SEOUL, Sept. 13 (UPI) -- Hundreds Korean anti-U.S. protesters' clashed Sunday with riot police, demanding authorities demolish a statue of U.S. Gen. Douglas MacArthur.
The statue of the American general is in Inchon, west of Seoul. The Korea Times reported that the demonstrators maintain that the statue is detrimental to inter-Korean reconciliation and unification efforts.
On Sept. 15, 1950 MacArthur's daring amphibious landing at Inchon turned the tide of the 1950-1953 Korean War. Deputy Chong Wa Dae spokesman Choi In-ho said, "We hope such an incident will not happen again. Such an illegal attempt to destroy the statue not only undermines the South Korea-U.S. relationship, but is also against a mature historical perception of our society."
President Roh Moo-hyun earlier condemned efforts to dismantle the statue as unwise and harmful to South Korea's alliance with the United States as its removal would both undermine American pride and cause a backlash in the United States.
The opposition Grand National Party strongly criticized the demonstrations. Grand National Party Chairman Park Geun-hye said, "The government should not forgive such illegal acts, which are feared to harm the alliance between the two countries. The present condition of the nation would have been impossible if it had not been for the help of our allies during the war."
South Koreans erected the 16.5-foot bronze statue at Freedom Park in Inchon in 1957. The statue depicts MacArthur holding a pair of binoculars surveying the port. Nearly 32,000 U.S. troops are currently stationed in South Korea.
