a few weeks ago, and to show that Lee Myung-bak has found his testicles, and is ready to use them to think about how to deal with North Korean belligerence.
It seems that it's all in good humour though -- and it's clear that there hasn't been a shred of constructive policy towards North Korea in Seoul/Washington's response to the crisis thus far.  We're making a point.  That we have a much bigger stick.  And we are aware that what we are doing now will not help improve "stability" in the region, as we like to say.  After settling down a bit, things will return to low-intensity harassment, which may take a new form, to accommodate a fresh context.

The recent South Korean military response reminds me of the incident which took place within the DMZ in the 1990s, I believe, when two American officers in the middle of trimming a tree to improve visibility were assaulted by North Korean troops.  The American response was immediate: they scrambled two F-16s, and blew the Korean tree to smithereens. Very mature.

When we have other Wikileaks revelations in a few years, I will be curious to learn how Chinese officials will have described the South Korean/American response to this crisis.  Childish?  A tantrum?

Corée: le déclin du nombre de mariages est en rapport direct avec le travail précaire

Une étude publiée par l'Institut pour la recherche économique et monétaire de la Banque de Corée confirme les conclusions rapportées par RFI au début du mois au sujet des travailleurs précaires. Les Coréens ont moins d'enfants et se marient moins et/ou plus tard. L'étude constate qu'il existe des liens immédiats entre ce phénomène et la situation catastrophique en matière d'emplois stables aujourd'hui. En effet, en 2009, l'âge moyen pour s'échanger une alliance était de 31,6 ans pour les hommes et de 28,7 ans pour les femmes. En 1990 seulement, le rapport était respectivement de 27,8 et 24,8.

Apparemment, la précarité de l'emploi grandissante et les prix de l'immobilier contribuent très fort aux changements dans les moeurs nuptiales en Corée. Et curieusement, les sexes ont des comportements différents: ceux qui sont moins enclin à se marier sont les hommes recevant des salaires de misère, à l'instar des femmes à revenus élevés. En revanche, les femmes sous-payées préfèrent trouver chaussure à leur pied plus tôt, tout comme les hommes "qui ont une bonne situation."

L'article du Hangyoreh est ici.

Kang Eunju on the guitar

According to the poster, her name is Kang Eunju. She attends Shin Hung Kindergarten in Hamhung City in North Korea. She is playing a tune from a children's movie entitled "Boy Commander".

"What might save us, me, and you
Is if the Russians North Koreans love their children too."

Corée du Sud : un marché de l’emploi à deux vitesses qui menace la croissance du Tigre asiatique

Incroyable: La Corée du Sud annonce une croissance de près de 6% pour 2010.

Comment est-ce possible?
La dérégulation du marché de l'emploi qui avait été lancée à la suite de la crise financière à la fin des années 90 a pris de l'ampleur sous la présidence du neo-libéral 2MB (Lee Myung-bak).  Les chiffres officiels d'aujourd'hui sont effarants: un tiers de la population active sont des travailleurs précaires.  C'est-à-dire qu'ils travaillent sans contrat ou avec un contrat non-régulier, bref: sans sécurité d'emploi.  Tout profit pour les employeurs.

Dans de telles conditions, on commence à comprendre pourquoi les Coréens se marient de plus en plus tard et ont beaucoup moins d'enfants.  En fait, la Corée affiche un des taux de natalité les plus bas au monde (moins d'une naissance par cent habitants en 2010).  Pourquoi prendre le risque de construire une famille si on n'est jamais sûr d'avoir un revenu le mois suivant?  Pour ceux qui profitent joyeusement du taux de croissance, il est important d'entretenir les sentiments de précarité et d'individualisme chez les travailleurs afin d'augmenter les bénéfices.  Mais il faut aussi s'assurer que les gens ne réfléchissent pas trop à leur situation misérable: encourageons la consommation, censurons les médias gênants, trouvons des boucs émissaires.

A cet effet, le naufrage du Cheonan et l'échange d'artillerie avec la Corée du Nord est du pain béni.  Ca permet de rassembler la population et d'oublier la précarité.  Pour être juste, les cadres du Sud devraient envoyer une partie de leurs profits au Nord afin de remercier Kim Jong-il pour sa contribution à la croissance économique étonnante de la Corée du Sud.

