The animal protection society was founded in feb 1990 through the efforts of kaps director Sunnan Kum. Kyenan Kum, Sunnans sister is an accomplished painter! She is also founder and director of the international aid for Korean animals.

Signing this petition will help to enforce laws in Korea to put a ban on cat soup and dog meat. So please sign! Sincere thanks to April Doney, an animal protection society member.

Some dogs are still alive when they come out of the whirlpool of boiling water and to finish them off they are blowtorched to remove the rest of their fur. Cats are beaten to death in sack to make cat soup.

South Korea does have an Animal Protection Law 1991 but the government turns a blind eye and let these poor animals be killed in cruel inhumane ways. There are over 6000 resturants in South Korea that have dog and cat on the menu. 2 million dogs and cats are killed inhumanely each year to satisfy the need to eat dogs and cats. This must be stopped, no more pain for these animals.

Korean Government now is trying to legalise dogmeat trade through proposed "Hygienic Controls"

We refuse to support South Korea in its business, products and visit South Korea till animals laws are enforced and action is taken to stop this cruelty.

See www.dogaid.freeservers.com

Dogs and cats, usually strays, are rounded up onto lorries and taken to places such as the infamous MORAN MARKET. They are thrown off the lorries and kept in cages, often with broken limbs, toi wait for days without food or water, alone and terrified, to be buthcered alive for anyone who wants to buy them. TV in South America was shocked to see images of a labrador being beaten to death with a hammer - this is normal in South Korea.

Yet South Korea has a good economy and plenty of food, it is given place in all world sporting events and all world trade yet commits such savage atrocities. This is totally unnacceptable. It has nothing to do with ancient tradition as they are a part of the western world now so should not offend it by their barbarism. There is no need to eat dogs or cats (often boiled alive and held down with sticks).

It brings shame on South Korea and must now be ended, Please sign this petition and also publish it tell everyone about these atrocities everywhere you can. Bless you for this, from all the dogs and cats are suffering in such terrible ways.

South Korea in the past two years has been witness to the use of the Public Prosecutor's Office to detain and question journalists critical of the government, infringing on the professional autonomy of rank-and-file reporters and threatening the development of a free and independent press. In addition, the National Tax Service has been used to mobilize politically-motivated institutional audits, while various ministries have been involved in the revocation of NGO licenses and contracts, forced personnel changes, budget cuts, imposition of a real name registration system, pressing of charges of national security violations, and investigations into family members of media movement activists and cultural sector leaders that have been classified as "Born in the Time of DJ (Kim Dae-jung), and Raised by Roh Moo-hyun."

During the past year there have been several forced resignations and/or illegal firings, many of which the Seoul Administrative Court has determined have been illegal but not reversible. While the list is extensive and include the massive personnel and budget cuts at both South Korea's Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the NHRCK that violates the latter's autonomy outlined and protected under Article 10 of the Constitution, notable incidents include:
* Arts Council Korea (ARKO) Chief Executive Officer and Chairman Kim Jung-heun
* National Museum of Contemporary Art Director Kim Yoon-soo
* Korean National University of Arts President Hwang Ji-woo
* KBS President Jung Yun-joo
* KBS Director Shin Tae-seop
* National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) Chairperson Ahn Kyung-whan

There have also been:
* many resignations made under political protest of four MBC Board of Directors members and media personality Kim Je-dong
* the parachute appointment of the YTN president
* the defunding of Migrant Worker TV
* the defunding of the Seoul Human Rights Film Festival hosted by Sarangbang
* defunding of RTV (national public access satellite cable channel/ a must-carry channel that launched in 2007)
* an attack on Article 38 of the Broadcast Law stipulating that funds are to be used for supporting viewer-produced programs and providing broadcast access to those otherwise excluded from the mainstream
* shut-down of Indie-Space

These and numerous other instances that suggest consequences of a democracy that is taking backward steps in South Korea have been drawing international attention, including from:
* Experts serving on the United Nations (UN) Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)
* Reporters without Borders (Reporters sans frontieres, RSF) (According to its 2009 World Press Freedom index, South Korea has dropped 30 places in the past year under President Lee)
* Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ)
* Amnesty International
* International Coordinating Committee (ICC) of National Institutions for the Promotion and Protection Human Rights
* Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions
* Asia Human Rights Commission & a Statement From Professors In North America Concerned About Korean Democracy.

In addition to calls being made to KOFIC at (02)958-7521 or 02-9587-526 and emails being sent to snowmt@kofic.or.kr ...

GM Daewoo management has refused to recognise the union, instead carried out mass layoffs, refusing new contracts to workers when the in-house sub-contractor who employed them closed on 30 September 2007.

