jeju-do

Jeju-do is an island off the south coast of Korea (Hangul: 제주도), famous for its resorts but also for the so-called Jeju uprising of 1948–49. Gangjeong is a small village on the south coast of Jeju-do which is home to an anti-nuclear Peace Zone. The village mayor, Kang Dong Kyun, regularly protests against military activities on the island. I wrote this poem after visiting Jeju-do, and the Gangjeong Peace Zone, in 2009. It was first published online in Peril in 2012.