S. Korea drops lawsuit against Jeju island residents for delayed naval base construction

SEOUL, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's government decided Tuesday to drop an indemnity lawsuit against residents in the country's southern resort island of Jeju for delayed naval base construction, which the previous government claimed was caused by residents' protests.

The Cabinet meeting, chaired by Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, approved the decision to retract the legal action to demand indemnity worth 3.45 billion won (3.2 million U.S. dollars) from Jeju residents and activists who have been protesting against the construction of the naval base in the semi-tropical island.

The Navy under the previous Park Geun-hye administration filed a lawsuit in March 2016 against the residents and activists for the losses from the delayed construction, which the Navy claimed came from their fierce protests.

The Jeju naval base, of which construction was launched in 2006, was completed last year. The naval base started operation from last February.

A total of 165 lawmakers of the 300-member National Assembly passed a resolution to drop the legal action against civilians, while the Jeju provincial government and scores of civic groups demanded the retraction.

On his campaign trail, President Moon Jae-in vowed to retract the lawsuit against Jeju residents and activists. Enditem