In Memory of Molly Holt

It is with profound sadness that we share the heartbreaking news that Molly Holt, daughter of Holt founders Harry and Bertha Holt, passed away early in the morning on May 17 in Korea. She was 83 years old. 

In South Korea, Molly was known by many names, from the Mother Teresa of Korea to the Mother of all Korea’s Orphans. Although she devoted her life to caring and advocating for children and adults with medical, developmental and physical needs in Korea, she leaves a legacy that is felt around the world.

Born on November 24, 1935 in Firesteel, South Dakota, Molly was the second eldest daughter of Harry and Bertha Holt, who pioneered international adoption in the mid-1950s and later founded Holt International. Molly attended high school in Creswell, Oregon, and later graduated from both the University of Oregon and Sacred Heart Hospital, where she earned a nursing degree in 1956.

The summer of that same year, Molly traveled for the first time to South Korea — fresh out of nursing school, and ready to help her father care for children left orphaned and abandoned in the wake of the Korean War. A devout Christian like her parents, Molly had a vision for her future while in Korea. “I felt that this was where the Lord would have me be for the rest of my life,” she later said.

Molly would go on to spend most of her adult life at the Ilsan Center in Korea, a nurturing, long-term care home that her parents built in the early 1960s for children and adults with special medical, developmental and physical needs. As a nurse and foster mother to the residents of Ilsan, Molly worked to ensure they received the specialized care they needed to reach their potential and live as independently as possible. Through her tireless advocacy, Molly also made it possible for many children in care at Ilsan to join loving, permanent families through adoption. Today, hundreds of families adopt children with special needs every year from countries around the world. But long before it was common, Molly actively sought families for the children who others considered “unadoptable.” Like her parents before her, Molly helped change the culture of adoption by showing that every child is equally worthy of love and acceptance, and that every child deserves to be part of a family.

Only a few times in her life did Molly leave the Ilsan Center for extended periods, and only to pursue additional training so that she could better meet the needs of the children and adult residents of Ilsan. She studied at Wheaton College in Wheaton, Illinois, attended Korean language school and Multnomah School of the Bible, did post-graduate work in special education at the University of Oregon, and in December 1991 she earned a master’s degree in special education and rehabilitation from Northern Colorado University. Throughout her life, she received many honors, including a presidential award, the National Order of Civil Merit from Korea in 1981, World Vision’s Bob Pierce award in 1984 and in 2009, for her lifetime of dedication to orphans and people with disabilities, she received the Royal Order of Merit from the king of Norway.

Diagnosed with multiple myeloma in 2013, Molly nevertheless remained steadfast in her commitment to the children and adult residents of the Ilsan Center. Despite her declining health, she said that she would devote her remaining life “to the things that she loves with her whole heart.” Molly never married or had children, but to the residents of Ilsan — many of whom are now in their 50s and 60s — Molly was their only family. They called her “Unee,” or big sister, a name that Molly cherished.

“Molly Holt moved so many with her tireless and admirable efforts, especially for those children with mental and physical disabilities,” says Stephen Noerper, senior director of the Korea Society and senior advisor to the United Nations. “As a brother of adopted, special needs siblings, I salute and admire her legacy of service. She offered six decades of tireless devotion, stood as a credit to her brave parents, and touched, formed and grew many through her compassion. The Korea Society and the entire community of those bent on international friendship and support extend deepest condolences to her family and friends and the entire Holt organization. To Molly Holt’s nobility, spirit and service, all tribute and our love and heartfelt prayers.”

Of Molly’s passing, Lee HongKoo, former prime minister of the Republic of Korea, wrote, “The contribution of Molly Holt to humanity and humanism … is a historic achievement. The modern history of Korea will record her achievement with gratitude and admiration. Many of us in Korea join the Holt adoptee community in recording our love and farewell.”

“I am saddened to hear of the passing of Molly Holt,” says Oregon senator Ron Wyden. “Although she lived most of her life in Korea, all of us in Oregon consider her an exceptional Oregonian.  Molly leaves a legacy of caring and compassion that will endure for generations to come.  Her devotion to orphaned children in Korea and around the world touched the lives of thousands of children and families and changed the hearts and minds of many more for the better.”

Steve Stirling, president and CEO of MAP International, lived at the Ilsan Center in Korea before he was adopted in 1966, at the age of 11. “I thank God for Molly for faithfully serving those in need through Holt and living in Ilsan to care for disabled residents,” he says. “While we will miss you now, I will rejoice when we unite for eternity in Heaven with our Lord and Savior Jesus. So long for now until we meet again in our forever home.”

