Mansfield nodded. "It's the way they're shifting that has us really concerned. We have no argument with opening up new markets in Europe, or anywhere else. They signed a new agreement with Israel, you know. But what they've been doing is throwing up roadblocks to continued close cooperation between themselves and us."
"What sort of roadblocks?" Jerry asked.
"One good example was the troop withdrawal. Fortunately the press hasn't got wind of it, but there were some pretty nasty words passed in what was reported as 'negotiations.' You'd have thought we were back at Panmunjom dealing with the North Koreans. It takes a lot of time to shut down an operation like we've had going on here for forty years. The big Eighth Army Compound in Yongsan, the Support Command in Taegu, an Air Division at Osan, units along the DMZ. They wanted us closed down, lock, stock and barrel in thirty days."
Burke shook his head. "I'm no logistics man, but that sounds like a tall order."
"You're not kidding," Mansfield said, leaning forward on his desk. Besides the telephone, only an appointments calendar and a book on the origins of Korean folk music marred the chasteness of the desk top. "They talked about how fast we moved our troops to the Persian Gulf in 1990. We explained that was an emergency type operation that cost a bundle of money. We didn't see anything so urgent about this. They finally agreed to give us ninety days to get everybody out of the country, except for part of the Support Command. We were to have all equipment and supplies shipped out within four months. Of course, the ROK Army wanted us to leave everything behind for them, but the President didn't buy that."
"What else have they done, in the way of roadblocks?" Jerry asked.
"Well, they set up some new layers of bureaucracy to insulate us from the real decision makers. In my bailiwick, for example, the Ministry of Culture and Information has a new low-level office that I'm required to deal with, and get approval from, before I can say any more than 'hello' to the people I've worked with the past couple of years. And they're just next door. It's frustrating."
"One of the clients we'll be representing over here is Bartell Engineering," Jerry said. "They're working on a nuclear power station for the Korea Electric Power Company. Are you familiar with any problems we might encounter there?"
"Not really. You would need to talk with somebody else on that. But they're a state-run corporation, so I wouldn't be surprised at anything you might run up against."
Burke knew that was something he would have to dig deeper into. If the Koreans were planning to reprocess spent uranium from their power reactors, Korea Electric Power, known as Kepco, would have to be involved. He had already targeted them for special emphasis. "Who would know about that in the Embassy?" he asked.
"Kurt Voegler. He's the commercial attaché. I understand you plan to attend the reception tonight. You can see him then if he's not available beforehand."
"Good," Burke said. But the depth of this official hostility toward the U.S. really bothered him. He hadn't realized the situation had deteriorated to that point. It certainly gave new credence to Ben Shallit's revelation and a new urgency to HANGOVER. "About this animosity toward America and Americans, is it just something at the highest levels of the government, or does it filter down to the everyday bureaucrat, or even the man on the street?"
Damon Mansfield leaned back in his chair and rubbed his chin. It was a gesture Burke had often used to gather his thoughts back when he lived in the Smokies and wore a full beard. "I think it's officially encouraged," Mansfield said after a moment. "But with a good part of the country, it doesn't take a lot of encouragement. Three-fourths of the population has never known a war. Sure, they've heard about the Korean War and America's part in it, but that's ancient history. It sounds like so much propaganda to the students. They tend to be anti-military and anti-American."
"Since our military was the primary American presence, I guess that followed," Burke said.
"The student demonstrators helped put this government in office. A major factor that's driven the student movement over the years is the Kwangju incident of May 1980. That was after martial law had been imposed following the assassination of President Park. The students promptly began demonstrating against the military. It got particularly bad in Kwangju. General Chun unleashed the paratroopers, and hundreds of demonstrators were killed. Those forces were supposed to be under American command. The students said we did nothing to stop the massacre, so we were at fault."
Burke nodded. That fit right in with the country's troubled past that he had read about back in Washington. It was another in the series of events where American leadership had faltered and left Koreans as the victims. But hadn't we committed untold manpower and resources to protect South Korea and help build its economy? Whatever the problem, the new PR campaign to boost the image of America and her business interests began to look like a real uphill battle.
"Surely there must be some elements in the business community, or somewhere, that appreciate what we've done the past forty years?" Burke asked.
"Unfortunately," Mansfield said with a dejected look, "the group who could do us the most good has just about hit rock bottom."
"Who's that?"
"An organization called the Korean-American Cooperation Association. It's still in operation, but totally ineffective."
"Why so?" Jerry asked.
"If I believed in such things, and I'm beginning to think maybe I should, I'd say they were jinxed. The chairman, who was owner of the Capital Plaza Hotel, was killed in a robbery last March. One of the directors, a military officer, died in a plane crash. Another was our chief advocate in the National Assembly. He disappeared in the midst of a political scandal. Several others were victims of different tragic events, including the last really influential voice, an industrialist named Yi In-wha."
Burke frowned. "What happened to him?"
"He was murdered at his home a couple of months ago. I don't think it's been solved yet. He was a good friend of Ambassador Shearing and our last real hope. He was related by marriage to President Kwak. We had hoped he would be a restraining influence. It was a real blow. He had planned to have lunch with the Ambassador the day after he died."
"Damn." Jerry twisted his mouth. "I agree. If I was in that association, I think I'd start believing in jinxes."
"What about street violence?" Burke asked. "Have you had any of that directed against Americans?"
"No. They like the American tourist dollar too much to allow that sort of thing. And they'll need a lot more to make up for what the GI's spent in the past."
"Is all this damn-the-Yankees attitude being orchestrated by the new president, or is he just a front man?"
"We're not really sure."
"The pictures I've seen of him don't look very impressive."
"That's because of what happened to him, which is part of the reason for his popularity."
"What happened?"
"You probably don't remember it, but back in 1983 the North Koreans carried out a terrorist attack against a presidential delegation in Rangoon, Burma. Seventeen South Korean officials were killed, several more injured. Kwak Sung-kyo was a general then and part of the delegation. His injuries left him stooped and partially paralyzed. You've got to admire him. For a man his age, he really made a comeback, thanks to physical therapy. I know what a pain that can be. He still suffers some facial paralysis."
That probably explained the deadpan look in the magazine picture Burke had seen. "I guess the people consider him something of a hero then?"
"Right. He's a pretty convincing speaker, but we're not sure he wasn't chosen to run simply because of the hero image. Prime Minister Hong Oh-san is an emerging figure and could well be the power behind the throne."