Pressuring others to quite their jobs. For over three years now, the dismissed workers have fought for reinstatement.

I am giong to send the amount of signatures I get to the president once a month and hopefully he will make it illegal in the US, and possibly confince the forgein contries to stop. Please sign my petition.

But when Kim’s final score (219.11) was read, the gold medal would go to Russia’s Adelina Sotnikova (224.59), leading to a cascade of roaring cheers from the large Russian contingent in the arena, which weren’t drowned out by sharp protests and jeers from others. While Sotnikova had a strong performance, Kim was excellent, almost flawless.

American Ashley Wanger, who finished a disappointing seventh, was critical of the judging.

"People don't want to watch a sport where you watch people fall down and somehow score above someone who goes clean," she said.

"It's confusing and we need to make it clear for people."

"People need to be held accountable. They need to get rid of anonymous judging. There are many changes that need to come to this sport if we want a fan base."

Acknowledgement of background info to article by Bobby Ilich: http://www.ibtimes.com/yuna-kim-sochi-scandal-south-korean-figure-skater-robbed-gold-russias-controversial-olympics-1557134

Pic: thanks to www.gospelherald.com

I learned through Korean press that the marking of the East Sea, an issue between South Korea and Japan, will be one of the official agenda of this year's IHO general meeting, and that the fourth revision of "Limits of Oceans and Seas“ will be published based on the meeting.

I'm sure that you have heard of this issue. Japan, taking advantage of its powerful diplomatic powers and lobbying abilities, is attempting to change the name of the East Sea to Sea of Japan. However, I am writing this letter to you with a sincere hope that the truth will be conveyed. Please read through my letter, despite your busy schedules.

This is because the East Sea is not a simply an issue of marking a geographical location. The East Sea is a part of the long Korean history, and a sea passed on to us by our ancestors.
However, there was an incident which distorted the truth. The incident serves as the basics of the logic claimed by Japan.

In 1919, an IHO meeting was held at London. At the time, Korea was colonized by Japan and therefore unable to send a delegation. Only the Japanese delegation participated the meeting and this was when the East Sea was first changed to the name, Sea of Japan. The details on the background and materials are listed below.

In a way, the incident can be regarded simply as a bilateral issue between South Korea and Japan. However, in the 21st century all countries composing the global community face the challenge of establishing peaceful order through harmony and cooperation with a universal perspective.

Nevertheless, Japan is persistently claiming its own national interest by going against the current of times, as well as distorting and concealing the truth to realize their national interest.

The redevelopment plan for the area aims to carry out “development” by forcefully evicting the tenants and without providing any compensation for their losses. Duriban's owner and supporters began their sit-in struggle with the single hope of continuing to operate the restaurant, thus resisting being completely run over by the unjust terms of the redevelopment plan.

In the early days of the sit-in, on December 26, 2009, the area's developer, GS construction corporation, under the guise of a phantom company, NamJeon DNC, illegally turned off the electricity in a frantic attempt to evict the tenants. Furthermore, the Korean Electric Power Corporation (KEPCO) refused to do anything about it, even though KEPCO's basic supply contract guarantees electricity will not be cut without the explicit consent of the tenants. Instead, KEPCO has done nothing to restore electricity to Duriban, thereby violating its own contract with the public. After NamJeon DNC initially cut off the electricity, a nearby company began providing electricity to Duriban for humanitarian reasons. This company received constant threats from NamJeon DNC and thus stopped supplying electricity to Duriban on July 21. Since then, the struggle has carried on without electricity. Duriban's owner and supporters are now using only candles and limited solar power, but the dangers of fire and extreme heat (without air conditioning or fans), along with the impossibility of cooking food, are threatening the sit-in and their own survival.

The District Government Office in Mapo created the redevelopment plan for the area, thereby also generating the basic reason for the sit-in struggle to occur. Yet the District Government officials have idly stood by as the electricity at Duriban was illegally cut off. The Mapo District Office is simply pretending that it’s not their problem or responsibility, even though the redevelopment area falls directly under their jurisdiction. Recently, after the Duriban struggle participants conducted a sit-in inside the Mapo District Office itself for two weeks straight, the Office's director promised to negotiate between both sides and restore electricity to the building. In the end though, it became clear that this promise was all just superficial rhetoric after the director clarified that they would only supply an electricity generator, but with no fuel for operating it. And this clarification was only made after the Duriban struggle participants agreed to end their sit-in at the District Office! Now, in the midst of the darkness and intense heat at Duriban, a deep sense of betrayal remains for the restaurant's owner and supporters.