Please pray for Molly’s family and for the many people who have loved her that they might find peace and comfort in their memories.

Services for Molly will be held in Korea at 10:00 a.m. on May 21 at Holt Ilsan Center of Korea. Molly’s family requests that gifts be made in her honor to the Molly Holt Fund for Children With Special Needs. If you would like to share memories or photos of Molly Holt, please email them to photosubmission@holtinternational.org.

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Article Source:  "In Memory of Molly Holt" by Robin Munro

The Peace Corp in S. Korea (1966-1981)

The Museum of Contemporary History is currently holding a special exhibit on the activities of the Peace Corps in South Korea. The temporary exhibition is in commemoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Peace Corps entrance and beginning of contribution here. Suzanne Crowder Han, former Peace Corps volunteer 1977-1981, led the tour and gave wonderful commentary on the history and contribution of the Peace Corps and how, after the Corps withdrew in 1981 from the finally prospering country, she stayed on. Years later many former Peace Corps workers who volunteered in South Korea returned and eventually Friends of Korea was established by the returnees in 2002. At first the Friends were just former Peace Corps workers, but now others who wish to contribute and who love this land can join, especially as Suzanne says, the former volunteers can't be guaranteed to live forever. Suzanne is the Vice President of Friends of Korea as well as being Vice President of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch; she is very well-informed, highly knowledgeable and has the authority of presence in this country lasting 39 years!

The roots of this special exhibition can be traced back to the five homecomings offered by the Korean government for bringing the former Peace Corps volunteers back to the country where they served. After the second homecoming, and a very successful one, people started talking and eventually expressed interest in gathering relics and memorabilia of the former members (the only Peace Corps collection of its kind so far), to share with the public what Korea was like back then and to share their contribution in the social, medical and historical development of the country. Finally, this museum organized the collection of memorabilia and organization of interviews of volunteers, workers, translators, etc for this special 50th commemoration exhibit. Some of the memorabilia will be returned to the former volunteer contributors and others will be kept in the museum archives for future exhibitions. The museum is even open to further contributions by others wishing to expand on the knowledge already packaged in this exhibition.

The exhibition is basically divided into three parts:

I. Situation South Korea was in when the Peace Corps came in 1966

II. Peace Corps volunteers work and life

III. Peace Corps contributions and lives after departing South Korea

Between September 16, 1966 and the last leaving in 1981, a span of 15 years, 51 Peace Corps groups came to South Korea. When the Peace Corps first came to Korea, Korea was the second poorest country in the world, next in poorness only to Ethiopia.

President Kennedy was the president credited with the founding of the Peace Corps; however, others had spoken of starting such an organization but none had actually gone through with the plan. On September 14 in his campaign speech at the University of Michigan, Senator J.F. Kennedy initiated support for establishing the Peace Corps.  The following year on March 1, as president Kennedy signed Executive Order #10924, officially establishing the Peace Corps. In June of the same year, trainings for volunteers were conducted across the US.

And approximately 15,000 volunteers, the highest number, began serving in the Peace Corps. In September the first group (K1) to volunteer in South Korea arrived at Kimpo Airport with Kevin O'Donnell as the director, two days after the signing of the Korea-US agreement of September, 1966. Korea was the fifth country in Asia to host Peace Corps volunteers ... following the Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia, and India. The volunteers received three months of pre-departure training, and after arriving in Korea, went through three days of orientation before being assigned to public secondary schools in various parts of the country. Service was approximately two years.

Two principle groups of volunteers were English teachers to improve education and health care volunteers to treat the many in poverty and poor health. After the first few groups came, the English teaching assignments became organized and teachers would have one year of service in a middle school to get exposure to the language and teaching methods and then the second year would be spent in a college somewhere where they would educate future Korean educators on pronunciation skills and how to teach the English language. Health care workers jobs were more varied. Clinics and hospitals were set up around the country and workers could be divided into specializing clinics like those for eye and ear health, Hansen's disease (leprosy), TB, maternal and child care, malnutrition, to name the larger groups. Cholera and other epidemics had to similarly be dealt with.

