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by Christian / Base21 Media Activists
dvs-b@t-online.de

In July we wrote that the struggle against crack down and deportation of migrant workers here reached its highest point, but short after this the reality taught us something else: The movement started to decrease and so ETU-MB (Equality Trade Union � Migrants� Branch) expected for the last Demonstration, planned to be held in Ansan, a industrial town South West of Seoul expected a kind of disaster, even here are living and working many migrants.

The rally was planned to start at 2 pm. But until 2.30 pm only 30 migrants came there.
But the reality taught us again something else. Around 3.30 pm nearly 150 mainly migrants (last Sunday, in contrast to the last demonstrations, there were only few Korean supporters) started with a demonstration through Ansan. During the march the crowd was growing and growing till several hundred migrants � Indonesian, Chinese, Filipinos, Bangladeshis and other nationalities.

All in all it was a very successful event - even it was raining cats and dogs - and ETU-MB found out that it makes much more sense when migrant unionists go to areas where migrant workers are living and working instead of running around downtown Seoul.

Quite a lot of new migrants ETU-MB were able to address and some were really interested to take an active part in the union. Also some women (from Nepal) on Sunday took the first time an active part in the preparation and execution of the rally/demo.

And perhaps next time in Ansan there will be much more participants, because on Sunday many migrants fallowed us, but weren뭪 ready to join us directly, because, maybe, they were to afraid to join. Fallowing the final rally, around 120 riot cops tried two times to provoke, together with several new interested migrants and ETU-MB members a evaluation took place in the Ansan headquarter of KCTU (Korean Confederation of Trade Unions).

Like in Ansan in Daegu, the third biggest town in South Korea, on Sunday a Migrant workers demonstration took place, the first in the history of migrant workers there. In the present time the Universiade take place there and ETU-MB wanted to use the large audience to draw their attention on the problems of migrants they뭨e faced in South Korea. More than 80 migrants and their supporters - remember, it was the first migrant demonstration ever in Daegu - shouted slogans and delivered leaflets to the audience of Universiade and citizens of Daegu. ETU-MB held two rallies, one in front of Universiade village and one in front of one of the main stadiums there, where in the same time a woman soccer game took place. All participants, but also some bystanders assessed the rallies as very positive and successful. One of the organizing team members of the rally in Deagu: 밫his was only the beginning, but I뭢 sure that our movement here will fast increasing. Many here never heard before that it is possible to organize resistance against government뭩 policy and now, after they saw our rallies, they are not so afraid anymore like before.