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thepeel
Joined: 08 Aug 2004
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 9:22 pm Post subject: Selfish, irresponsible Korean government |
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�gives 2 million dollars to the Taliban. Which I�m sure will result in the deal of Canadian and other NATO forces and fund further kidnappings.
A roundup:
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TOKYO: South Korea paid two million dollars to Taliban extremists in Afghanistan to secure the release of 19 hostages, a Japanese newspaper reported on Friday. |
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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ISLAMABAD � Scenes of joy from South Korea filled television screens Tuesday as the Taliban announced a deal to release 19 kidnapped church volunteers. Far away from the celebrations, however, observers worried that the end of the hostage crisis marks the beginning of a new stage in Afghanistan's insurgency.
Not only did the Taliban succeed in taking the largest group of hostages captured since the start of the conflict, they conducted the raid on a highway paved with American funding � a vital link between Kabul and Kandahar and a zone considered only medium-risk by security experts.
The negotiations leading to the hostage release also included scenes that outraged among some Afghans, as Taliban fighters entered a major city under a white flag to meet Korean representatives face to face, and afterward held their first press conference since their regime collapsed in 2001.
Perhaps most worryingly, observers say, the apparent conclusion of the drama means the Taliban can now claim greater legitimacy as reliable negotiating partners. It could also inspire more kidnappings, an increasingly common tactic as the insurgents try to drive away the foreigners propping up a weak government.
�This takes the Taliban to a different level of recognition,� said Barnett Rubin, a leading academic on Afghanistan. �They successfully negotiated a deal with a foreign government. They committed war crimes and executed hostages, so they didn't look that good, but it's still a victory for them.� |
http://www.theglobeandmail.com
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Germany Joins Vocal Criticism of South Korea in Hostage Release
A German politician has joined in the chorus of criticism of the circumstances surrounding the release of the last 19 South Koreans hostages who were held by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly six weeks.
Opposition Green Party defense spokesman Winfried Nachtwei said he was pleased the hostages had been freed but at a political level it was nothing less than "a political triumph for the Taliban."
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When the German Green Party is criticising your capitulation, you have reached new and breathtaking levels of selfish cowardice. But I�m not surprised.
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OTTAWA (Reuters) - Canada's foreign minister, in a rare public blast at a close ally, has criticized South Korea for negotiating with Taliban militants to free a group of hostages.
"The Canadian position on dealings with terrorists is well-known to all those with even a passing familiarity with the subject. We do not negotiate with terrorists, for any reason," Foreign Minister Maxime Bernier said in a statement.
"Such negotiations, even if unsuccessful, only lead to further acts of terrorism."
The Taliban began releasing a group of 19 church volunteers after striking a deal with South Korea under which Seoul reaffirmed its commitment to withdraw a small contingent of noncombat troops from Afghanistan within the year.
Canada has a 2,500-strong military mission in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. |
http://ca.today.reuters.com
Have the Koreans thought about the long term implications of this? They aren�t going to be invited to any multilateral parties for a long time.
And lets not forget the biggest loser. The elected and legitimate Afgan government. The selfish Koreans went and treated a terrorist group on foreign soil as a legitimate representative and player. The Afgans are upset, and rightfully so:
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�It is a very dangerous message when we give the impression that the international community and the Afghan government are able to be blackmailed,� said Aghan Foreign Minister Rangin Dadfar Spanta.
The day before, Afghan commerce minister Amin Farhang had also criticized the South Korean government for bypassing the Afghan government and dealing directly with the Taliban. �This release under these conditions will make our difficulties in Afghanistan even bigger,� Farhand said German radio station, Bayerischer Rundfunk. �We fear that this decision could become a precedent. The Taliban will continue trying to take hostages to attain their aims in Afghanistan.� |
http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2759271,00.html
So, to save the lives of 20 idiotic Christian missionaries, who were warned that muslims have a tendency to do crazy stuff in that part of the world, the Koreans have undermined an elected government, given legitimacy to a terrorist group, guaranteed future kidnappings, bankrolled attacks on NATO soldiers and withdrawn their already pathetic contribution to Afghanistan.
The government of Korea I hope does not appropriately reflect the �Korean people�. |
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On the other hand
Joined: 19 Apr 2003 Location: I walk along the avenue
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 9:28 pm Post subject: |
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Have the Koreans thought about the long term implications of this? They aren�t going to be invited to any multilateral parties for a long time.
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Give me a break. You think Korea is the only country that does this?
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Germany paid 5 million euros ($6.7 million) in 2005 for the release of archaeologist Susanne Osthoff and coughed up 10 million euros for two abducted engineers last year. Italy went a step further earlier this year when it pressured the Afghan government to release several Taliban prisoners in exchange for an Italian newspaper reporter. Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi was sharply criticized in other European countries, not for doing everything to help a citizen, but for openly admitting his cave-in.
Still the biggest ransom ever paid by a European government was the French deal with Libya�s strongman Muammar Qaddafi to secure the release of six Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian-born doctor who were falsely accused of deliberately infecting some 400 Libyan children with HIV. Shortly after a high-profile release engineered by First Lady Cecilia Sarkozy, her husband, French President Nicolas Sarkozy, announced a million dollar deal involving arms and civilian nuclear technology.
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http://www.forward.com/articles/11458/ |
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Alias

