The following announcement is from the Task Force to Stop THAAD in Korea and Militarism in Asia Pacific:
A Report-back by the U.S. Solidarity Peace Delegation to South Korea
Featured Speakers:
Jill Stein, Green Party
Medea Benjamin, CODEPINK
Reece Chenault, U.S. Labor Against the War
Will Griffin, Veterans for Peace
Wednesday, August 30
8:00 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. EST
*** Pre-Register for the Webinar HERE ***
Join us on Wednesday, August 30 to hear a report-back from the U.S. Solidarity Peace Delegation about the fight to stop the U.S. THAAD deployment and war threats in Korea.
The delegation -- Medea Benjamin, CODEPINK; Reece Chenault, U.S. Labor Against the War; Will Griffin, Veterans for Peace; and Jill Stein, 2016 presidential candidate, Green Party U.S.A -- traveled to South Korea from July 23 to July 28, 2017.
The delegation called for:
- The removal of the U.S. THAAD missile defense system from South Korea;
- An end to the U.S.-South Korea War Games in exchange for a freeze of North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile programs
- The replacement of the Korean War Armistice with a peace treaty, and
- The peaceful reunification of Korea
*** Pre-Register for the Webinar HERE ***
The delegation shared its message of solidarity with a broad spectrum of peace activists in Seoul, as well as villagers of Seongju, Soseongri and Gimcheon who are waging a heroic fight to oppose the U.S. deployment of the THAAD missile defense system.
Delegation coordinator Juyeon Rhee of the Task Force to Stop THAAD in Korea and End Militarism in Asia and the Pacific was blocked from boarding a plane at LaGuardia Airport in New York City on the morning of July 22. Hundreds of organizations and individuals sent letters of protest to Moon Jae-In and the Blue House to demand he lift the ban on her entry. Signatories to the petition included prominent peace activists like Nobel Peace Laureate Mairead Maguire; Academy Award-winning director Oliver Stone; and American author and Pulitzer Prize winner Alice Walker.
The delegation was hosted in South Korea by the National People’s Action to Stop the Deployment of THAAD in South Korea (NPA), a coalition of 100 civil society organizations. The NPA was formed in August 2016 (expanding an earlier formation) with the goal of achieving the repeal of the decision to deploy THAAD in South Korea.
The solidarity statement of the delegation, “No to THAAD in Korea, Yes to Peace through Dialogue,” garnered the support of over 270 individuals and nearly 90 organizations, including well-known U.S. peace activists and educators Noam Chomsky, MIT; Daniel Ellsberg, Nuclear Age Peace Foundation; Chris Hedges, author/activist; Gwyn Kirk, Women for Genuine Security; Oliver Stone, Academy Award-winning director; Cornel West, author/activist; and Ann Wright, former U.S. State Department official, Army colonel, and member of CODEPINK. The organizational endorsements are also worldwide, reflecting a recognition that peace in Korea serves not only local and regional but also global interests.
The delegation returned to the United States on July 28, 2017 and pledged to build solidarity in the U.S. for the struggle against the stationing of THAAD in South Korea and the escalation of militarism in Asia. The delegates further call on peace-loving people in the United States and globally to join in this effort.
The delegation was sponsored by the Task Force to Stop THAAD in Korea and End Militarism in Asia and the Pacific and the Channing and Popai Liem Education Foundation.
CLICK HERE to see Peace Delegation Solidarity Statement and full list of endorsers.
To learn more about the delegation and the fight to oppose THAAD, visit: www.StopTHAAD.org.
*** Pre-Register for the Webinar HERE ***