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S. Korea workers, police clash outside cathedral
Nation braces for bigger protests over labor law
January 12, 1997
Web posted at: 2:20 p.m. EST (1920 GMT)Latest developments:
SEOUL, South Korea (CNN) -- A Catholic cathedral in Seoul became the center of conflict Sunday as thousands of striking workers clashed with police over a new labor law. Thousands of workers also carried out protests in two other provincial cities.
Seoul Bureau Chief Sohn Jie-Ae Reports
(315K/28 sec. AIFF or WAV sound)
Fighting erupted in the capital after police launched volley after volley of tear gas to disperse an estimated 3,000 workers and students who were trying to march out of the Myongdong Cathedral, where seven union leaders have been holed up for days.
Witnesses said police clubbed demonstrators. Shoppers in the area scurried for safety.
Demonstrators fought back, hurling rocks and other projectiles. Some used steel pipes to ward off the police blockade, chanting "Down with the Kim Young Sam administration!"
Sunday's violence came a day after violent clashes erupted in the capital and two days before the nation's largest strike was set to begin Tuesday.
In the southern city of Ulsan, the seat of many Hyundai conglomerate plants, 15,000 workers held a rally and marched through downtown streets. At one point, protesters tossed eggs at a building that houses the local chapter of President Kim's ruling party.
About 1,000 workers also staged protests in the southern city of Pusan, Kim's political base.
Labor leaders have demanded the repeal of the law, which was clandestinely rammed through Parliament by ruling party legislators on December 26. It has since sparked three weeks of protests and growing international criticism.
Union leaders claim the law makes it easier for companies to fire workers and extend working hours.
Labor leader says workers won't budge
An uneasy calm returned to the landmark Seoul cathedral later Sunday, and police did not try to arrest the fugitive union leaders inside -- apparently to avoid disturbing services.
Kwon Young-gil, who heads the outlawed Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and is among those hiding out in the cathedral, said worker resolve was undiminished and that public support for the strikers is increasing.
"We will not accept the law," Kwon said, speaking outside a makeshift tent on cathedral grounds. "If the law comes into effect, it will destroy 12 million workers' lives and the public life."
In a sermon during Sunday mass, Cardinal Stephen Kim Soo-hwan, leader of the 2.5 million Catholics in South Korea, chided the government for enacting the disputed law without full debate from Parliament.
"The government must first arrange for a common ground for dialogue for all parties," he said.
Unions reject government offer of debate
Meanwhile, South Korea's ruling party chief Lee Hong-koo, in an apparent attempt to avoid more confrontation, challenged union leaders on Saturday to a televised debate over the law.
Kwon rejected the offer, calling it a "propaganda ploy." The main union body, the Federation of Korean Trade Unions, has also brushed aside the offer to discuss the law.
Kwon said his 500,000-member union would strike on Wednesday if the law had not been scrapped. That would coincide with a call by the federation, which has 1.2 million members, to put down tools for two days starting on Tuesday in what would be the biggest strike in South Korea's history.
Reuters contributed to this report.
Related stories:
- S. Korea police to arrest leaders of crippling strike - January 10, 1997
- Korea clamps down on strikers - January 9, 1997
- S. Korean strikers plan partial resumption of work - January 8, 1997
- South Korea tries to squelch labor protest - January 6, 1996
- South Korean strikes ease, but unions vow more protests - December 30, 1996
- South Korean workers stage fourth day of protests - December 29, 1996
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