Series of brutal attacks on workers, again!
the government sent its forces to suppress the Carrier workers in Kwangju, unto the striking contract workers of Korea Telecom in Bundang, and again into the factories of Hyosung - all in a short period of the a month.
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Series of brutal attacks on workers, again!
The 'battle' that took place at the Daewoo plant in Bupyeong on 10th April raised shock and horror at the brutal attack of the police on the striking workers - leaving many still struggling for their lives in hospital. It brought recriminations at the Kim Dae-Jung government, not only from the workers and progressive forces, but also within the government itself. After this shocking episode, one would think that the government will be more 'cautious' and wouldn't dare another rampant assault against the workers. But the presumed one-time episode turned into a whole series as the government sent its forces to suppress the Carrier workers in Kwangju, unto the striking contract workers of Korea Telecom in Bundang, and again into the factories of Hyosung - all in a short period of the a month. President Kim argued that he is all for democracy, but the events that took place are more than enough to bring back the nightmares of the past military dictatorships.
Mayday turns into a bloodshed
On Mayday, 1st May, when all workers and oppressed peoples came out onto the streets to
commemorate the 111th Anniversary of the strike of the Chicago workers, workers from the Carrier plant in Kwangju ended up in hospital, one with paralysis and another undergoing brain surgery. They were among the eight subcontract workers who were demonstrating on the morning of Mayday, calling for the company to recognize them as full-time workers. For the last few years, the same repertoire has been taking place at Carrier, a multinational company producing air-conditioners, as the company started to replace workers with subcontract workers to reduce labour costs. The subcontract workers have to work day and night to receive a meagre wage of a less than 800 dollars per month, with no benefits nor insurance.
On 19th February, the subcontract workers formed a union of their own, attaining 450 members within the first few days. At the same time, the leaders of the union were sacked. Although the Regional Labour Administration ruled the lay-offs to be illegal, Carrier made no gesture towards reinstating these workers. On 16th April, the union went on strike, for the first of its kind for subcontract workers in the manufacturing sector. 10 days later, riot police were sent into the factory to disperse the hundreds of workers, and on Mayday, came back with the management, overseers and thugs, armed with metal pipes, to do away with the remaining 8 workers. They were beaten beyond recognition.
"If we have a sin, it is only that we are part-time workers"
1st June was the 172nd day that the Korea Telecom(KT) part-time workers started their struggle against the lay-off of 7,000 contract workers. In mid-May, KT, as part of their plans for privatization, announced that the telephone directory unit the '114 unit' will be separated and sold off, which the reactionary KT union agreed to. A few years ago, KT had closed up the domestic collect call unit, comprising of mostly women workers, and now the 114 unit, also comprising of mostly women, is to be separated, further threatening job stability of the already unstable status of women workers of KT. The KT workers of the 114 unit had been continuing their sit-in's at KT branches all around the nation since the announcement, and on 1st June, gathered together in Bundang, near Seoul. But what was waiting for them at the main headquarters was a brigade of riot police who soon started their attack. Police force of 1,500 came unto the 150 workers and confiscated the workers' camping equipment, beating them with clubs and pipes, leaving several injured. One worker was even thrown out of the police bus. Although there were less than 10 workers left on the devastated site demonstrating and denouncing the brutal attack, 500 riot police raided for the second time in the afternoon, taking away the remaining equipment and dispersing the mere handful of workers.
Police raid on the Hyosung workers
Just a couple of days after the attack on KT workers, around 3,600 riot police, on 5th June, raided the plant of Hyosung Corporation in Ulsan (an industrial city 340km south of Seoul where Hyundai Motors also has its major plant) where 1,400 workers had occupied the plant and were on strike. Hyosung, the world's biggest polyester tyre cord producer, had announced its plans for restructuring which involved the arbitrary sacking of 14 workers. From 1995, Hyosung had undergone major restructuring - substituting workers with part-time contract workers, implementing mass lay-offs, subcontracting parts of the plant and using ideological propaganda to weaken the union. There are now more than a thousand contract workers in the Ulsan plant.
Signs of police attack started to take shape the day before, when the union found out that representatives from the management went to Seoul to 'consult' with the Commissioner General of the National Police Agency, soon after which around 40 buses of riot police left Seoul and headed for Ulsan. Just before dawn on the 5th, the police came to the site with cranes and surrounded the workers and their family members who had come to the factory. Some union members who had climbed to a tower were also attacked by a commando unit. Around 200 members were arrested. The workers and their families were chased out of the factory onto the streets of Ulsan, joined by hundreds of supporters and demonstrations continued late into the evening - the police beating on the workers with clubs and tear gas, the workers retaliating with rocks and molotov cocktails. Many unionists stayed on the top of the tower, bearing through the threats of the police from helicopters. Demonstrations continued through the 8th and the 9th, joined by other workers of the Ulsan area and supporters from all around the country. Thousands of workers and supporters gathered in the city centre and tried to go back to the factory, but were blocked by police. Many were severely injured - some with brain hemorrhages and bone fractures. (Photos)
It seems that brutal bombards onto workers who are fighting for their basic rights are becoming customary ways for the government to tackle increasing labour disputes. Neo-liberalists and capitalists have become impatient and complained at the government which from their point of view is too lethargic in its enforcement of neo-liberal policies, such as privatization, mitigation of regulations, downsizing and restructuring etc.. The government, not wanting to displease the capitalists, is playing puppet to them, as was also the case with the delay in the enactment of Maternity Protection Laws. The workers of Daewoo, Carrier, KT and Hyosung, just a few amongst many, were sacrificed to curve the growing criticisms and dissatisfaction at the government, to show the capitalists that the government is actually doing 'something' to become an active player in the global economy. Tens of thousands of workers are being beaten and sacked, there is no social welfare to support these people, some are literally fighting for their lives in hospitals and capitalists tap busily on their calculators to figure out their increased profits. This is the picture of workers in Korea, just like anywhere else in the world.
However, what is more deplorable for the women, part-time or contract workers is not merely the continuous suppression by the government but the abandonment and disparage from the male,
full-time workers. Women and part-time workers are thought to be threatening the jobs of full-time male workers. Hyundai Motors union betrayed the women workers at their moment of desperation, the Korea Telecom full-time workers' union (contract workers have formed their own independant union) which has been taken over by reactionary forces agreed to the separation of the 114 unit, and the Carrier full-time workers' union stood by with the arms crossed as the subcontract workers were dragged out of their workplaces. It is an innate characteristic of capitalism to divide-and-rule, and it is indeed the structure of society that should be criticised. Yet it is not enough to say that 'these differences have to be overcome and the working class has to unite'. This has become a mere rhetoric that is now used by those willing to play their part in the strategies of capital, surrendering themselves to the ideologies of the oppressors and discriminating other workers. It is essential for the workers of 'minority' to organize autonomously, as the part-time KT and Carrier workers, and the migrant workers and women workers are doing.
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