In a Yonhap News article of the event, which can be found on the KBS News site here, Mr. Kim also talked about the difficulties of tying up to the dock on Dokdo."Dokdo is not lonely...Here until we die"
Village Head Kim Seong-do and his wife Kim Sin-yeol attending a 1-day "Dokdo Discussion" at Gyeongil University"The Dokdo village head has come to college."
Dokdo Village head and only permanent resident Kim Seong-do (67 - on the right), together with his wife Kim Sin-yeol (69 - on the left), came ashore on the 29th after being invited to be special lecturer for a day at a "Dokdo Discussion" lecture at Gyeongil University in Gyeongsan city.
The university's Department of Land Registration invited Dokdo Village Head Kim and his wife, together with Dokdo Volunteer Force member Oh Yun-gil and his wife Yun Mi-jeong, to the school and conducted the "Dokdo Stories of the People Who Love Dokdo" with more than fifty of the school's students.
Coming ashore after more than seven months, Mr. Kim Seong-do said, "The drinking water supply equipment started operationg fifteen days ago, so our worries about water have been alleviated." He added, "Before I had to spend a lot of time climbing to the top of the mountain peak on the west island to draw water at a place called "Mulgoli" [water trough], but there was not much, so I had to go without washing my face for twenty days once. That answer got a laugh. Mr. Kim also said, "The Dokdo ureok [a kind of mollusk], which was famous for its size, has become extinct." He added, " The tropical fish kodom (Dokdo sea bream) has been fished so much they are now like beans growing during a drought." He said, "So many "ghost fishing" traps have been set in the waters around Dokdo that it is ruining the fishing grounds in the area." He said that authorities needed to establish some kind of measure to regulate the fish trapping.
Mr. Kim said, "Recently, interest in Dokdo has grown, so there are now so many visitors and people involved in contructing various facilities coming and going that Dokdo is no longer lonely." He said, "Dokdo has been a part of my life for forty years, so it is now my second home. I plan to continue living the way I have until my body gives out."
Gyeongsan / Reporter Bak Yeong-ryul
Photo supplied by Gyeongil University
Especially, in regard to the docking facilities on Dokdo, Mr. Kim said, "TheyI found the interview interesting because Mr. Kim confirmed the lack of drinking water on Dokdo and the difficulty of docking there. Also, it also sounds like the Korean government is doing a lousy job of protecting the surrounding enviroment.
have built docking facilities, but when the waves are high, docking is impossible, even though you are close enough to stare at each other. It makes me sad when I see boats having to turn away."
Why are the couple living on the rock islets?
ReplyDeleteDo they want to prove that Takeshima/Dokdo is inhibitable island? Or because the Korean government wants "a fait accompli" of permanent residents?
But it is useless, if they lived for 100 years on it, the ownership won't change.
If they don't want to be called as unlawful residents, they should enter in the family register in Shimane prefecture!