Suzanne worked in a health care clinic. During her first few weeks, she mainly stayed in the lab looking at specimen slides and evaluating them to reach a suitable diagnosis. This was because at the end of orientation she broke her leg. After recovering and spending a lot of time in the lab, she convinced the lab she could be useful doing home visitations in outlying villages. Bus rides, walking, and of course Korean language were essential skills. Often she would have to go to several villages in one day to do follow-up of patients who had previously been treated.

One of the stories she noted about this was especially the difficulty in finding the older women patients who had been treated. The older women were illiterate, had been signed into the clinic or hospital by perhaps a son or daughter who had used their name, but unfortunately the name the women were signed in by were not the names the women used. Literally, they had forgotten their names as once they had children, they were called "mother of 'the child'" and then "grandmother of 'a child'" and so their given names simply ceased to be used. Suzanne (group K??) and Jake (K50, the second to last Peace Corps group in South Korea), another health care worker also contributing to the tour, said that they started taking notes about the names of the women's children and grandchildren so that when they went to the village, they could ask for the "grandmother of 'a child'" instead of the women's names. Villagers didn't know the women's names but they recognized the child's names ... and so follow-up could be made on the women.

Peace Corps volunteers after their term of service was up ...

What Peace Corps volunteers did after they left. Well, surprising or maybe not surprising, many of these former Peace Corps volunteers recognized that little was printed or known about Korea and so they started filling the knowledge gap. Having already gained linguistic ability, many former volunteers became recognized as authorities on Korea, and indeed, it was principally the former Peace Corps workers who established the field of Korean studies with their continued scholarship on the country.

For some volunteers, the two years that they spent in Korea became the opportunity for them to become Korea experts. Kathleen Stephens (Korean name Shim Eun-kyung) became a diplomat and returned to Korea as the US Ambassador to Korea. Some developed their interest in Korea into an academic commitment to Korean Studies. Fascinated by Korean Culture, other volunteers have gone on to translate Korean literature, paint Buddhist images, contribute to the globalization of Korean samulnori (Korean traditional percussion performance), and stand up for the preservation of Korean architecture. There have also been those who delved into the democratization scene of Korea, participating in Korea's democratization movement.

Contributors to Korean Studies:

Michael Robinson
Carter Eckert
Laural Kendall
Donald Baker
Daniel Holt
Bruce Cumings
David McCann
Edward Schultz

And writers on Korean Culture:

Bruce Fulton
Suzanna Samstag Oh
Gary Rector
Suzanne Crowder Han

Brian Barry didn't write books but became an expert on Buddhist paintings, a training that took years and years of patience and painstaking painting the same picture over and over and over until the minutiae of it was memorized and the strokes natural as breathing. An example follows — a very LARGE painting!

Tom Coyner, former Vice President of the Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch, also participated in the Q&A session at the end of the museum walk. He served as an English teacher in group K35, from 1975-1977. At that time, like everyone else in the country he was paid a flat $45/month, and this sum was to pay for all expenses including housing rental, food, etc. Those serving in Seoul had a small increase in their pay as Seoul was a more expensive place to live.

Some interesting facts Tom introduced to the discussion were:

• South Korea had the highest termination rate among Peace Corps workers. He said one of the biggest reasons for volunteers to withdraw early was that "it wasn't Africa". Tom was sent to 음성 village via a wide four-lane highway. En route he really questioned about being sent to a third-world country but when the bus turned off the highway and he was able to get transportation to 음성, he realized that yes, in fact he had arrived at a third-world location.  

• South Korea also had the highest rate of extensions for Peace Corps volunteers. 

• South Korea also had one of the highest marriage rates between Peace Corps workers and locals. All three former volunteers for this museum visit married Koreans.

The Now-contested "Comfort Woman" Statue

Since Park Guen-hye says she accepted the apology of Japanese Prime Minister Abe, a political apology that is said to have been made to ease tensions in Asia, there are certain terms of giving and accepting the apology which are to be met. One of terms is the removal of the symbolic girl in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul. The girl is a symbol of the "comfort women" who were forcibly made to sexually serve the Japanese military during the late occupation years (early 1940s) of the Korean peninsula. The girl sits facing the Japanese embassy, a symbol of youth ripped away and who sits there to confront the Japanese every day for their war crimes, which still have yet to be apologized for to the people who were aggressed against. 

