Mayor Park Hyungdeok: "All-Out Efforts for US Military Base Return and Compensation Issues"

Dongducheon City Holds August Monthly Assembly

On August 1, Dongducheon City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Park Hyungdeok) held its monthly assembly in the city hall’s main conference room, with all staff members in attendance, including Yoon Moonhee, president of the Dongducheon Middle and High School Alumni Association, who was appointed as the honorary mayor for August.

Park Hyungdeok, mayor of Dongducheon, is holding the August monthly meeting in the city hall's main conference room on the 1st. Provided by Dongducheon City

As a pre-event performance, four leading members of the Dongducheon Dream Socks private club gave a saxophone performance of three songs as a talent donation, drawing attention from attendees.

During the assembly, the event began with the presentation of letters of appreciation and commendations from Dongducheon City to organizations for their cooperation with national defense policies and their contributions to supporting vulnerable groups during the winter season. Mayor Park Hyungdeok then presented the Prime Minister’s Commendation to one exemplary public servant and the Minister’s Commendation to another official for their contributions to the development of the long-term care insurance system for the elderly. In addition, he awarded the Governor’s Commendation to three citizens who contributed to identifying welfare blind spots and to one exemplary childcare worker.

Furthermore, five public officials who have demonstrated outstanding dedication were given commendations. Three departments were recognized as excellent complaint-handling departments for the first half of 2025 through the National Sinmungo system, and three public officials were awarded for their outstanding complaint-handling mileage in the second quarter of 2025. Five public officials were also recognized as excellent proactive administrators for the first half of 2025, each receiving certificates and words of encouragement.

Mayor Park highlighted the opening of the Saengyeon Gongyunuri Center in July, which created leisure facilities for both citizens and military personnel. He also mentioned that, in line with the new government’s forward-looking approach to the return of US military bases, the city has held substantive discussions with the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, and Gyeonggi Province, actively conveying realistic voices from the citizens’ perspective.

He also reported the opening of the third Together Care Center within Idam Elementary School, providing care spaces for lower-grade children, and shared that he visited the site of heavy rain damage in Gapyeong County, a sister city, to assist with flood recovery efforts alongside volunteers.

He noted that August 15 marks the meaningful 80th anniversary of Liberation Day, urging thorough preparations for the commemorative ceremony to ensure that the sacrifices of the nation’s patriots and fallen heroes are remembered and that veterans receive proper respect.

He went on to request thorough preparations for Dongducheon’s future development projects, noting that the city secured 21 billion won in national funding for the Pyeonghwa-ro street environment improvement project and ranked first in Gyeonggi Province’s regional balanced development project, securing an additional 30 billion won in provincial funding. He also mentioned that the central investment review approved the construction plans for the Songnae-dong parking tower and the Bosan-dong community sports center.

In addition, he called for thorough inspections of senior centers and cooling shelters amid the ongoing heatwave, preemptive safety checks in vulnerable areas to prepare for major typhoons and heavy rains, maintenance of naturally formed recreation areas, parking management, and comprehensive summer measures.

Finally, Mayor Park stressed the importance of aligning with the government’s policy that “special sacrifice deserves special compensation.” He urged all-out efforts in responding to the central government to resolve the city’s most pressing issues?return of US military bases and compensation for damages?so that meaningful compensation can be achieved during this opportunity.