As Jeju people hopes to make an effort to find its place for 4.3 Grand Tragedy in the Sun, they will contribute to world peace beyond the Jeju 4.3 Tragedy. It will be a starting point that Jeju people propose to U.S. Congress “the Korea Jeju Human Rights and Peace Island Act 2021". It was meaningful that Jeju National University students suggested their idea about enactment of Jeju 4.3 Reconciliation Act to U.S. Congress at the meeting of both office of Congressman Mark Takano and Congresswoman Judy Chu on May 1, 2019. It may be going forward for us to do Jeju Massacre Consultation based on Jeju 4.3 Reparative Justice with cooperation of both U.N. lawyer and international law professors. It would be a historic achievement in the Human Rights and Democracy in 21st century similar to the Civil Liberty Act 1988 to Japanese Internment cases and the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act 2019 to Hong Kong democratization.
The purpose of this study is to propose revisions to the Jeju 4.3 Special Law for the purpose of further investigation of Jeju 4.3 so that the complete resolution and appropriate legal solutions may come. The President, Moon Jae-In, who visited Jeju on April 3, 2018, promised a complete resolution of the Jeju 4.3 incident, defining the Jeju 4.3 incident as "violence perpetrated by state power." On Jan. 17, 2019, the Jeju District Court ruled in a retrial suit filed against the military tribunal by 18 surviving inmates under the leadership of the Jeju 4.3 Truth Commission and the Citizens' Solidarity for the Restoration of Honor. This is a very important case in which the military tribunal and their rulings were ruled invalid. Jeju 4.3 is still a painful history of Jeju that has not been resolved.
Jeju ordinary people have a strong feeling of “Existing the Road to Resentment” from fact of the Jeju 4.3 Grand Tragedy. If we look at some kinds of phenomena or events during 2017 and 2018 during era of Moon Jaein Korean government, I would like to tell those symptoms at Korea and Jeju society. 4.3 Grassroots advocates, including victims, survivors’ families, teachers, students, lawyers, artists, filmmakers, local officials, business people, as well as Jeju, Korean, and international scholars, are fashioning next steps for Jeju 4.3 social healing. For instance, in April 2017, eighteen Jeju 4.3 victims asked the Jeju District Court to set aside unlawful 4.3 convictions based on false accusations and resulting in harsh imprisonment. In September 2018, the Jeju court agreed to reopen the survivors’ cases, granting re-trials. These Jeju survivors and their families’ lawsuit reveals the 4.3 Tragedy’s continuing damage and demonstrates the survivors’ courage in still fighting to clear their names and the names of the thousands similarly convicted during Jeju 4.3. In complementary efforts, in July 2017 a Jeju 4.3 delegation submitted to U.S. Congress foreign affairs committee members a signed petition urging U.S. participation in future 4.3 social healing efforts and asking for congressional hearings on the 4.3 Tragedy. And in December 2017, the Jeju people and Korean and international supporters proposed that the Korean government revise the 4.3 Special Act to authorize meaningful reparations for Jeju 4.3 victims and families. Additionally, Jeju justice advocates are in the process of memorializing the 1947 Jeju 3.1 National Liberation Independence Day demonstrations in the nonviolent spirit of the 1919 national liberty demonstrations. In that spirit, the Jeju people are registering the records of 1947 legal cases of 328 people involved in the demonstrations. With the Jeju peace island human rights movement, the justice supporters are also advocating for recognition of the Jeju 4.3 Grand Tragedy under the UNESCO Memory of the World Programme.