The young girls, now called as "grandmothers" due to their age-group, have demonstrated in front of the Japanese embassy in the past 24 years more than 1,200 times. They have demanded an apology, but never has a Japanese ambassador come to watch, to talk, to listen, or to apologize. Only 42 or 43 of the former 286 "comfort women" who publicly "came out" remain alive, and they are in their late 80s and 90s. Time is definitely running out, and yet no apology to them seems forthcoming. However, the terms of the phone apology to Park Guen-hye requires the removal of the "comfort woman" statue, symbolic evidence of aggression, exploitation and abuse of power on women and a colonial society on a grand scale. 

Many of the "grandmothers" are bedridden, unable to protest. Volunteer activists stand in proxy of the grandmothers and defend the removal of the statue. Since the end of December 2015, they have stayed by the statue 24/7 preventing its removal. In the winter when temperatures dropped well below freezing, they huddled under piles of blankets. In rain it's the same, huddled under plastic sheets. They say the statue will not be removed until a real apology is forth-coming. 

And to symbolize the discomfort that the weather brings the nation, the volunteer protestors, and the Koreans as a whole, the statue is appropriately attired for the weather conditions it must "suffer" through in its endless wait.

SYMBOLOGY of the Statue of Peace / 평화나비 (Peace to her):

"Yeongjong Kim who is head of Jongno-gu has provided design ideas and works of art in the form of a girl instead of a memorial stone. Statue of Peace was built by Unseong Kim and Seogyeong Kim couple. The statue is about 130 cm and is dressed in a skirt and blouse, and an appearance in the girl with small hands and short hair sitting and staring at the Embassy of Japan." Statue of Peace

The design of the statue is imbued with symbols to communicate meaning to the viewers:

• round face - the typical face shape of the 1920s 

• hanbok - the proper and modest attire of a young girl or a Korean citizen at the time when the girls were forcibly taken

• roughly shorn hair - severed relationship between the girl and her home country and her family

• bird on her shoulder - middle object connecting the past experiences with the present life

• clenched fists - an expression of the girl's outrage at the Japanese government for their silence and disregard of the girl's loss of innocence, family, home and a chance of a normal life

(not pictured)

• slightly raised heel of the girl - though a return of the girl to her homeland, she is still not firmly transplanted back in the Korean society

• empty chair beside the girl - a seat for the girls who never returned, a seat also for people to come and sit with the girl and share time and companionship with the girl

• shadow under the girl - the shape of a girl who never returned but is metaphysically hovering; also the shape of a grandmother as she passes on but her "presence" is still felt by the presence of the girl who continues to sit and stare at the Japanese embassy, waiting for an apology

• butterfly - (nestled in the heart of the shadow) a symbol of fluttering hope

For more symbology surrounding the 'comfort woman" statue watch 

"Copper plates laid next to 'comfort woman' statue in memory of sex slave victims".

The House of Sharing 

According to a placard inside of the House of Sharing Museum, more appropriately known as the Museum of Sexual Slavery by the Japanese Military, a museum dedicated to shedding history on the "comfort woman" issue, there are many "comfort woman" statues and memorials throughout Korea. I am unclear on whether these statues and memorials are also part of the demands for removal according to the terms of Japanese Prime Minister Abe's "apology", but they probably are. I was surprised, but the House of Sharing Museum also has a map of "comfort woman" memorials in the US. For more information, visit the online House of Sharing.

The red dots show where monuments and shrines for the victims of Japanese military sexual slavery are (as of 2015). So the 'comfort woman' statue in front of the Japanese embassy is just an example of the sentiment throughout the entire South Korean peninsula about the need for recognition to the problem and the need for a formal apology from Japan for their heinous war crime(s).This picture was taken at the House of Sharing, a home dedicated to care for the grandmothers euphemistically called former 'comfort women'.

Information about the location of the 'comfort woman' shrines and memorials in South Korea.

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The following was taken from the House of Sharing on the 14 June 2016 entry, Facebook. "The House of Sharing International Outreach team would like to share some saddening, extremely disappointing and disturbing news. The Peace Statue in Seoul was attacked today. (June 3rd) A woman hit the head of the statue with a hammer three times and left scars. She was arrested and confessed that she was paid to do so. Why? We know why and can guess who asked her to do that. We are so saddened by so called grown-ups' childish and animalistic behavior." 

The Peace Statue struck and scarred by a woman hired to do so. (June 3, 2016)

The Pirates of Penzance: Musical

The famous Gilbert & Sullivan's comic operetta, The Pirates of Penzance, is put on for the second time in the history of the Camarata Music Company (CMC) since its opening in 2010. The CMC now has over 900 members, including performers, musicians, behind the scene workers and supporters. The choir and music groups within the CMC organization provide musicals, concerts and volunteer for the disabled, at hospitals, nursing facilities, and more, with the dedication to providing high-quality musical outlets and camaraderie for all involved. (For more on their performances and volunteering, check out the website at www.camaratamusic.com).

