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| Police officers carry out a box of seized article from the headquarters of the Korean Confederation of Trade unions in central Seoul, Saturday. It was the first time for police to raid the union's headquarters since its establishment in 1995. / Yonhap |
By Kim Rahn
Police have raided the headquarters of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) as part of an investigation into acts of violence committed during the huge anti-government rally that the umbrella union organized on Nov. 14.
It was the first time that police have raided the headquarters since the confederation was established in 1995.
Nearly 700 officers from the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency (SMPA) and several police stations within central Seoul removed computers, documents, books and other material from the headquarters and offices of seven affiliated unions in central Seoul, Saturday.
An additional 1,840 officers were mobilized to the the area during the six-hour raid because another clash with unionists was anticipated.
According to police, the KCTU, the main organizer of the rally, allegedly plotted and led acts of violence such as beating police officers with steel pipes and destroying police vehicles.
Police said that some union members allegedly helped KCTU head Han Sang-gyun escape police and take shelter in the Jogye Temple in Seoul. He stayed in the temple last week to avoid being served with an arrest warrant previously issued for allegedly organizing previous illegal rallies.
Among the material seized, police said that they found a police walkie-talkie and a helmet, which they suspect were taken from police officers at the rally. They also said they found axes, hammers and ropes, and planned to interrogate KCTU members about why they had such items.
Police said hard disks at the offices had been removed -- in a possible attempt to hide evidence.
"We need to investigate further whether the items were really used in the Nov. 14 rally," a SMPA police officer said.
It is rare for police to disclose what they have seized during such raids.
The KCTU strongly protested against the raid, saying it was aimed at diverting attention away from the violent crackdown on demonstrators, with one protester still unconscious after being hit by spray from a water cannon.
"Police have not made a single apology to the protester, who is hanging between life and death," a KCTU official told a media briefing. "And now they are trying to avoid criticism by framing us as public security offenders."
The KCTU said the police also secured material about rallies in April, unrelated to the Nov. 14 rally.
"This shows police aim to annihilate all social movements critical of the government," an official said."
A KCTU spokesman said the axes had been used to cut wood when unionists staged outdoor rallies in the provinces. The hammers were used during shows to smash ice sculptures.
"Only an hour after the raid, police disclosed the seized items, although they do not know yet whether these were used in the rally.
"This aims at manipulating public opinion so that the KCTU will be regarded as a group that uses violence."