Vous pouvez écouter le grand reportage de RFI sur le marché de l'emploi en Corée en cliquant sur le lien suivant.

Who Killed Hatoyama's Career?

We invoke stability and harmony.  Clearly the hallmarks of extensive military exercises held in someone else's backyard.  After "Team Spirit," "Foal Eagle," "Hoguk," here is "Keen Sword"...

"Japan, U.S. begin joint military exercises," CNN - December 03, 2010

"Keen Sword will cap the 50th anniversary of the Japan-U.S. alliance as an 'alliance of equals,'" said Maj. William Vause, chief of operational plans, training and exercises. "It is the largest bilateral exercise between the United States and Japan military forces. [The exercise] will better enhance both of our countries' readiness to respond to varied crisis situations."

The drill is not directed to any nation, officials said.

"The goal of Keen Sword is to increase and improve our bilateral relationship to further enhance the Japan and U.S. alliance," Vause said, "and to provide a realistic training environment that allows Japan Self Defense Force and U.S. forces to respond to a wide range of situations."

The drill starts days after South Korea and the United States wrapped up joint military exercises on the Yellow Sea.

Health care in Korea

Written by Taeyon Kim:

On the day when Congress finally passes the long awaited Healthcare Reform Bill, I just have to speak on this issue from this side of the Pacific.

You can probably relate: You're in a foreign country, either travelling or living, and you get sick. Oh no! the last thing you want to do is go see a doctor. You don't know how clean the hospitals are. There might be foreign bugs there that you're not immune to. Will they use proper sterilization methods? Will they use anesthetics? Will your insurance cover it? Will the doctor even see you? Will you understand each other? Are they up-to-date in methods and technology? Can you trust the drugs? And on and on.

I've always been wary of seeking medical care in Korea. It's difficult enough to negotiate your way in a foreign country, but I reserve a special sense of foreboding when it comes to handing over the care of my body. And it's not just me. The Koreans I know in Canada don't trust the Canadian medical system, and my own uncle who has lived in the US for more than twenty years still sees his Korean dentist on his regular visits to Korea.

So when we first arrived in Korea two months ago, I was reluctant to go see a doctor even though Lucien was obviously sick. He had a cold. He was coughing. His breathing was phlegmy, his eyes were goopy and his nose was running. Plus he was running a fever. I kept hoping he would get better on his own. It was just a cold, right? But the landlady insisted, and practically dragged me by the hand to a nearby clinic.

So we went, without an appointment and without insurance. I grabbed a wad of cash on the way out. After all, I had spent $200 on one visit to the pediatrician in Los Angeles when I took Lucien to see Dr. Fleiss (yes, THE Dr. Fleiss of Heidi Fleiss fame - you LA folks will know who I mean - and also of Mothering's "People We Love" fame). I took about the same amount with me this time.

We walked a few blocks and up a flight of dirty stairs to a reassuringly clean office. I explained to the receptionist/nurse that I didn't have insurance or even an id. number (everyone has this, it's like a social security number), so she took down Lucien's name and told me to take a seat. I waited all of ... five minutes, at most ten.

The doctor was sitting in front of her computer. She asked some questions, checked Lucien's breathing and heartbeat, looked in his throat, cleared his nose with a huge suction machine, asked some more questions, then typed in a prescription. That was it. The whole visit took about ten minutes.

Then back out to the receptionist who printed out the prescription and -- here's the big important part -- charged me about $10 for the visit. I couldn't believe it. That's it? I thought I heard wrong. I pulled out a fraction of the cash I had on me and handed it to her, waiting for her to correct me. No. That was correct.

Ok, you might argue, sure it's $10, Korea's a third world country and the doctor was using rusty instruments and machines that were 30 years old. But no. The machines were really impressive and ... kind of comic, to be honest. This big honking machine sitting behind the doctor, with all these tubes and metal parts poking out of it, and a powerful humming whenever she turned it on...never seen one in North America. Not sure what it was for, other than suctioning snot out of Lucien's nose. And of course, Korea is not a third world country but one of the most technologically advanced countries in the world.

