Lesson From Tragedy - The Korea Times

Time to Prevent Conflicts Over Redevelopment Projects

The announcement of the prosecution's investigation into the tragic deaths of six people should serve as the first step toward a fundamental solution to frequent conflicts over redevelopment projects. The prosecution made public Monday the results of its probe into a deadly fire in Yongsan, central Seoul, which took place Jan. 20 during a police raid on tenants opposing the redevelopment of the area.

What's noteworthy is that the prosecution cleared the police of any criminal charges, concluding that they were not directly responsible for causing the fire. Investigators said the blaze was caused by the protesters' mishandling of a large amount of paint thinners. However, bereaved family members and rights activists are refusing to accept the investigation results because they still believe that an excessive police crackdown led to the deaths.

In this context, it is not easy for the authorities to calm the mounting controversy over the violent crackdown conducted by a police SWAT team. The prosecution indicted 20 protesters and seven private security guards hired by developers for their involvement in the incident. However, many questions remain. Thus, the prosecution is required to conduct more probes into the case to get to the bottom of the incident.

First of all, all the parties implicated in the case should learn a painful lesson from the tragedy, which could have been prevented. They must not deal with the incident as only a one-time occurrence to prevent it from taking place again. About 200 redevelopment and reconstruction projects are now under way in Seoul alone. It's difficult to dispel concerns over the recurrence of such a tragedy.

It's urgent for the government and local authorities to actively intervene in redevelopment projects so that they can help solve conflicts between developers and residents. Residents, especially tenants, have shown an increasing tendency to resort to violence against the redevelopment because compensation is not enough to allow them to lead decent lives elsewhere. Therefore, it is necessary for developers to offer sufficient financial rewards to residents.

One potential solution is that the state or municipal authorities take over developers' role. It is also imperative to lay the legal groundwork to make urban redevelopment a win-win game for both developers and residents. Lawmakers and politicians of governing and opposition parties had better refrain from stepping up partisan struggles by making the use of the Yongsan case.

On the other hand, police should take a more cautious approach toward sit-ins by tenants to avoid criticism for excessive use of force or violent crackdowns. It's truly regrettable that no one is ready to take moral or legal responsibility for the deaths of the protesters. Kim Seok-ki, the outgoing chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, needs to show that the buck stops with him. Kim, also a nominee for the head of the National Police Agency, should pay more heed to people's calls to not accept the offer for the top police post.

We hope that different groups of different interests will learn how to solve their conflicts through dialog and negotiations so that they can build a more mature and democratic society. The government should not neglect its important role as an arbitrator of social, political and economic conflicts.