The aim of this paper is to illuminate some aspects of the Jeju 4.3 Grand Tragedy (the Jeju Tragedy) education and informing process. We hope to not only with these aspects show some aspects of moral origin of the Jeju World Peace Island movement, but to share a culture of peace with world citizens through world civilization education cross the Pacific at a local, national and global level. In addition bring liberty to the cause of national freedom of the SAM IL movement of 1919 in Korea. it actualizes itself as a peace buffer zone locally, nationally and globally through the “Jeju World Peace Island Treaty JWPIT,” based on international agreement of the Six Talks Nations because “it is believed that that they (Jeju islanders) will follow the pattern of the SAM IL movement of 1919 with the participants imbued with the spirit of sacrifice to life and liberty to the cause of national freedom (G-2 Summary Report)” as a moral origin of Jeju World Peace Island. Globally, one New Haven teacher has been working on an elective course called “The Power of Culture in a Multicultural World” in which to use social studies tools to investigate the meaning and importance of culture. Jeju offers an excellent opportunity to explore a culture that few New Haven students are familiar with. It will be for students to use the Jeju idea of turning troubles into opportunities, as a vehicle for addressing local issues” (“New Haven Learn- Teach Jeju 4.3,” New Haven Independent: March 29, 2017). Another New Haven teacher in his history class explains the different components of genocide. “Although the Jeju 4.3 events are not deemed genocide by the international community, using this as a lens to understand broader concepts seemed really exciting.” Jeju offers educators an opportunity to teach the curriculum but instead of gratuitous death and violence, there is a legacy of hope, healing, reconciliation and remembrance.” (Ibid, New Haven Independent: March 29, 2017). Locally and partially on the global level, “The Resurgence of Jeju 4.3 Social Healing Advocacy of “PETITION FOR A JOINT SOUTH KOREA AND UNITED STATES JEJU 4.3 INCIDENT TASK FORCE TO FURTHER IMPLEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS AND FOSTER COMPREHENSIVE AND ENDURING SOCIAL HEALING THROUGH JUSTICE” (March 27, 2014). The petition supports a combined solution to social healing for numerous survivors of Jeju 4.3. Based on interviews with members of the Jeju 4.3 Victim Family Association, 20% of them are now elderly and require expensive medical care and assistance. Many continue to suffer from psychological trauma (PTSD). It serves as a beacon of international peace in the same vein as May 24, 2015’s event, “Women Cross DMZ Demilitarized Zone.” Jeju itself aims to serve as a “Peace Buffer Zone” between the two Koreas among 6 Nations Talks within the framework of the Jeju World Peace Island Treaty, similar to Costa Rica. Never before has the need for a Peace Island in the region been so vital, with China stretching its reach across the ocean, and President Trump flexing his muscles against North Korea, the time has come for serious peacemaking, that is, prevention of conflict. It’s a real time to think about actualization of Jeju World Peace Island Treaty for Peace between two Koreas.
Even though we had a lot of obstacles to solve these issues, Jeju National University , Hokkaido University, Hawaii University, American Graduate School of the Paris, and University of Sydney have raised reparation topics through the Peace Island Forum, Peace Island Leadership School and Global Peace Bultuk Assemblies (Bultuk being a meeting place of Jeju woman divers surrounding stones at the sea side) since July of 2010. It was a cornerstone achievement that we presided over at "SOCIAL HEALING THROUGH JUSTICE: THE MASS KILLING OF KOREA JEJU ISLANDERS DURING U.S. PEACETIME OCCUPATION" with the University of Hawaii Law School and Hokkaido University together. Based on these gatherings we can start the Petition by Jeju people on Jeju Island Korea, which is calling for A JOINT SOUTH KOREA AND UNITED STATES JEJU 4.3 INCIDENT TASK FORCE TO FURTHER IMPLEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS AND FOSTER COMPREHENSIVE AND ENDURING SOCIAL HEALING THROUGH JUSTICE to advance the mutual interests of Jeju residents and the governments and people of South Korea and the United States ( March 27, 2014).
It’s a time we prepare for a reparation agenda for Jeju 4.3 victims and their families. We should approach the USA government side collectively rather than individually for their lawsuits, because most of them are elderly, over 75 years old and need intensive medical care and assistance immediately. It’s up for us to recognize some tasks of actualizing Reparation, Reconciliation and Reconnection Agenda for “Environmentally Sustainable Peace Island” beyond Trauma of the Jeju 4.3 Grand Tragedy into the next Decade.