attached zip file is the english subtitles for this film

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We’d like to ask you to show your support for the Yongsan Tragedy survivors, hopefully by screening a documentary film on the tragedy and the broader urban redevelopment issue ? by Jang Ho-gyoung.

You may have heard of the Yongsan Tragedy happened on January 20th this year. It took the lives of five protesters and one police officer, who caught on fire in the police crackdown against people in a sit-in struggle to fight against forced evictions. You can get more detailed description and social context of the tragedy in the attached files. (Our “Urgent Appeal” to the UN Special Rapporteur on Housing Rights)

Almost six months after the tragedy, the bodies of the five victims are still kept in freezers. The bereaved families decided that there is no way to hold a respectable funeral for the deceased without bringing justice for them. Indeed, nothing has been solved. The prosecutors argue that the protesters caused the fire with no evidence presented. And they’re not making public part of their investigation results (about 3,000 pages), even after the court ordered them to do so. Redevelopment projects are in progress in the Yongsan area and in a number of other places across the country. Tenants are still being evicted with little or no assistance for resettlement.

, which was the opening film in the 13th Seoul Human Rights Film Festival held in June this year, aims to raise public awarness of the situation. We hope that human rights activists and NGOs around the world watch this 60-minute-long film, and hold screening events for supporters and local communities. Your attention to this issue will be a great help for bringing justice for the Yongsan Tragedy victims and survivors.

You can download the film at

http://www.archive.org/download/DocumentaryFilmOnYongsanMassacre/people-who-cant-leave.wmv
To get the DVD of this film, email the director (win0601@naver.com).

'People Who Cannot Leave'

Synopsis

There are people forced to leave their homes because of the land/housing speculation and thoughtless development projects of the landlords and construction companies.

But many can’t leave their homes which are about to be demolished. Shin Pal-gyu, a resident of Sangdo-4-dong, Dongjak-gu, is one of them. Those who could rent a small house moved to other places. Shin wants to leave too, but she can’t afford the rent.

Lee Sang-lim used to run a pub in Yongsan-4-ga-dong, Yongsan-gu. After the redevelopment and demolition plan was announced, he and other tenants in the area began a sit-in struggle in the watchtower they built on the top of an empty building. Their protest against the merciless project was quelled down by the police, and Lee was burnt to death in the crackdown.

The director portrays the removal process in Sangdo-4-dong and Yongsan-4-ga-dong, and asks whether the redevelopment projects are beneficial for everyone or a chosen few.