Joined: 24 Jan 2003
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 9:48 pm Post subject: |
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The Korean government has nothing to apologize for. The acheived their objective which was to secure the release of the 12 hostages. There will be no more Koreans in Afghanistan after this. |
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On the other hand
Joined: 19 Apr 2003 Location: I walk along the avenue
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 9:55 pm Post subject: |
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The Korean government has nothing to apologize for. The acheived their objective which was to secure the release of the 12 hostages. |
And I would say that they acquitted themselves fairly well in the negotiations, comparatively speaking. According to BJWD's article, they paid $2 million for 19 hostages. On the other hand...
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Germany paid 5 million euros ($6.7 million) in 2005 for the release of archaeologist Susanne Osthoff |
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thepeel
Joined: 08 Aug 2004
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 10:02 pm Post subject: |
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The Korean government has much to apologize for. So do the French, Italian and German should they have done the same thing. They are extending legitimacy to the taliban. Each successful abduction creates more.
And really, is Italy is serious nation? France proved herself disgraceful in bribing Libya.
From your own link otoh:
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For all the headlines they grab, the kidnapping of European and Asian hostages in Iraq and Afghanistan is far from the worst of the many woes afflicting the two countries. But the damage caused by these incidents goes far beyond individual human tragedy, mostly thanks to the hapless reactions of the victims� governments. Their willingness to pay huge ransoms for their citizens has turned hostage-taking into a highly profitable industry in both war zones. That has helped to finance the insurgencies, slowed down reconstruction and put even more Westerners at risk.
The consequences of these payments are disastrous, however. Due to the weakness of their governments, Germans, French and Italian citizens are coveted targets for both terrorist and criminal groups. Every payment has put fellow citizens at risk, making it virtually impossible for Westerners to work in Iraq � and increasingly also Afghanistan. �If you are a terrorist the perception is that Germany pays for hostages and that is problematic,� said Nick Pratt, a former CIA operative now working as a terrorism expert in Germany. The growing risk of abduction has also dashed the hope that European experts will come and help with reconstruction and development and added to the economic woes of both countries. |
Lastly, the lives of archaeologists, journalists, nurses and engineers are inherently more valuable than those of missionaries. The Koreans didn't deserve protection because they were warned not to go there and were doing extremely dangerous work for no good reason at all. If they had been journalists then maybe I'd be more sensitive.
But the initial point stands. Canadian and other NATO soldiers now have 2,000,000$ in addition weapons pointed at them. Thanks Korea! |
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The_Conservative
Joined: 15 Mar 2007
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 11:32 pm Post subject: |
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Alias wrote: |
The Korean government has nothing to apologize for. The acheived their objective which was to secure the release of the 12 hostages. There will be no more Koreans in Afghanistan after this. |
Maybe you should tell that to the Korean troops who are staying. It's only the non-military personal that are leaving. |
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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee

Joined: 25 May 2003
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Posted: Thu Aug 30, 2007 11:34 pm Post subject: |
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Alias wrote: |
The Korean government has nothing to apologize for. The acheived their objective which was to secure the release of the 12 hostages. There will be no more Koreans in Afghanistan after this. |
and that money will go to support terror against the nation that has done more for Korea than any other nation has. |
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hubba bubba
Joined: 24 Oct 2006
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 12:05 am Post subject: |
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Shameful.
Every Korean should be embarrassed. |
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CentralCali
Joined: 17 May 2007
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 12:12 am Post subject: |
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Joo Rip Gwa Rhhee wrote: |
Alias wrote: |
The Korean government has nothing to apologize for. The acheived their objective which was to secure the release of the 12 hostages. There will be no more Koreans in Afghanistan after this. |
and that money will go to support terror against the nation that has done more for Korea than any other nation has. |
Or ever will do. South Korea just isn't that important to anyone else. |
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nautilus