So then I was left wondering, why is it so cheap? Or maybe I should rephrase the question: why is it so formidably expensive in America? And, why is it so cumbersome in America and Canada? It was just so easy to see the doctor in Korea.

While I was there, a few people came stumbling in, an old lady complaining of a pain in her leg, and a man with a child who had - he believed - swallowed a toy. His wife insisted the child had swallowed something, could they just take a quick x-ray and check? Now can you imagine someone just stopping in at the doctor's because her leg was bothering her? No appointment, just stopping by on her way somewhere else. Or someone rushing over for a "quick x-ray" to check, just in case, because their child might have swallowed something. It just seemed so effortless and efficient.

It's not all rosy and golden, though. My only complaint is that it is very perfunctory (though I'm used to that from my visits in Canada), and they love to prescribe drugs drugs and more drugs. For Lucien we picked up three different vials of pink medicine, as well as five sachets of powder, to be administered three times a day in different quantities for five days. None of them were labelled so I didn't know what any of them were (now I know to ask). One of them was an antibiotic, and it must have been a pretty powerful one because it did quite a number on his poor digestive system. I never saw such terrible diaper rash, for which the doctor prescribed a whole new cocktail of drugs.

There is a hospital right next door to us, and I went for a few visits to specialists. Cost? $16. Less than $20. Crowded, but the wait was never long.

Hopefully, as the U.S. reshapes the way it takes care of its people's health, some streamlining of costs will occur. Surely, if Korea can do it....?

On schools in Korea

Written by Taeyon Kim:

I have always regarded Korean schools with at best unease, at worst outright horror. It may be the stories I heard from my cousin ("I had no life, all I did was study study study, every waking moment"), or the descriptions of mind-numbing rote memorization, or soul-crushing conformity that seem to permeate the national imagination of school.

I envisioned hives of worker bees toiling in individual cells called koshiwon, memorizing all manner of minutiae in preparation for some exam or other (though this happens later, in college or afterwards). I shuddered at the images of macho bullies ganging up on isolated kids, boys who are new, boys who are quiet and shy and wear glasses and don't speak Korean.

So you can imagine the apprehension with which I tottered forward and offered up my children to this beast of an institution, certain that they would be devoured instantly and mercilessly. I entered the school grounds with dread, one foot in and one foot ready to hightail it out of there. I had backup plans ready and in place in case it didn't work out. So it has been one of the most delightful surprises and greatest reliefs that Rémi and Tristan's schools have been such wonderful experiences so far.

Let me begin first with Rémi. My first impression was not good. Office staff weren't particularly helpful or encouraging, and there was no playground, just a big dusty soccer field. But the first day of school changed everything. You already know how it went from the previous dispatch, and it was a good indicator of things to come. Rémi goes to school not just willingly but cheerfully. The kids are friendly and nice, and one of the girls in his class has taken Remi under her wing. She is so sweet and yamjeonhae, kind and gentle, and she really looks out for him and helps him whenever she can. Rémi told me today that she is his best friend.

Rémi is shy, so it's really up to the other kids to make friends with him, and they do their best to draw him out. Every time I pick him up or drop him off, kids are saying "Hi Rémi" in Korean, and Rémi shyly waves his hand or says hi quietly under his breath.

I don't know how true it is, but I'm told that it's different in Seoul. The kids are more competitive, not as nice, big city kids. If that's the case, then for that alone I'm glad we came to Chuncheon. The difficulty of being a single parent during the week is worth it if it means Rémi and Tristan have a good experience at school. If they were unhappy, then single parenting would be a lot harder. Their happiness is mine.

Tristan's preschool I loved immediately. The first impression was great. The warm, wooden interior practically glowed with good feeling, and the administrator who helped me was SO helpful and friendly I wanted to cry. She had even translated their registration documents into English, just for me! Their philosophy is very child-centered and reminds me of Tristan's preschool at home. So, in contrast to Rémi's school, I couldn't wait for Tristan to start.

