Korean strikers defy anti-labor regime

by Fred Gaboury

This article was reprinted from the January 18, 1997 issue of the People's Weekly World. For subscription information see below. All rights reserved - may be used with PWW credits.

Thousands of workers marched through cities in South Korea on Jan. 14 and 15 as a 39-hour general strike paralyzed the nation. Workers demanded repeal of recent labor legislation. The legislation was passed in a secret, seven-minute session of parliament where only members of the ruling party were present.

The two-day shutdown came when leaders of the government- sanctioned Korean Federation of Trade Unions agreed to support the strike led by the illegal Korean Confederation of Trade Unions. At press time Federation leaders had not decided whether or not to support the strike beyond Jan. 15. However, leaders of the Confederation have vowed to continue the strike, which began on Dec. 26, until the legislation is repealed.

Growing public support for the strikers has so far stayed the hand of the government that has threatened arrest of strike leaders. However, seven of the some 50 leaders facing arrest have taken refuge inside the grounds of Seoul's Roman Catholic Myongdonng Cathedral while 13 others have barricaded themselves at their work sites in three cities.

"If authorities dare use law enforcement forces to crush union leadership, we will launch full-blown general strikes with all our resources," Kwon Young-gil, a former journalist and president of the Confederation, said.

Thousands of workers guarded the cathedral in preparation for a possible police raid. The red-brick building often provided sanctuary for dissidents threatened during the many years of military dictatorship.

International support for the strike has come from the World Federation of Trade Unions, the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICTU), the Trade Union Advisory Committee to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

In a communication addressed to Michel Hansenne, Director General of the International Labor Organization, the World Federation of Trade Unions branded stepped-up government repression against the strike "gross violations of international labor standards and basic human rights" and urged the ILO "to effectively intervene and ensure the government in Seoul withdraws the recent amendments to labor laws, releases those arrested, cancels all prosecutions against trade unionists and reaches a negotiated settlement with the trade union centers which are leading the protest actions."

Other labor groups include the AFL-CIO, the German DGB and the British TUC. On Jan. 10 the AFL-CIO picketed the Korean Embassy in Washington and delivered protest letters to the labor attache. The ICFTU sent a delegation to Seoul on Jan. 10 and earlier filed a complaint against the Seoul government with the International Labor Organization.

The showdown was prompted by enactment of a package of laws making it easier for companies to lay off workers and hire temporary employees and replacement workers during strikes. The legislation gives the government authority to intervene in labor disputes and to impose settlements. Another provision maintains a ban on the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions and gives additional powers to the secret police.

The Confederation of Trade Unions represents more than 500,000 workers, most of them in heavy industry and the state-run telecommunications giant Korea Telecom; while the 1.2 million-member Federation of Trade Unions is strongest among miners, port and postal workers and workers in various white collar and state industries.