Protest in the streets!

As you know, yesterday, August 15th was Korea's Independence Day from Japan. As usual, there were protests at a lot of the universities and on a lot of steets. They were protesting the Japanese Prime Minister's visit to the Yasukuni war shrine. The shrine was built after South Korea gained independence from Japan in 1945. I've talked to a few Koreans about this shrine and they said it is not only a shrine for their indepedence, but a shrine to honor all of their fallen soldiers from all wars.

The wounds are still very fresh here, as they should be. People, even some of my older students, openly discuss their severe distaste for the Japanese goverment. I'm not saying Koreans should hate the Japanese, but the memory of the gruesome horrors that were committed upon these people should never be lost. This does not mean that they wish the Japanese harm because they don't. According to the Japanese Prime Minister, he does it to prove that is a thing of the past. Of course it is, but when he is told by everyone "Please don't visit the shrine" and then does it, it is seen as disrespectful to the dead. So, as promised, the Koreans and Chinese protested. Here, there were hundreds of protests just like there were in Bejing. People of all ages were out there, waving the Korean flag, chanting and holding placards. I only saw people going to the protests, I did not see the actual marches, vigils and speeches. I wish I did.

The passion against Japan does not simply stem from their militarized oppression. Sure that is a huge part of it, but from what I've heard here, it's also about Tokyo's treatment of Seoul. I'm told that they undermine Seoul and reduce Seoul's importance as an international power whenever given the chance. Now, I don't know if that's true. All I know is that Japan and the US (to name a couple) demonized Korea and China for not agreeing with pursuing U.N. sactions after Pyongyang's July 5th missle launches. The South Korean and North Korean governments hate each other. That's no secret. However, the people here love the people there. They are all Koreans, no matter what a gaurded parallel may claim. Seoul knows that if they attacked or supported an attack on the North, the people in the South would erupt in protest. So they won't do it. Stability here would collapse and I would be put on a plane and forced to return home. If Japan or the United States bombed North Korea, it would be mass protest.

The people have a unique trait here that I feel is missing from the debate on whether or not to bomb or invade another nations. This trait, I feel, dictates how Seoul operates their foreign policy. It's compassion. The people here sincerly hate the idea that the North Koreans (although they would never call them that) would be hurt for the idiocy of their evil government. They suffer enough, so instead of hurting them more with sanctions and bombs, we should work together and find a better solution. They know that if Seoul tried to militarily take out Kim, Kim would murder more people that we could count. Violence begets violence and that mentality is very strong among Koreans.

Koreans know that Pyongyang has chemical weapons and warheads pointed at them from the North. They know that, but this doesn't stop them. They want peace with their northern brothers and sisters and now that I live here and have fallen in love with it, I'm scared. Not of the threat of bombs or anything, but that an outside force could have an impact on whether they succeed in their dream of unification. This is not Risk and this is not chess. These are people's lives, their dreams, their future and their country. Do not take that away from them.