Korean spreads word about compatriots' eviction woes
12/23/2005
By AKIRA NAKANO, The Asahi Shimbun
Among Koreans, Utoro is known as the "last village yet to be freed."
Indeed, of all the communities in Japan where Koreans were forcibly brought over as laborers before and during World War II, the residents of Utoro in Uji, Kyoto Prefecture, may be some of the hardest done-by.
After years of neglect, the Utoro residents, originally brought over by Japan to work in mines and factories during the war, found themselves facing a fresh hardship--an eviction suit brought against them by the owner of the land.
The residents lost. That was five springs ago.
But Utoro, all but forgotten for six decades, is now back on the map, thanks to the efforts of South Korean Bae Jee Won.
Bae, 34, has launched the "International Solidarity to Protect Utoro," a support group based in South Korea. The umbrella organization brings together some 40 civic organizations in a pledge to support their Utoro compatriots.
Bae's goal, she said, was simple: "So that all Korean grandmas, who are now scared to death of being evicted, can spend their golden years in peace."
The organization's main task for now is to collect enough money so that the Utoro residents can buy back their land from the owner.
Bae herself was instrumental in soliciting donations for the cause, standing on street corners on weekends. The international solidarity effort had already managed to collect 430 million won (about 47 million yen) by late November.
As secretary-general, Bae is kept busy flying between Japan and South Korea. In October, she invited Utoro representatives to Seoul to meet with officials of the Korean government.
News of the plight of the Utoro residents living across the sea has touched the heartstrings of the Korean people.
There has been widespread media coverage there of what is called a "human rights issue concerning our fellow countrymen," and the "last village that has yet to be freed."
In Japan, too, the issue has garnered much attention, and some Diet members and government officials have visited Utoro.
Bae first came across the Utoro issue about a year ago, when she happened upon a plea from a Utoro resident in a newspaper.
She was surprised to realize that she knew nothing about the Utoro people, despite working for a nonprofit organization that supports overseas Koreans.
Early this year, Bae was walking down the icy streets in Utoro for the first time.
She came across an old woman who was still living in a rundown former camp for Korean laborers who were forced to build an airstrip there during the war.
Every time it rained, the old woman's "home" was flooded. For 40 years after the end of the war, the woman said, she had no running water.
Bae felt a stab in her heart.
"Part of the responsibility lies with South Korea," she said. "We've left our countrymen stranded out here for too long."
In her 20s Bae lived in Tokyo as a graduate student. She felt that her relationship with other Japanese her age was largely just about exchanging niceties, but never digging deep. The war issue was politely avoided by both parties. Whatever "friendship" that existed, she felt, was superficial.
http://www.asahi.com/english/Herald-asahi/TKY200512230137.html