During the month of September, the JPIC of the Province of the Holy Martyrs of Korea carried out various activities related to climate justice. Here are some of them.
1. Br. Seok Il-woong Joseph, joined in Samcheok Coal Direct Action
On September 12, Brother Il-woong Seok (Joseph) who is OFM Korean Jpic along with four activists from climate and environmental organizations, blocked the entrance and road in front of the Sam-cheok Blue Power coal-fired power plant construction site in Gang-won Province to take direct action against the construction of a coal-fired power plant.
Their direct action occupied the road for about two hours from 11 a.m. and reportedly halted the construction of the Sam-cheok coal plant for more than two hours. The five activists set up ladders and tied chains to the ladders, and unfurled banners that read, “POSCO and the government should stop the construction of the Sam-cheok coal plant” and “End Fossil Fuels”. The activists were taken to the Sam-cheok police station after the protest, where they were investigated and returned home at 18:00.
The direct action and press conference were jointly organized by seven climate and environmental organizations: Climate Justice Alliance, Gon-gju 60 Plus Climate Action, Green Korea United, The Committee Against Sam-cheok Coal-Fired Power Plant, Political Mamas, Youth Climate Emergency Action, and Korean Federation For Environmental Movement.
2. Book & Concert of “Such an Elegant Zero-Waste Journey”
On Friday, September 15, 19:30-21:00, a Book & Concert of a recently published book, “Such an Elegant Zero-Waste Journey” was held at San-Damiano Cafe in Jung-dong, Seoul, hosted by OFM Korea JPIC.
The author of the book is Cecilia Shin, who is currently working in our Order’s JPIC. She wrote a travelogue of cycling 12,500 kilometers across Eurasia for a year and a half from May 2018 to see firsthand how garbage is made and where it goes. The event was attended by 42 people and included the songs by guest artist Oh Helen.
- Climate Justice Mass and March
On Saturday, September 23, at 12 noon, a climate justice mass was held at the roadside in front of Exit 4 of Seoul City Hall Station with Bishop Timotheo Yugyeongchon officiating. The Mass was attended by about 800 people, and afterward, the Korean Climate Justice Rally was held from 14:00 for about three hours, with about 30,000 people picketing and chanting. The events, held during the season of creation in September, called for each country to approach the climate issue from a ‘justice’ perspective, and for each sector to make a just transition to overcome the ecological crisis.
OFM Korean Jpic also participated with about 10 people, and brothers Jung Min-hwi and Yoon Sang-pil joined in the Catholic Climate Action’s Pungmullori (Korean traditional instrumental farm music play) and beat the gong, raising the atmosphere of the event. After all the events ended around 17:00, the brothers gathered together to share their impressions and feelings of participating in the event.
Fr. Jong-Hwa Aloysio(Louis), Kim, OFM
JPIC Animator of the Province
Province of the Holy Martyrs of Korea
