Above Photo: sovereignty broadcast/ Youtube Screenshot
On October 18, university students staged a protest inside the residence of the U.S. ambassador to South Korea against defense cost-sharing. South Korea paid $920 million for 2018 (in addition to a nearly $11 billion for building the Camp Humphreys) and, according to the news, the United States demands $6 billion for 2019. The negotiation will start in December.
The Korean on the YouTube says: “On October 18, college students from the Korea University Student Association entered the US Embassy residence. They condemned the US for asking for US $ 6 billion in military contributions.
Caption 1:
University students denounce US demands to increase costs of stationing US troops in Korea fivefold.
[from $920M to about $5B]
They have entered the Ambassador’s [Harry Harris’] residence to protest.
Caption 2:
Students have entered the Ambassador’s residence, and they are demanding that Harris leave this country.
[Voice Over]
Our government is already paying 1 Trillion won [about $1B US], but the US increased their demand by 5 Trillion and they are now demanding that we pay 6 Trillion won!
Caption 3:
[Megaphone; Male voice]
We denounce the US’ strong-arm demand for a five-fold increase!
70% of the people are opposed to the increase!
Caption 4:
[Distressed woman’s voice]
USFK troops take $1B of our people’s taxes.
They can’t even spend the money, they park it in the bank and use it to generate interest illegally!
[crowd response] That’s right!
And now, the US is demanding more–6Trillion more!
Does this make any sense?
Caption 5:
[Woman’s voice]
And they are not [even] spending it on US forces here.
They use it to support US troops in Japan, and elsewhere.
They are using the cost-sharing monies to build the US-Mexico wall!
Caption 6:
Just recently the GSOMIA [General Security of Military Intelligence Agreement: intelligence sharing agreement between South Korea and Japan] was terminated.
Our citizens have lifted up their candles!
[Reference to South Korea’s candlelight revolution which brought down the US-allied right wing Park Geun Hye government].
We responded with a boycott [of Japanese goods]*
*Japan restricted the export of Japanese materials essential for South Korea’s semiconductor industry. The Japanese government claimed it was for “security reasons”, but it was widely seen as retaliation for a recent South Korean court decision awarding damages to Koreans enslaved by Japanese corporations during colonization and WWII. South Korea pulled out of the GSOMIA with Japan as a result, and Korean citizens have since boycotted Japanese goods.
Caption 7:
But regarding the GSOMIA, Harry Harris said “South Korea had made a mistake”.
Caption 8:
[Man on megaphone]
US soldiers came to our land as occupying troops.
Is there anything US troops have done that has been good?
[Loud crowd response]NOTHING
Everyday, they commit crimes!
They don’t help our country!
They are an arms-peddling gangster state!
Caption 9:
Embassy [security] staff are taking away cellphones or using violence against the students.
“Give me my cellphone! Why are you taking my cellphone? You must be crazy.”
Male employee is using excessive force and [inappropriate] body contact against a female student.
Caption 10:
As the students were being arrested, they shouted,
“Stop the defense cost demands!”
“We denounce the United States!”.
“Vicious Gangster Harris must leave this country!”
[Response] Leave! Leave!
“Get out of this country!”
[Stop the vicious gangsterism!]
“We denounce the US!”