Anti-FTA groups stage rally
Korea Times | 15 January 2007
Anti-FTA Groups Stage Rally
By Kang Shin-who
Staff Reporter
Civic groups and labor unions staged a series of rallies against the Korea-U.S. free trade agreement (FTA) as new round of FTA talks opened Monday. The anti-FTA groups estimated at about 2 million people will also have a large-scale protest at downtown Seoul on Tuesday.
The police banned all protests by the civic groups worrying about potential violent clashes and traffic congestion, but the leftist Democratic Labor Party registered its rally as resolution event of the party.
Although the rally is likely to draw other civic groups and labor unions, there is no way to ban it according to rallies and demonstration laws, the police said.
Authorities deployed 15,000 riot police in Seoul and tightened security to deter possible violence.
A civic group involved with violent anti-FTA protests last December also plans to hold a series of protest rallies during the negotiations until Friday.
A series of news conference was held and nine leftist lawmakers from the party launched a hunger strike for five days at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul, the venue for the sixth round of talks to oppose the deal in downtown.
"We are here to protest the FTA because we believe it will devastate the livelihood of low-income people and our nation," Kwon Young-gil, a representative of the group, said.
Following yesterday’s demonstration, about 30,000 farmers, laborers and Oriental medical college students joined the large-scale rally in downtown Seoul and marched toward the Shilla Hotel after the rally, chanting anti-globalization slogans.
Farmers and laborers have strongly opposed the deal because it would damage their livelihoods. The demonstrations have often turned violent.
Last November, over 73,000 farmers, workers and activists collided with riot police in 13 cities and 63 people were injured, including 35 police officers and causing some 670 million won ($720,000) in property damage nationwide.
