Sorry if this has already been sent out.
Any suggestions how we should help from Australia?
Phil Straw
From:
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Sent: Thursday, 29 January 2004
5:25 PM
To:
Cc:
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Subject: SAEMANGEUM RECLAMATION TO
CONTINUE...
Dear Colleagues,
We have just sent out the following update:
Devastating news today.
According to the South Korean Daum news website and other news agencies, a
higher court in Seoul announced earlier today (January 29) that the decision
last July to suspend the Saemangeum reclamation project has now been
over-ruled, following the appeal of the Ministry of Agriculture. The 40
100
ha reclamation project, the largest known project of its kind in the world,
is set to continue. As you will know the Saemangeum estuarine system is THE
site for staging Spoon-billed Sandpiper and Nordmann's Greenshank; and the loss
of this
site will strike a major blow against the flyway's migratory waterbird
populations.
The South Korean court today ruled that Mr. Choi-Yul, the former
General-Secretary of the Korean Federation for Environmental Movement, and
the main plaintiff in the case first heard in July, has no legal basis to
participate in the court process - as he is not from the actual area being
directly affected by the reclamation - his concerns can therefore not be
formally recognised.
Lawyers opposed to the reclamation who are contesting the case have vowed
that they will appeal the case to a higher court still. They must win.
This retrogressive but unsurprising decision (considering the power of
money politics domestically) comes at a time when 3 of South Korea's leading
spriritual-environemntalists and two respected wetland activists are
visiting the United Kingdom,
to raise awareness of the issue and to
participate in a ritual "samboilbae" (three-steps-and-one-bow) walk
at
Snettisham RSPB reserve, on Saturday January 31st.
We would like therefore to appeal again, please, to all those who love
wetlands and the birds and people they support, to spare just a few moments,
and protest this most devastating of projects in the coming days and weeks:
please pass this update along to your collegaues and friends; please sign
our online petition (at:http://www.wbkenglish.com/petition01.asp); please
send letters or mails or phone your local South Korean embassy; please join
in a declaration-reading on the upcoming World Wetlands Day; and please, if
you live in the UK anywhere near Snettisham, join the walk on Saturday
and
with a few small steps help get this issue properly covered by the media.
With very best wishes,
Charlie and Nial Moores, Kim SuKyung,
www.wbkenglish.com
