REMEMBERING AND PREVENTING WAR

Today is Memorial Day in the U.S. where the war dead are remembered. Most communities have parades where Boy and Girl Scouts and high school bands march. Squads of old veterans, dressed up in uniforms that no longer fit, march as well. Local business use the march as free advertising and try to dress themselves up in patriotic colors but their true intentions are obvious. There is little creativity or things of real value in these parades.

There is a big parade in nearby Brunswick and each year the local peace group called Peaceworks gathers its members and participates in the parade behind their banner. Today our Maine Veterans for Peace, dressed in our black T-shirts with our name on the front, walked behind the women from Peaceworks. All together we had about 30 of us.

Dud Hendrick, Maine VFP president and Vietnam veteran, made a couple hundred copies of my blog post about my vigil at Bath Iron Works in support of the folks on Jeju Island and he and other members of the group handed them out to crowds watching the parade. Dud is also now fasting for several days in solidarity with Gangjeong villagers. He was a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy. The leaflet asked people to write to the South Korean embassy in Washington DC urging them to cancel the Navy base construction in the Gangjeong village.

Usually it is still cool when the Memorial Day parade comes each year and we have to wear sweatshirts but not today. After an unusual thunder storm last night, that woke up practically everyone in the region, we were greeted today with hot muggy weather - more like Florida than Maine.

I walked the whole two and one-half miles with our group in the parade but by the end my legs were a bit wobbly. I am home now sitting on my bed with my laptop and a cool glass of watermelon juice. Today is the 8th day of my solidarity fast and it is the 57th day (Korean time) of Yang Yoon-Mo's hunger strike and the 13th day for Sung-Hee Choi.

The South Korean peace group Solidarity for Peace & Reunification of Korea (SPARK), a Global Network affiliate, reports that over the weekend hundreds of people gathered in Gangjeong village for protests. In a news conference SPARK leaders told of the growing international solidarity efforts and fasts that are now happening.

It appears that my earlier information about the June 4 trial of Yang was wrong. It now seems to be that he will be sentenced on June 1 (Korea time).

So if you have not yet written or called to show support for the villagers on Jeju Island now is the time to do it. Please don't wait. If you live outside the U.S. please call the South Korean embassy in your country and get others to do it as well.

If you live in the U.S. please call the South Korean office at the United Nations - 212-439-4000. Also write to the South Korean embassy in Washington DC using this email defenattache@yahoo.com