Joined: 26 Nov 2005 Location: Je jump, Tu jump, oui jump!
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 2:34 am Post subject: |
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I fully expected them to cave in to the terrorists.
Its the normal Korean mentality of rewarding bad behaviour, combined with the philosophy that "money makes everything OK".
You see it everywhere- give the worst behaved kids candies and a pat on the back: make a fuss over your kid if they behave badly. Its no wonder this country is made up of "men" that act like spoiled 12 year olds. |
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Pligganease

Joined: 14 Sep 2004 Location: The deep south...
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 2:36 am Post subject: |
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BJWD wrote: |
France proved herself disgraceful... |
Seriously, did that need proving? |
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stevemcgarrett

Joined: 24 Mar 2006
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 4:51 am Post subject: |
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nautilus wrote:
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Its the normal Korean mentality of rewarding bad behaviour, combined with the philosophy that "money makes everything OK".
You see it everywhere- give the worst behaved kids candies and a pat on the back: make a fuss over your kid if they behave badly. Its no wonder this country is made up of "men" that act like spoiled 12 year olds. |
Yep, bruddah, all show and no go.
This sets a dangerous precedent but I'm not surprised it happened: the Korean contribution to the fight against the Taliban was largely token to begin with. Same holds true for the Japanese and many others.
Just one more reason why we should pull our troops out. They aren't willing to sacrifice militarily for anyone but themselves--a typical Asian attitude I might add (the Filipinos notwithstanding). |
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indytrucks

Joined: 09 Apr 2003 Location: The Shelf
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 5:15 am Post subject: |
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stevemcgarrett wrote: |
This sets a dangerous precedent |
The thing is, it wasn't the Korean government that set the precedent for negotiating with the Taliban. The link provided by OTOH shows that it had already been set by the West.
As much as I'm sure some around here would like to gloat and say "it's all Korea's fault," it's simply not the case. |
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nautilus

Joined: 26 Nov 2005 Location: Je jump, Tu jump, oui jump!
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 5:30 am Post subject: Re: Selfish, irresponsible Korean government |
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But how is it being reported in the Korean media?
"In Seoul, the Saemmul Church said that it will bear full responsibility for any expenditure incurred by the government for the release of the 21 hostages.
The chief pastor said the church will pay for their plane tickets; the return of the remains of two hostages killed by the Taliban; all medical treatment costs; and any other money used in negotiations. The hostages were all members of the Bundang-based church, which sent them as a volunteer aid group to Afghanistan.
The commitment was made after the government announced that it would seek compensation from the church as all costs linked to the hostage crisis were covered by taxpayers' money.
This is the first time for the government to seek compensation from any organization in Korea for freeing hostages.
Rumors are circulating that the government probably paid a substantial ransom for the freedom of the hostages. However, both Seoul and the Tabliban denied this was the case. Earlier reports said the militant group was demanding $500,000 per hostage."
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/08/113_9339.html
"Message from the Taliban to the korean people"
In the name of Allah, the most merciful and mighty,
To our Korean brothers and sisters,
Now that we have released the remaining seven captives, we wish to tell the Korean people that we have no enmity toward you.
It may be that Korean people will be angry with the Taliban for kidnapping their citizens. Also because a lot has been written against us. But we wish to tell the Korean government and people what compelled the Taliban to kidnap the 23 Korean citizens.
Foreign troops led by the United States, have occupied our country. They are attacking our people and killing our women, children and the elderly. Your government, whether it knows it or not, is also part of the international Coalition led by the United States, and a partner in the forceful occupation of our land and the killing of our people.
Like every action has a reaction, so the kidnapping was the reaction to the force used against our people and our country, because your country has also sent its troops here.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2007/08/117_9343.html |
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enns
Joined: 02 May 2006
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Posted: Fri Aug 31, 2007 6:01 am Post subject: |
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It's stunning that anyone can justify the kidnappings and the subsequent payoffs which occurred here. BJWD is spot on. This money will be used to fund further terrorist projects. How is this ever justifiable?
The Korean government has a lot to apologize for. This goes beyond the hostages, the entire war against the Taliban is undermined when governments make one-off deals. How large of a price should soldiers and civilians in other countries pay so these missionaries can go free? Those who support the Korean government are short-sighted to say the least. There is a reason why most developed countries have pledged not to negotiate with terrorists. |
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