He's been going now for four days, and tomorrow will be his first full day from 9-1pm. His only complaint is that it's long, but he loves the snacks and singing, and he reported to me today that he made 8 friends and they played superheroes and he was the captain of the superheroes. He also sang a song for us that he learned at the preschool. I couldn't recognize any of the words, though they sounded vaguely Korean. So aside from the long bus ride in the morning (1 hour), he seems to be enjoying it.

One of the best things at the schools is the food. Rémi loves it, and Tristan will also get a hot lunch in addition to snack every day. All the lunches are cooked on the premises, nothing is packaged, and all of it is Korean, of course. Which means it usually consists of rice, soup, side dishes, and sometimes a main dish like bulgogi. When I visited once they were serving curry over rice, with side dishes and soup. It's just a very full, well-rounded, home-cooked meal. And yummy, according to Rémi. He scarfs it all down. The teacher is impressed with how well he eats, and he's proud that he even eats the spicy kimchi.

What's more, everything is stainless steel. The trays, the utensils, the cups. The food is served on stainless steel trays that have individual compartments for each side dish, the kids can help themselves to water with stainless steel cups, and everything is put away and washed up, nothing is thrown away, except perhaps the milk cartons, which are recycled.

I have to say, while littering may still be more evident here, there is a lot less waste in Korea. I guess coming from North America, the most wasteful place in the world, I could make this observation about any country. But I'm impressed by how much stainless steel is in evidence everywhere. It's like they had a heads up about the problems with plastic that we're now coming to see, and skipped the whole plastic craze and went straight to stainless.

So now, in this, my fifth visit to Korea, I'm finding that there is a lot I can learn from Korea. A lot of my earlier visits were occupied with how "wrong" things were. Now I'm finding that actually, there is a lot that Koreans do better than us. Don't get me started on the medical system...actually, do. That will be another dispatch.

Hmmm... street food in Korea

Korea is a street food paradise: sweet potatoes, sweet rice cakes, roasted chestnuts, hodokwaja (some sort of walnut cakes), ttokpokki (spicy rice cakes with meat, eggs, etc.), dumplings, and many other yummy things.

Good thing I've got a goatee

I gotta break a leg or carry Lucien while wearing a dress if I want to sit in the special seats on the subway in Seoul.  Some feminists are not gonna like this.

Was Mercator Korean?

Yonsei graduation
Uploaded by walhain. - Discover videos of people, family and friends.

Garbage and recycling

Not unusual in Seoul ~

I'm not sure what would work better in terms of waste removal in Seoul.  Residents don't generally throw their garbage on the side of the street as shown in the above picture.  They are required to place it in valid garbage bags (which can be purchased in any convenience store).  But considering the amount of traffic in Seoul, it's actually surprising that there aren't more bags ripped open.  I don't think that bins would work well since streets are narrow, and there aren't any alleyways to store them.

I haven't quite figured out how the system works, but I know that there are different bags for different wastes.  Recyclables must be separated from food waste, and the non-recyclable must also be bagged separately.

Note the cute little food bags on the left-hand side.

Anyways, I don't know how the garbage/recycling is collected.  So far, I haven't seen trucks.  But I have evidence that shows that some of it disappears on two wheels.

Noksaek means "green" in Korean

There have been numerous and visible efforts to make living in Korean cities more comfortable.  I'll write about some of these projects - completed, under construction, and planned - in the coming weeks, but in this posting, I'll address certain environmental improvements made in Seoul since I last visited.

Although the number of cars continues to increase here, I've noticed that the exposed parts of my socks no longer turn to a dark brown after spending the day walking in the streets of Seoul as it used to in the early 1990s.  Also, I would have to wash up dirt and pebbles off my umbrella in my bathroom after a short promenade in the rain.  It was scary to think about what I was breathing in.

Twenty years later, all public buses and taxis in Seoul run on LPG.  Perhaps later studies will show that LPG is actually more dangerous than diesel because it facilitates the spreading of mad cow disease, but I am certainly spending less money on socks this time around.

