Labor activists stage rallies despite concerns of virus spikes
Labor activists pushed ahead with street rallies in Seoul and other major cities Saturday despite concerns over spikes in COVID-19 infections. Yonhap
Labor activists pushed ahead with street rallies in Seoul and other major cities Saturday despite concerns over spikes in COVID-19 infections.
The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), a major umbrella labor organization, and about 20 affiliated unions took to the streets across the country to stage scores of small-scale demonstrations in commemoration of the 50th year since Chun Tae-il, a pioneer of the nation's labor activism, self-immolated, Nov. 13, 1970, in the cause of workers' rights
In Seoul alone, the KCTU and progressive groups were allowed to hold 31 rallies at 61 locations. Conservative groups also reported plans for 47 political demonstrations in 85 locations in the capital, according to the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.
The rallies came as the nation's new coronavirus cases exceeded 200 for the first time in 73 days amid lingering infection clusters nationwide.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency reported 205 more COVID-19 infections, including 166 local ones, raising the total caseload to 28,338. The number of new infections has stayed in triple digits for seven consecutive days.
The KCTU said participants strictly complied with anti-coronavirus guidelines, including wearing masks and keeping safe distances, during the demonstrations. The number of participants at each gathering was kept below 100 under social distancing rules.
"We are checking body temperatures of the participants and making sure that total numbers do not exceed 99," an official from the KCTU said.
From Seoul to central Daejeon to the southern island of Jeju, the protests proceeded mostly peacefully, with participants sitting in, marching and chanting slogans on roads and squares.
Police parked a number of buses in front of the National Assembly on Yeouido, southern Seoul, to protect against protestors participating in a KCTU rally near the premises.
But police refrained from establishing barricades in central Seoul as protesters voluntarily restricted the number of participants, unlike early October when parked buses walled off Gwanghwamun Square and nearby areas.
"We have deployed around 7,000 officers across the city to prepare for unexpected incidents," a police official in Seoul said.
Earlier in the day, President Moon Jae-in made a last-minute appeal for organizers to cancel the rallies.
"The rallies should be reconsidered," Moon said in a Facebook post. "Freedom of assembly matters but the safety of the people is more important," he added.
He warned of stern legal action against any illegal acts and breaches of social distancing rules during the rallies.
Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun said on Facebook that the government will take measures to ensure participants comply with COVID-19 guidelines and will firmly respond to violators and thoroughly hold them accountable.
"We will do our best to prevent today's rallies from becoming a trigger for the spread of COVID-19," Chung said.
Seoul police also warned they will promptly crack down on the rallies should the number of participants in each gathering increase sharply.
"We will advise participants to follow health guidelines while limiting the number of participants," a police official said. "If the number exceeds the limit, we will take stern action, including dispersing them."
South Korea, despite being considered to be one of most successful countries in terms of managing the virus pandemic, has suffered a slew of infection clusters since identifying its first patient in late January.
In the early stages of the pandemic, the country reported a whopping 5,200 cases of COVID-19 traced to a minor church sect in the southeastern city of Daegu. Later in the year, 280 were reported from a nightlife district in the capital.
More recently, 650 cases were traced to an anti-government rally held in central Seoul, Aug. 15. A conservative church in northern Seoul, whose members also participated in the demonstration, added another 1,173 infections. (Yonhap)