Jeju 4·3 International Network for Truth and Justice established in Jeju City

The Jeju 4.3 International Net­work for Truth and Justice was established in the Jeju City Communication and Cooperation Center at 2:00 PM KST on June 27, 2022. Peo­ple from Jeju, Seoul, Japan, the United States, Europe, and Taiwan joined forc­es to seek the truth and justice.

Seven different organizations came together to join hands, with the Jeju As­sociation for the Bereaved Families of 4.3 Victims in Jeju as the hub: Jeju 4.3 Pan-National Committee to Commem­orate the Jeju 4.3 Massacre, Memorial Committee fortheJeju 4.3 Uprising and Massacre, Association for the Bereaved Families of 4.3 Victims in Japan, Jeju 4.3 Victims and Families Association in the U.S., Taiwan Jeju 4.3 Victims Association, and the Jeju 4.3 Network Europe. In addition, participation by two other groups are in the planning: Jeju 4.3 Net­work Tokyo andJeju 4.3 Network Osaka.

At the founding ceremony, representatives of each organization participated through video conference, and Jeju Provincial Governor Oh Young-hoon and National Assemblyman Kim Han-kyu of the Demo­cratic Party delivered congratulatory speeches. Koh Hee-beam, chairman ofthe Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation, visited the site of the founding ceremony and delivered congratulatory remarks.

In its founding declaration, the 4.3 Internation­al Network for Truth and Justice announced that it would become a catalyst for connecting the next gen­eration by fostering the spirit of 4.3 and resistance against injustice to reaffirm peace and human rights.

The spokesperson for the 4.3 International Net­work for Truth and Justice said, "The Jeju 4.3 Massa­cre, which claimed the lives of IO percent of the pop­ulation of Jeju at the time, occurred 74 years ago, but it is not a problem unique to Jeju. After World War II, the Korean Peninsula was another battleground between the great powers. It is a righteous history in which the people of Jeju tried to forge the future of the Korean Peninsula after liberation rather than be dictated by the great powers:'

"The 4.3 journey towards truth and justice did not come about by sitting still. The dedicated research and movement of the Jeju 4.3 organizations and civil society, in tandem with the efforts of the bereaved families, led to the enactment of the 4.3 Special Act, the adoption of a fact-finding report at the government level, and an apology from the President of South Korea. The amendment of the Special Act, backed by the efforts of all, made historical progress in enabling compensation and retrial at the govern-ment level;' the spokesperson added.

"In the 1970s and 1980s, when it was hardly possible to talk about the Jeju 4.3 Massacre out in the open, the voices calling for the investigation of the truth first emerged in Japan. And we've come a long way. Recently, the Jeju 4.3 Victims and Families Association of the U.S. was formed. And a meaningful step began in Taiwan with the launch of the J eju 4.3 Network Taiwan. In other nations, such as the UK and the Netherlands, various activities are underway to es­tablish the truth of the Jeju 4.3 Massacre:'

"Even if it takes a long time, we will establish the truth and the responsibility of the U.S. military gov­ernment at the time. The spring of the natural seasons each year comes by itself, but the spring of historical truth must be forged by men and women as well as the next generation. Our collective footprints towards solidarity will become the warp and weft that light up a brighter tomorrow:'

'We [ 4.3 International Network] will bloom in the Jeju 4.3 spirit of protesting against injustice and flow­er into peace and human rights:'

The representatives of each organization who par­ticipated in the founding ceremony of the Jeju 4.3 In­ternational Network for Truth and Justice aim to raise awareness through collaboration among civic societ­ies and investigate the role of the U.S. Army Military Government in Korea.

In September 2020, the Memorial Committee for the Jeju 4.3 Uprising and Massacre, with the view toward establishing the 4.3 International Network, reached out to each J eju 4.3-related association across the world.

In January, 2021, discussions on the establishment of the international network began in earnest and, six months later, it was established. Each representative of the participating organization took on the role of co-representative, and a joint secretariat consisting of co-representatives and directors of various fields with­in each organization was formed.