Another incentive to use public transportation is the price of gasoline.  It obviously is difficult to set a price that is high enough to deter without generating a popular uprising.  Even though one litre costs around $1.50 (that's roughly $5.50/gallon), there are still far too many motorists in Seoul.  The car is such a powerful social status symbol.  Indeed, foreign car manufacturers have started to establish themselves in Korea, including Audi, BMW, Mercedes, and some American automakers which may or may not be alive at time of posting.

The two-wheels have also gone more green.  Until just a few years ago, you had to be nearly suicidal to brave Seoul traffic on a motorbike, so I am quite surprised to see that there is a growing number of cyclists here.  I haven't checked recent Korean hospital statistics, but I would think that the government wouldn't waste its money building bicycle lanes if it were just for a few nutcases.  Granted that these lanes are not common, but there are bike shops and bike racks here and there, e.g. subway stations or on university campuses, such as Yonsei University (see picture below).

Furthermore, Yonsei University has adopted the policy of restricting access to its campus to licence plates starting or ending with determined numbers on certain days of the week.

Of course, there is plenty of room for improvement.  I am delighted that buses, subways and taxis are convenient, quick and generally affordable.  No doubt this protects the right to freedom of movement more effectively than the private car, while minimising the environmental impact.

But as I type this, I am feeling a cold draft coming from the sealed window of my apartment.  Many of the windows I have seen in Korea still only have one glass pane, and/or can't be closed properly.  I wonder if global warming doesn't originate from the heat coming out of Korean windows.

Welcome, customer!

I must say I am tempted to give these waffles a try.  They're amongst the new eating fads in Seoul.  And perhaps I should indulge a few right away because they may vanish as quickly as the whipped cream that garnishes them.  There is a constant stream of novel foods available in Korea, nearly matching the pace of Korean technological innovations.

For instance, while sampling these Belgian waffles, you can now sip a top-grade espresso.  A few years ago still, the only coffee you could buy was one you'd get from a vending machine for the equivalent of 10 cents, or one made out of instant coffee powder, or the American-type concoction.  Enter the commercial espresso machine.  It's become conspicuous in any serious coffee shops today.  And I can buy freshly roasted beans from a shop two blocks away from where I live!

I noticed another, more subtle change, however.  Only five years ago, the restaurant waiter, the shopkeeper, or the bank teller would have addressed you as sonnim or "guest," as in a guest visiting your friend's parents for instance.  Moreover, young sales assistants would sometimes use the deferential "older brother" or "older sister" to raise closeness and profit figures.  Today, the old intimacy has given way to a business relationship.  When you walk into a store, you're greeted with kogaengnim! or "hello, customer!"  I suppose that's an unambiguous way of reminding you why you're there.

But now... pondering upon the changes that have been occurring in the University, I wonder how long it will take for students entering campus to hear "welcome, kogaengnim!"

From the U.S. Command in Seoul Garrison: Martin Luther King is truly an American hero...

Click here for the article.

... a freedom fighter in the stubborn South.  Apparently, he became advisor to Presidents Eisenhower, Kennedy and Johnson, cautiously.  His marches woke up the sleepy American public, and made Americans realise that racism and discrimination were, ultimately, un-American.

Did his ideals win the hearts and minds of the nation?  Yes!  Indeed, "institutions of injustice began to crumble across the U.S. [...] The great democracy our forefathers had envisioned was finally closer to perfection because of an inspired descendant of African slaves."

His track record proves that he is a distinctly American son.  "He helped a Nation see that it could truly fulfill its destiny to be the land of the free and home of the brave."

What a soup of clichés.

It's a real shame that Martin Luther King never had the chance to visit the Yongsan Garrison.  Who knows what he would have said?  Let the generals preach peace and non-violence?


"This is our hope. This is the faith that I go back to the South with. With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day."

leisure in Seoul

Cutting across the centre of Seoul is a beautiful waterway which did much to give the Mayor of Seoul who commissioned its construction an edge in the 2007 Presidential elections.  No doubt that it has beautified the city.  In its stead was an elevated highway which spouted tens of thousands of cars from one end of Seoul to the other every day, but made the neighbourhood look as friendly as the landscape in Madmax.