South Korean Autoworkers Under Attack

Korean Auto Plant Occupation Faces Police Attack

As the attacks on workers mount, Ssangyong strikers are asking for you to take action. Organize a protest in front of your local South Korean embassy or delegation (find locations at http://www.dynamic-korea.com/consulate_service/information2.php). Take photos and send them to the Korean Metal Workers Union at inter@metal.nadong.org. If you’re not close to a delegation site, send protest letters to President Lee Myung-bak through the Consulate-General, 2320 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20008.

Photos: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/gallery/2009/aug/04/south-korea-automoti...

STORY:
Members of the Korean Metal Workers Union occupying their auto plant are under police attack. Doctors have been denied access to the plant, despite hundreds of injuries among the sit-down strikers. Photo: KCTU.

Members of the Korean Metal Workers Union who have occupied their auto plant near Seoul since May 22 are facing intense assaults from police and now a management threat to liquidate the firm.

Protesting mass layoffs, about 600 sit-down strikers have faced weeks of raids by police and company-hired strikebreakers. The strikers have been denied food, access to drinking water, and medical supplies since July 20.

Talks over the weekend to end the occupation were suspended, with the union refusing to accept layoffs and calling for a “last-minute struggle” if Ssangyong Motor follows through on its threat to shutter the plant. One-third of the workforce, 2,600 workers, were initially slated for layoff.

The Ssangyong occupation occurs in a global wave of resistance to management dictates: travel-agency workers in Ireland are sitting-in, auto-parts workers in France are locking their bosses into their offices, and British wind-turbine workers have taken over their manufacturing plant.

Police in Korea have set up a series of blockades to stop supporters from delivering supplies. They’ve forcibly stopped family members from entering the plant with food and water, arresting 82 supporters over two days recently.

Union members and supporters report that police are using unrestrained force. About 4,000 riot police in around 30 vehicles have been mobilized, wielding water cannons, ladder trucks, and helicopters against the strikers and their support lines.

Police and management have denied doctors access to the plant, and strikers say they are suffering from progressively worsening injuries resulting from chemical substances police have dropped on them.

The last medical intervention occurred July 22, when two doctors were allowed inside to perform emergency surgery to remove taser gun hooks shot into a striker’s face. Doctors had estimated more than 200 strikers had injuries requiring medical attention.

Ssangyong, the country's smallest car company, is known for its production of SUVs and luxury sedans.

A July 29 solidarity demonstration organized by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions was swiftly shut down by police. Demonstrators were met with 10 helicopters flying close to the ground, dropping chemical agents on them. As the crowd disbursed, some attempted to march toward factory gates, where police sprayed them with cannons mixing water and tear gas.