For democratization of south Korean society

For democratization of south Korean society

The 1 123^rd Thursday meeting for acquittal of prisoners of conscience and abolition of the “security law” was held in Seoul on May 25 under the sponsorship of the Family Movement for Realizing Democracy.

The honorary chairman of the Association for Supporting Prisoners of Conscience of the Family Movement for Realizing Democracy, in his speech at the meeting, strongly demanded investigation into abduction of twelve DPRK waitresses, one year ago.

Their fates are still unknown and if they defected to south Korea of their own motive, they would have presented themselves at the public.

However, they have made no appearance since then and their whereabouts are not confirmed. Therefore, civic bodies have suspicions that it may be a premeditated abduction.

The new government should investigate the truth behind the abduction case. If their defection is proven to be a premeditated one after a perfect inquiry, the government should punish those who are responsible for it, make an apology and repatriate them to the north, he stressed.

Some days ago, the honorary chairman of the Association for Supporting Prisoners of Conscience of the Family Movement for Realizing Democracy made public an article titled “an independent and reunified world without prisoners of conscience and ‘security law’”.

The pressing task of the new government is to release the prisoners of conscience, remove the political dragnet, abolish the SL and dismantle the security machineries, he wrote in his story.

The history of division and confrontation should be terminated, the article said and pointed out that the north and the south of Korea agreed to the three principles of national reunification and both of them promised an independent and peaceful reunification by the concerted efforts of the Korean nation in the June 15 Joint Declaration and, peace and prosperity in the October 4 Declaration.

They hardened their determination to launch an intensive action to uproot the deep-rooted evils and carry out a drastic reform of the society in Thursday meeting and decided to hold a nationwide 26^th memorial service for fallen martyrs at a plaza in Seoul on June 10.