The term "Camarata" comes from two meanings: First, from the "Florentine Camerata", a group of humanists, musicians, poets and intellectuals in Renaissance Florence, Italy. Important members included Giulio Caccini, Vincenzo Galilei, Count Giovanni de Bardi, Pietro Strozzi, and Ottavio Rinuccini. Second, Camarata comes from the word "camaraderie" meaning 'togetherness'. It is with this concept that they perform and label themselves as an international group, with members from 62 countries.

INTRODUCTION TO THE PIRATES OF PENZANCE

The Pirates of Penzance hardly needs an introduction. Long before Joe Papp's Broadway production and major motion picture added renewed popularity, this engaging operetta had established itself as one of the best loved pieces of musical theater in the English speaking world.

The Pirates of Penzance was the only Gilbert & Sullivan opus to receive its premiere in the US. In a vain attempt to secure an international copyright for their work, the celebrated team brought their fifth collaboration to the Fifth Avenue Theater in New York, clearly establishing the American appreciation for this uniquely British art form.

The history of Pirates is notable for several other reasons as well. On the voyage across the ocean, Sullivan misplaced his musical score and had to recreate all of the music from memory. His composition for the women's entrance eluded him, so he substituted a similar chorus from the never published score of Thespis. As a result, "Climbing Over Rocky Mountain" is the only authentic chorus in existence from that lost score. With the rousing ensemble number "When the Foeman Bares His Steel", Sullivan perfected the double chorus technique which was to become one of his hallmarks. Two distinct choral themes are introduced separately and then overlapped for a dramatic musical climax. Gilbert also brought to the foreground for the first time his frequent lampooning of the British Aristocracy, with direct references to Queen Victoria and the Peerage. Then of course "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General" raised the art of the patter song to an all-time high. This song has been parodied in numerous product commercials (Campbell's Soup, Handiwipes, and The New York Times, among others), has been frequently used as an elocution exercise for speech students, and was once employed by comedian Tom Lehrer to set a list of all the elements from the periodic table!

The score for Pirates is as effervescent as its characters. Sullivan's reference to grand opera (and Verdi in particular) is everywhere, most notably in Mabel's aria "Poor Wand'ring One", which is a direct parody of Violetta's "Sempre Libera" from La Traviata -- in the same key and with the identical cadenza. Yet another layer of imitation enters the picture when Sullivan's take on the Anvil Chorus in Il Trovatore, "Come Friends Who Plough the Sea", later becomes the tune for the popular camp song "Hail, Hail the Gang's All Here". These examples refer to well-known moments; however, in many other Gilbert & Sullivan settings the parody remains more memorable than its original source!

SYNOPSIS

When Frederic was still a little boy, his nurse (Ruth) was told to apprentice him to become a pilot. She heard the word incorrectly and apprenticed him to a band of pirates, remaining with them herself as a maid-of-all-work. Although Frederic loathed the trade to which he had thus been bound, he dutifully served. As the show begins, his indentures are up and he announces his intention to leave the band and devote himself to the extermination of piracy. He urges the pirates to join him in embracing a more lawful calling, but they refuse. Ruth, however, wishes to become his wife. Having seen but few women during his pirate life at sea, Frederic hesitates to accept a woman so much older than himself, but he finally consents to take her.

Just then a group of girls, all the wards of Major-General Stanley, happen upon the scene. Frederic sees their beauty -- and Ruth's plainness -- and renounces her. Of these girls, Mabel takes a particular interest in Frederic, and he in her. The other girls are seized by the pirates and threatened with immediate marriage. When the Major-General arrives, he can dissuade the pirates only through a ruse; he tells them that he is an orphan, and so works upon their sympathies so that they let him and his wards go free.

During the ensuing days and nights, however, this lie troubles the Major-General's conscience. He sits brooding over it at night in a ruined chapel. He is consoled by his wards' sympathy and Frederic's plan of immediately leading a band of police against the pirates. The police are reluctant, but Frederic is still enthusiastic.

