ID :
184227
Wed, 05/25/2011 - 05:27
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/184227
The shortlink copeid
S. Korean religious group writes to President Obama over chemical dumping
SEOUL (Yonhap) - A South Korean Christian organization said on Wednesday it sent a letter to U.S. President Barack Obama in protest of recent allegations that American troops dumped large amounts of chemicals at their South Korean base.
The National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) said it also called for amendments to the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which governs the legal status of American service members and their families.
"We expressed our deep regrets over this incident (regarding chemical dumping)," an official with the NCCK said. "We made four demands that will help maintain a solid alliance between South Korea and the U.S., including revision of the SOFA."
Aside from the call on SOFA, other demands were not immediately known. Victor Hsu, a visiting professor at the Korea Development Institute's School of Public Policy and Management, reportedly drafted the letter.
South Korea and the U.S. are carrying out a joint investigation into a U.S. military base called Camp Carroll in the southeast part of South Korea. U.S. troops allegedly buried large quantities of the highly toxic defoliant Agent Orange in the 1970s.
Master Sgt. Ray Bows, a retired veteran, raised new allegations Tuesday, claiming American forces buried "hundreds of gallons" of chemical materials at Camp Mercer, near Seoul, between 1963 and 1964. It prompted the defense ministry here to launch a new inspection.
The NCCK said it will soon make the letter public and release a statement on allegations of chemical dumping.
Meanwhile, a local Catholic organization said it wasn't ready to blame the U.S. forces before the end of the investigations but that it was opposed to any threats to the environment.
"(Allegations) haven't been verified and we're not at a stage where we can put the blame on the U.S. troops," said Rev. Stephen Yang Ki-suk of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea. "But basically, our organization is against any and every threat to life, peace and the environment and if there was any illegal burial of hazardous materials, then it is wrong."
The National Council of Churches in Korea (NCCK) said it also called for amendments to the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA), which governs the legal status of American service members and their families.
"We expressed our deep regrets over this incident (regarding chemical dumping)," an official with the NCCK said. "We made four demands that will help maintain a solid alliance between South Korea and the U.S., including revision of the SOFA."
Aside from the call on SOFA, other demands were not immediately known. Victor Hsu, a visiting professor at the Korea Development Institute's School of Public Policy and Management, reportedly drafted the letter.
South Korea and the U.S. are carrying out a joint investigation into a U.S. military base called Camp Carroll in the southeast part of South Korea. U.S. troops allegedly buried large quantities of the highly toxic defoliant Agent Orange in the 1970s.
Master Sgt. Ray Bows, a retired veteran, raised new allegations Tuesday, claiming American forces buried "hundreds of gallons" of chemical materials at Camp Mercer, near Seoul, between 1963 and 1964. It prompted the defense ministry here to launch a new inspection.
The NCCK said it will soon make the letter public and release a statement on allegations of chemical dumping.
Meanwhile, a local Catholic organization said it wasn't ready to blame the U.S. forces before the end of the investigations but that it was opposed to any threats to the environment.
"(Allegations) haven't been verified and we're not at a stage where we can put the blame on the U.S. troops," said Rev. Stephen Yang Ki-suk of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea. "But basically, our organization is against any and every threat to life, peace and the environment and if there was any illegal burial of hazardous materials, then it is wrong."
