Pyeongtaek

Pyeongtaek (Korean pronunciation: [pʰjʌŋ.tʰɛk]) is a city in Gyeonggi Province, South Korea. Located in the southwestern part of the province, Pyeongtaek was founded as a union of two districts in 940, during the Goryeo dynasty. It was elevated to city status in 1986 and is home to a South Korean naval base and a large concentration of United States troops. The South Korean government plans to transform Pyeongtaek city to an international economic hub to coincide with the move of the United States Forces Korea (USFK) to Pyeongtaek. During the Korean War it was the site of an early battle between U.S. and North Korean forces, the Battle of Pyongtaek. It is the location of Pyeongtaek University.

Pyeongtaek

평택시
Municipal City
Korean transcription(s)
 • Hangul평택시
 • Hanja平澤市
 • Revised RomanizationPyeongtaek-si
 • McCune-ReischauerP'yŏngt'aek-si
Flag
Location in South Korea
CountrySouth Korea
RegionSudogwon
Administrative divisions4 eup, 5 myeon, 13 dong
Area
 • Total452.31 km2 (174.64 sq mi)
Population
 (2019 Apr)
 • Total500,787
 • Density1,107/km2 (2,870/sq mi)
 • Dialect
Gyeonggi
Demonym(s)평택시민 (Pyeongtaek-simin), Pyeongtaeker

Military base

The United States and South Korean governments came to an agreement to enlarge Camp Humphreys — a U.S. Army installation outside Anjeong-ri, a community in Pyeongtaek — and move the majority of US forces stationed in and north of Seoul to the Camp Humphreys area. Invoking eminent domain, the government obtained the surrounding land for the base expansion. This would result in the community's third displacement from their own land since the Japanese occupation during World War II.[1]

The move originally included the headquarters of the ROK/US Combined Forces Command, which has operational control of South Korean, U.S., and U.N. combined forces during wartime. In March 2007, U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and ROK Minister of Defense Kim Jang-soo agreed to dissolve the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command on April 17, 2012.[2] This would allow ROK forces to have wartime control of its military during a military confrontation with the North. The US/ROK agreement allows USFK to move to one centralized location away from the congestion of Seoul and its surrounding areas. This relocation agreement results in returning two-thirds of the land currently used by the United States Military back to the South Korean government. By 2008, the U.S. military was to have consolidated 41 installations down to 10 due to the relocation agreement. USFK's only jail facility in South Korea is at Camp Humphreys.

Osan Air Base is in Songtan, a district in Pyeongtaek City.

South African War Memorial

The Korean War Monument of the South African Air Force was opened on the 29 September 1975 by the Korean National ministry of Defense in memory to the 37 South African Air Force members who gave their lives during the Korean War.[3][4]

Education

Pyeongtaek University (평택대학교).

Pyeongtaek International Christian School (평택크리스천외국인학교).[5]

Notes
  1. ^ U.S. Move Is Spurring Evictions In S. Korea (Washington Post article)
  2. ^ Massive Force Mobilized to Evict U.S. Base Protestors (Chosun Ilbo article (English))
  3. ^ Activists Are Only Using the People of Pyeontaek (Chosun Ilbo English Editorial) article
  4. ^ More Violence Looms in Planned Rally at U.S. Base Site
  5. ^ U.S. base expansion in Korea sparks protests (Socialism and Liberation) article

See also

References
  1. "Eviction village: A farmer's tale". 27 February 2007 – via news.bbc.co.uk.
  2. Changes to Wartime OPCON: Challenges for the ROK Archived 2007-10-11 at the Wayback Machine, Chosun
  3. http://www.bucksvoice.net/bkva/assets/documents/south-africa-dec-2014 Archived 2017-04-25 at the Wayback Machine SOUTH AFRICAN KOREAN WAR VETERANS ASSOCIATION
  4. "South African Embassy, Seoul". www.southafrica-embassy.or.kr.
  5. "Pyeongtaek International Christian School." International School Information (Government of South Korea). Retrieved on March 30, 2016.

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