Meanwhile, the Pirate King and Ruth seek out Frederic with surprising news. They have discovered that his indentures were to run until his twenty-first birthday, and, as he was born in Leap Year on February 29, he has really had as yet only five birthdays. Obeying the dictates of his strong sense of duty, he immediately rejoins the pirates and tells them of the deception that has been practiced upon them by Major-General Stanley. The Pirate King and Ruth storm off threatening revenge, and Frederic sadly bids Mabel farewell.

And from there, without spoiling the ending, you will need to watch this cleverly written play-on-word musical to discover the ending for yourself. Quite entertaining. Very witty. Remarkably colorful. But decidedly slapstick.

Reforestation in Korea: Past and Present

Forest specialists regard South Korea’s massive reforestation campaign under Park Chung-hee as one of the most successful such efforts in the world. Professor Teplyakov, a noted expert on forest governance, discusses how the ROK accomplished this remarkable success and the challenges facing South Korea’s forests today. Drawing on a recent visit to the DPRK, he also assesses the state of deforestation in North Korea and the current efforts Pyongyang is making to address this serious problem.

Reforestation in Korea: Dramatic Success under Park Chung-hee and Current Efforts in the DPRK

Pre-colonial time
Colonial time (1910-1945)
Korean War (1953-1955)

1. Dramatic success under President Park Chung-hee
2. Current efforts in the DPRK

Potential for two Koreas cooperation in reforestation

Pre-colonial time (before 1920)

In the 1900s wood disappeared from villages for farming, firewood and construction. (South Korean population in 1902: 20 million people)

• Forest: owned by government and open to the public
• Fuel-wood: collection was allowed to everyone
• Forest near villages: already destroyed
• Government timber supply policy: only pine forests protected for timber need

Colonial Past & Korean War

Occupation (1910-1945)

Timber harvested in Korea used for Japanese domestic purposes:

• Construction
• Military purposes
• Fuel

Large scale deforestation:

• Manchurian border (Korean pine)
• Uljin and Bonghwa (pine)
• Near villages for fuel

Korean War (1950-1955)

• During the Korean War the remnants of forests were brutally damaged by bombing, wild fires, and overuse.
• Substantial amount of timber was used as fuel wood for heating and cooking.
• In the long run, this led to over-cutting and illegal logging.

After the Korean War

About 5.5 million people came to South Korea from other countries.

• Massive migration exaggerated the fuel wood shortage
• One million family units = at least 1000 ha of forest

Peat and brown coal were too low in caloric power to reach the demand for traditional heating systems. Results:

• Forestland clearing for farming (slash-and-burn)
• Timber harvesting for houses and infrastructure

Results of deforestation:

Korean peninsula lost a large share of its forests:

• Deforested mountains lost their shape and functionality
• Landslides, floods, soil erosion occurred almost annually
• In 1960, ROK’s average growing stock accounted at less than 10 cubic m/ha

First attempt to solve some of the deforestation problem:

Rhee Syng-man (1875-1965)

During his presidency 1948-1960

• 2.8 billion trees planted
• 1.05 million ha reforested

No success

• Lack of governmental will
• Financial and organizational shortages
• Poor technologies and poor forest protection

Second attempt under General Park Chung-hee (1917-1979)

On 16 May 1961, led military govt to begin immediate eradication of 5 major social ills:

• Smuggling
• Narcotics
• Illegal timber harvesting (enforcing the govt’s will for forest protection)
• Gangsters
• Quai-reporters

Part I: Dramatic Success under President Park Chung-hee

President Park Chung-hee is notoriously known as the president who side-stepped election and in a political coup seized the govt, reigning as a military tyrant till his assassination in 1979. However, he did work good for the country, and one benefit for the Korean people as a whole was the replanting and protection of the forests. In his reforestation project he …

• Showed good leadership
• Developed Saemaul Undong (New Community Movement) as a national idea
• Successfully implemented Korea Forest Service and Forest programs
• Garnered international recognition

2 million households were involved in Saemaul Undong in the early 1970s
through 21,000 voluntary cooperative associations at village level

His strong leadership in reforestation is evident in:

• 1961 June: Forest Products Regulation Act
• 1961 December: Enactment of Forest Law
• 1962 January: Erosion Control Act
• 1962: National Popular Planting Movement (within next 20 years, some 730,000 ha reforested)
• 1963, February: Temporary Act of Forest Reclamation
• 1964: Incidence of a large scale illegal timber harvesting
President Park put a few hundred people in jail
Showed a strong will for wiping out further incidences
• 1967: Establishment of Forest Service (protection and management)
• 1967: Fuel wood plantation: 360,000 ha, 1.4 billion trees in a single year (largest ever)
• 1967: Introduction of National Parks (conservation and recreation)
• 1968: Promotion of chestnut plantation (reforestation and food)
• 1970 (April 22): Saemaul Undong (reforestation, food, poverty reduction) 
• 1971: Greenbelt system adopted (human environment, recreation, etc)

