By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter
A video clip showing riot police kicking a female protester is adding weight to claims that police are using excessive force against participants in candlelit rallies against American beef imports.
In the 5-minute-long clip, a riot police officer grabbed a female protester's hair and threw her down beside a parked police bus. As she was attempting to crawl under the bus, the officer relentlessly kicked her in the head and stood on her neck. She managed to get beneath the bus screaming out in pain. Another police officer at the scene then hurriedly stopped the video camera from recording.
Online news provider Kukinews recorded the clip at midnight Sunday when protesters tried to march along roads leading to the presidential house.
The victim was later found out to be Lee Na-rae, 21, a student at the Seoul National University's music college.
Lee told local media she was assaulted twice that night. ``I was first beaten while coming out of the bus. A riot police officer grabbed my hair and threw me down,'' she was quoted as saying. ``I was assaulted again later and other protesters helped rescue me. The clip on the Internet is about the first beating.''
She is still suffering from a headache. ``I feel pain through my whole body especially in my head. It's getting worse,'' she said. Lee is considering filing a lawsuit against the police.
Separately, a male protester sustained an injury to his eyes on the same night after being hit by a water cannon.
Kim young-kwon, 36, said in an interview with an Internet news provider that the water jet blasted his eyes, leaving his eyesight damaged. Following the incident, he was taken to Severance Hospital in Sinchon, and underwent emergency treatment. The media outlet quoted a doctor as saying ``Nothing is certain as of now. But his impaired eyes will recover should he take proper treatment.''
The Lawyers for Democratic Society denounced the violent acts by police in a statement issued Monday, adding the story of a female lawyer who was assaulted. According to the statement, the lawyer participated in the Sunday rally to monitor whether police infringed upon human rights. The lawyers' association alleged a policeman beat her chest with a riot shield and took her to the police office for questioning although she clarified her identity. It urged the authorities to identify the policeman and discipline him.