Back to Story Index Wednesday, June 21, 2000 Bombing range reopens, protesters dwindle By Jim Lea Osan bureau chief OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea - The number of protesters and riot police continued to dwindle as the U.S. Air Force reopened its Koon-ni bombing and gunnery range on Monday. The range reopened shortly before noon, but inclement weather limited activity to only three bombing and strafing training mission during the day, said Capt. Bernadette Dozier, 51st Fighter Wing spokeswoman at Osan Air Base. Eight or nine missions were expected to be flown on Tuesday beginning about 12:30 p.m., she said. Kyonggi Provincial police in Suwon said about 2,000 riot police were on duty outside the facility on Monday. Over the weekend, some 6,000 riot police clashed with protesters demanding that the bombing range be closed. Twenty activist students and labor unionists were injured as they pelted helmeted, shield-carrying police with rocks and bamboo poles. Police retaliated with night sticks in a melee at the facility's gate on Saturday. About 1,000 protesters were at the range over the weekend, but a Korean police spokesman said only about 50 people attempted to stage a protest on Monday. But the would-be protesters were stopped by police on the road leading to the range's main gate. Another 50 people demanding that the range be closed and protesting the presence of U.S. troops in South Korea held a peaceful demonstration for about three hours near the U.S. Embassy in downtown Seoul on Monday evening. Koon-ni range was closed for about one month, first to investigate Maehyang-ri villagers' claims that the emergency drop of six 500-pound bombs at the range on May 8 had caused injuries and damage to homes. The probe determined that there were no injuries or damage caused by the exploding bombs. The facility also was closed during the recent South-North summit meeting in Pyongyang, as were other U.S. and South Korean military training ranges. Maehyang-ri villagers are demanding Koon-ni be closed, but the South Korean Defense Ministry has said the range will neither be closed nor relocated. Bae Gi-chul contributed to this report. Back to Story Index / Top of Page / Home / Gallery / Subscriptions / Links / Advertising / About Stripes / Stripes Europe