The Star Online > News > Latest
Wednesday, October 29, 2003
South Korean workers clash with riot police
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Violent labor demonstrations rocked South Korea on Wednesday with workers clashing with riot police in three cities to protest lawsuits brought by employers that they claimed had driven some union leaders to suicide.
Hundreds of workers hurled rocks at riot police in downtown Seoul, while national news agency Yonhap said that in the central city of Daegu, several protesters were taken to hospital with head injuries as 1,200 workers clashed with police.
Yonhap also reported a violent street clash in the southern city of Busan, involving 2,000 workers who wielded metal pipes and threw rocks.
They smashed 100 window panes in a factory.
It was the worst outburst of labor unrest in recent months, coming despite government promises of new legislation to make it more difficult for employers to sue labor unions for financial damages caused by illegal strikes.
Labor groups say such lawsuits have driven three labor leaders to commit or attempt suicide this month.
Two labor activists set themselves afire last Thursday and Sunday to protest what they called hostile labor policy, and were in critical condition. On Oct. 17, a union leader hanged himself at a shipyard. Early this year, Bae Dal-ho, a labor activist embroiled in a damages lawsuit, burned himself to death.
The unions threatened to stage nationwide strikes and campaign against government policies, including its decision to send troops to help U.S. forces bring stability to Iraq.
The government fears labor unrest will turn off foreign investors needed to help revive the stalling economy.
"We are very regretful that some union leaders committed suicide or burnt themselves recently, but such an act of risking their lives should not be justified,'' said a joint statement issued by Justice Minister Kang Kum-sil, Labor Minister Kwon Ki-hong and Government Administration and Home Affairs Minister Huh Sung-kwan.
Plagued by labor unrest, some managers have recently resorted to filing lawsuits seeking compensation for losses in production and other financial damages caused by illegal strikes. In some cases, courts seized part of the salaries of labor activists.
Activists say they stage illegal strikes because of the complicated and prolonged procedure needed to call a legitimate strike.
In Seoul, 1,000 workers gathered in a park chanting: "Stop the oppression on labor!''
Later hundreds of workers hurled rocks and police fought back with black plastic shields and batons, leaving the street strewn with rocks and garbage.
In the past, other South Korean protesters have set themselves on fire to draw attention to their cause. A South Korean activist stabbed himself to death in an anti-globalization protest during World Trade Organization talks in Mexico in September.-AP
Printer Friendly | Email This
|