Other reforestation actions he undertook:

• Sikmogil (Arbor Day) – established as a national holiday (until 2005) to rehabilitate deprived lands and to enlighten citizens about the importance of forests.
• During Arbor Days some 643,000 ha of forestlands were rehabilitated coast-to-coast.
• The reforestation strategy was developed and implemented.
• Nationwide erosion control project was initiated.
• A new community movement called “Saemaul Undong” became wide national driving force for reforestation.
• The first 10-year systematic forest development plan was implemented.

The first forest rehabilitation plan

Was to be from 1973-1982 (finished in 6 years with the assassination of Park)
1 million hectares with 2 billion trees were planted in that time.
Saemaul Undong movement (involved women clubs, schools, military, villagers, etc)

• Spiritual inspiration for reforestation: “Planting trees is patriotic activity”
• Self-reliance: fuel wood forest establishment for farmer’s fuel needs
• Cooperation: voluntary participation, income generation, reward (govt subsidies for village)

Saemaul nursery produced 2.9 billion trees in 6 years

Korea received a lot of international recognition of its highly successful reforestation which was accomplished in such a small space of time. The UN FAO Report in 1982 read, “Korea is the only developing country that has succeeded in reforestation after the Second World War.” (Source: H.M. Gregerson “Village Forestry Development in the Republic of Korea: A case study”)

actions taken to prevent soil erosion

The world famous Youngil District erosion control project (pictures represent a 6 year gap in time)

Facts pulled from the archives on Saemaul Undong:

• During 1970-1979, Korea’s average farm household income jumped from $825 to $4,602, settling a milestone in poverty reduction.
• Other data: from 255,000 to 1,531,300 won (without inflation)
• The spirit of “Diligence, Self-help and Cooperation” spread widely among the rural population.
• The movement laid the foundation for Korea to grow into a major economy from one of the world’s poorest countries.
• The experience of the Korean people in this process is a valuable asset for humankind.
• Between 1970 and 2011, some 53,000 public officials and village leaders from 129 nations visited Korea to learn about Saemaul Undong.

The results of reforestation on Korea

• Between 1953 and 2007, forest cover of the country increased from 35-64%
• Between 1961 and 1995, a successful reforestation allowed increasing forest area from 4 million ha to 6.4 million ha
• By 2008, the ROK planted around 11 billion trees
• Between 1950 and 2010, growing stock increased from 9-126 cubic m/ha
• Serf-sufficiency of timber consumption increased
• In 2007, public benefits were valued at US$60 billion

Part II: Current Efforts in the DPRK

Problems have arisen since 1991

The last 20 years has dramatically changed the global political landscape after the disintegration of the Soviet Union and the demise of East-European bloc of countries in 1991.

As well, significant changes in the political map have occurred in Asia, when People’s Republic of China in 1992 established diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea.

In such developments, Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea found itself in difficult circumstances because its two big neighbors—Russia and China—almost terminate their support of DPRK in energy, agriculture, and military spheres.

Especially radical changes began in 1994 when DPRK President Kim Il-Sung passed away, and the government of the country decided to withdraw from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEI), which created an uneasy situation in the region.

Example: Trade between Russia and DPRK

Notice the plunge in resources that the DPRK took from 1990 to 1991. Since 1990 the DPRK has been very cut off from what it had been previously consuming. At the former level, this hit is dire as heating in the cold DPRK is essential in the long winter, and so North Korean forests have been further radically decimated to meet the needs of the common people.

1990 - $2.5 billion (the USSR)

1991 - $365 million (the USSR/Russia)

1995 - $70.1 million

2000 - $38.4 million

2002 - $130 million

2005 - $228 million

2006 - $190 million

2007 - $126 million

2010 - $82.3 million

17 September 2012 – Russia and DPRK reached an agreement that DPRK owes a debt of $11 billion to Russia:

• Russia canceled the DPRK’s debt of $10 billion
• Remaining $1 billion should be spent for joint projects in DPRK in education, health care and in the energy sector

Similarly, if one looks at the light emission/pollution in one of NASA’s global night maps, the US, Europe, Japan and South Korea, and to a lesser extent other countries are brilliantly illuminated. Just north of South Korea is a particularly dark spot on the global map. North Korea has next to no night illumination. The country doesn’t have the resources and neither does it have the imports to facilitate such “visualization”.