The Jeju 4.3 International Network is planning to hold various events such as international forums and seminars for resolving the Jeju 4.3 issue, internation­al solidarity projects, international representation of the Jeju 4.3 history, and international cooperation for forging peace and justice. ■

Walden Korea signs Agreement with Koryo People's Cultural Center, Incheon, Korea

Ms.Suyeon Yang and President SON JUNG JIN at Nomo Inchon Koryoin Cultural Center

Walden Korea signed a business agree­ment with the Korea Support Center/ Koryo People's Cultural Center <Beyond Incheon> in Hambak Village, Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, Korea, with the view toward promoting the history of Primorsky, Manchuria, and the Korean Peninsula to the world. Hambak Village is Korea's largest single ethnric village, where 7,000 Goryeo (Koryo) people live together as a community.

The term "Goryeo people" refers to the Korean people living in the entire Union of Independent States (Uzbekistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Ukraine, etc.) after the collapse of the former Soviet Union.

In the spring of 2019, which marked the 100th an­niversary of the March 1st Independence Movement and the establishment of the Korean Provisional Gov­ernment, President Moon Jae-In visited Uzbekistan and said, "The first generation of Goryeo people are all independence fighters and patriots:'

In 1863, the Korean people who crossed the Tumen River and moved to Primorsky Land formed a Korean village, which became the main stage of the indepen­dence movement, including, later on, the base of the Korean Liberation Army. The flames ofindependence activists, such as the Maritime Movement, the April disaster, and the Goryeo Revolutionary Armed Forces, were extinguished in 1937by the tragedy of forced mi­gration to Central Asia. Tens of thousands of Goryeo people died in the Siberian field. Abandoned in the middle of Central Asia, the Goryeo people pioneered in cultivating the barren land, settled collective farms, and labored like heroes, forming a community and fos­tering the next generation. In the wake of the collapse of the Soviet Union, they moved to various parts of Eurasia and ultimately entered South Korea in 2007.

However, although the Goryeo people are descen­dants of independence fighters, they are not recog­nized as Koreans and are not receiving proper edu­cational benefits. Ethnric Koreans tribe (Josun-jok) from China speak Korean fluently, and have widely en­tered the Korean workforce. But most Goryeo people, due to their lack of fluency in Korean, have no choice but to live within the confines of their residential towns such as Hambak Village. After 1945, the Soviet Union banned the teaching of Korean language.

Many of the Goryeo people who had resettled in South Korea were highly-educated professionals in their former countries, such as doctors and professors. But when they came to Korea, most of the jobs avail­able to them were work for minimum wage.

Walden Korea will start a modern and contempo­rary Korean history trip, bringing second generation Korean students and U.S. residents to South Korea. In the village of the Goryeo people, visitors from the U.S. will meet the descendants of the anti-Japanese move­ment and learn more about the Korean diaspora. They will also visit the truce line in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and learn about North-South relations. Finally, they will also learn about the Jeju 4.3 Massacre. ■

Walden Korea signs business agreement with Remainers, a Korean culture company

Chairwomen Suyeon Yang and President YOON KYOUNG.JA at Remainders Society Cooperative

Walden Korea signed a business agreement with Remainers, a Korean company that focuses on Korean culture, on July 24, 2022. Remainers is led by Lim Sung-hee, a master of soybean paste and red pepper paste, Lee Hyun-Kyung, a master of natural dyeing, and Yoon Kyung-Ja, a de­veloper.

The parties will share food techniques and knowl­edge based on the spirit ofHongik human beings. The reason why Walden Korea needs a Korean cuisine partner is that the Korean Wave is very popular in the United States, and Korean food is at the center of the global interest in Korea. Through Korean cuisine, the American public can better connect with Korean history. Suyeon Yang, chairwoman ofWalden Korea, is also a Korean food expert who studied traditional court cuisine.

Remainders will introduce its red pepper paste and soybean paste kit to the U.S. and will work with Walden Korea on various related cultural events such as international exchange, certification courses, edu­cation recipes, events, and consulting. ■