Pressed for the release of former President Kim Dae-jung
Pharis Harvey, an American human-rights activist who campaigned for Korean democracy and human rights, died on the 16th. He was 90.
Born in 1935, Pastor Harvey died after a period of illness at a nursing home in California. He first became deeply involved in Korean human-rights issues while serving as a missionary in Japan and elsewhere during the 1960s and 1970s.
As operations director of the North American Committee on Korean Human Rights (NACHRK), Harvey was instrumental in bringing the situation in Gwangju during the May 18 uprising to international attention. The committee’s newsletters and networks helped news from Gwangju spread quickly across North America and Europe, and he helped organize investigative teams and prepare reports that the committee submitted to the U.S. State Department soon after the events.
He also testified at a 1981 hearing of the U.S. House Subcommittee on International Relations and Human Rights, detailing the bloody suppression by martial-law forces, the Samcheong re-education camps, and repression of the press and labor. His testimony prompted Congress to engage more directly with human-rights issues in South Korea.
In 1979, he briefed the Carter administration on Korea’s human-rights situation and delivered lists calling for the release of political prisoners, including former President Kim Dae-jung, as part of international pressure efforts.
In recognition of these contributions, the government awarded him a presidential citation in 2020.
Dr. Choi Yong-ju said, “Pastor Harvey served as a crucial conduit to the outside world during the military regime, exposing the atrocities in Gwangju to the international community. His contributions deserve renewed recognition in the history of international solidarity.”
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