Source

Some statistics on the world economies, which are reflected in the NASA night maps:

• In 1980, EU15 had 29% of the world GDP, NAPTA 27%, and East Asia 14%.
• In 2000, EU15 had 25%, while that of NAFTA had increased and East Asia almost doubled. In total, the three regions represented 83% of world GDP.

National economy of North Korea is very vulnerable in facing natural disasters. Thus deforestation and land use change create risks for people’s well-being.

DPRK’s strategy program for reforestation

Main tasks in the general forestation program:

• 10 years: forest recovery stage (establishment of model units and their expansion)
• 20 years: recovery complete stage
• 30 years: escalating forests resources stage

Critical areas for aid and assistance

• Information: need of databases creation for land use, forest activities, biodiversity)
• SFM policies: lack policies and legislation on forest use, planning and management
• Knowledge sharing: lack of clear understanding of land value, causes and consequences of degradation
• Financial aid
• Capacity building

The 19th ASEAN-ROK Summit: ASEAN-ROK Forest Cooperation Agreement

• Signed by the ASEAN-ROK Foreign Affairs Ministers at the 19th ASEAN-ROK Summit on 18 November 2011 in Bali, Indonesia
• Entry into force: 5 August 2012
• Special ASEAN-ROK Ministerial Meeting on Forestry in Seoul, ROK, 30 August 2012

CONCLUSIONS:

• Political environment is very sensitive, but extremely important.
• Flood and drought are major threats to food insecurity in DPRK.
• One of the most efficient methods to resolve environmental and economic problems is reforestation.
• Significance of reforestation should be promoted at all levels of governance and management.
• Establishing real international partnerships at all levels is critical point for the DPRK reforestation and economic growth.
• ROK’s success story is internationally recognized and can be used in DPRK as a pattern, especially Saemaul Undong.
• Forest is a renewable resource, and deforestation is reversible.

________________________________________________________________

Prof. Teplyakov is Professor of Global Forest Governance and Nature Conservation, Seoul National University. Dr. Teplyakov previously served as Professor at Moscow State Forest University, Director of Research at the Russian Federal Forest Service, and Head of the Global Temperate and Boreal Forest Program of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. He is the author and co-author of many articles, chapters and books dealing with forest resources assessments, forest management and governance, international forestry, nature conservation, forest history and a participatory approach in the forestry sector. His most recent co-authored books are “Sustainable Forest Management” (in Russian, December 2009, 2d edition, April 2014), “North Korea Reforestation: International regime and domestic opportunities” (September 2012 in English), Sustainable Forests in 4 volumes (October 2013 in English), 산림과학개론/Introduction in Forest Sciences (May 2014 in Korean), and "A History of IUFRO Congresses and Russia" in 2 volumes (September 2014 in Russian).

RAS 2014 Book Fair

Every summer the Royal Asiatic Society Korea Branch hosts a party for all its paid members. The party has traditionally been held alternately at the British embassy and the American embassy, and this is the year for the American embassy to be the host. However, the US has just made some new policies in regard to its embassy: no more parties at the embassy. The security has been getting tighter and tighter at the embassy so this really didn't come so much as a surprise, but it does seem rather odd that the US embassy didn't inform the RASKB office till the RASKB contacted them to settle on a date for the annual RASKB garden party. With that venue no longer a possibility, the RASKB asked the British embassy if they can now impose on the good will of the British for an annual party ... and we were graciously welcomed. So once again, we're back at the British embassy and their beautifully landscaped garden.

Of course the garden party is an event for selling books on Korea, and members can get a sizable discount if book purchases are made during the garden party. 

The book sale lasts through the entire party, and after words from the British ambassador, there is typically some kind of traditional music. This year we had pansori singers as well as some instrumentalists. Brother Anthony, the president of the RASKB, was even encouraged to dance to some of the traditional beats. (Unfortunately, I missed the photo moments.)

And no garden party is a party without food, and this year there was tons of simple finger foods elegantly displayed. An amazing selection eye-tasty as well as gustatory tasty variety!

grapefruit and orange flavored makgeolli - Doesn't sound too appealing but some people really liked them.