Arrests and Blockades   2008-07-01 05:25

Shortly after the all-night protest of June 28-29 ended, the police cordoned off Seoul Plaza with buses and armed personnel. Seoul Plaza, which can accommodate 50,000 people or more, has been a popular venue of candlelight vigils and protests of late. As a result of the blockade, demonstrators were forced to gather in less convenient locations throughout central Seoul, and only in groups of a few thousand or less. Their smaller size and geographical dispersal made them ideal for the government to suppress. Over the last couple of days, hundreds of citizens have been arrested for taking part in demonstrations.

Seoul Plaza cordoned off. A few who remained in the plaza were told to leave.

Young women and men get arrested for participating in protests.

In the meantime, the head office of the Coalition of NGO's that has been organizing the demonstrations was raided by the police, and some of the leaders were arrested. The official explanation is that the Coalition violated, and encouraged the violation of, the Law on Assembly and Demonstration. The same charge is being laid against each and every protester. As I reported in a few other posts, that law is open to all sorts of convenient interpretation by the government. Until mid-June, the government's position was that citizens could get together as they wish as long as they do not interfere with motor traffic. Now the police is indiscriminately arresting even those who protest on the sidewalk. Some individuals, including high school students, were arrested and/or kept away from protest-prone areas merely for wearing "Candlelight Girl" T-shirts. (That's the cartoon character shown at the top of this page, next to the English translation of Article 1 of the Korean Constitution. She has become the unofficial mascot of peaceful protests in Korea.)

The crackdown upon the Coalition, however, did nothing to prevent further protest. Though the Coalition had organized the protests at the beginning, our protests now have a life of its own. We don't need any particular group to lead our rallies. Yesterday (June 30), a group of Catholic priests and nuns took it upon themselves to lead the demonstrators. 40,000 citizens -- most of them non-Catholics -- rallied with them. Catholics, though small in number, had played a large role in the democratization movements of the 80's. Myeongdong Cathedral in central Seoul used to serve as a sanctuary for anti-dictatorship protesters. That reputation has somewhat faded in recent years, but last night's gathering gives us hope that once again we may count on Catholics in Korea to protect our democracy. For that matter, not only Catholics but also some Protestants and Buddhists are planning similar demonstrations. Protestants are currently split in their political views, because President Lee himself is a member of a fundamentalist wing; but a number of other Protestant groups seem more than willing to take part in anti-Lee protests.

Catholic priests march with citizen demonstrators, declaring themselves "protectors of the candlelight". Nuns also participate actively in sit-in demonstrations.

protesters confront the police. Flags represent the various groups, political parties, and NGO's represented, but ordinary citizens still comprise a majority of the crowd.

Perhaps it is about time for the Coalition to step back and let the citizens organize themselves. There have been lots of concerns -- especially on Daum Agora and related online forums -- that (1) the Coalition is too preoccupied with the particular issue of U.S. beef imports, whereas there are lots of other issues that must be resolved; and (2) it is led by professional activists who still try to do things the old-fashioned (80's) way, which causes unnecessary frictions between them and protesters of the new generation. During the notorious Styrofoam Debate of June 11, a number of professional activists affiliated with the Coalition had tried to convince citizens to use highly flammable styrofoam blocks to climb over a grease-covered police barricade. They totally ignored the candle-holding citizens' concern that the entire construction could catch fire in an instant. Since then, many People have been calling for the Coalition to step back and give the wheel back to ordinary citizens. Though the arrest of Coalition activists and the raid on their office are clearly unjust and unfortunate, perhaps we can turn even this injustice into an opportunity to make our protests more effective. After all, hundreds of otherwise unrelated groups are represented in the latest demonstrations. Why should a particular group (or a group of groups) pretend to lead everyone else and claim credit for organizing it all? Nobody deserves such credit but each and every citizen and group who took it to the streets.

In addition, the presence of Catholic priests and nuns seems to have a soothing effect on everyone's emotions. There were no violent conflicts last night, unlike when the Coalition was in charge. Though arrests continue in various locations, citizens are protesting peacefully once again. Though we'll have to wait and see how long the peace can last in the face of indiscriminate arrests, I for one certainly welcome the return of peace -- at least on our side of the barricade.

a banner distributed by one of the NGO's says: "The People will bring judgment upon you, Lee Myung-Bak!" White block letters on a red background have become just as ubiquitous as the Candlelight Girl. Since the FIFA World Cup Games in 2002 when the Korean team made it to the semi-finals wearing red uniforms, red has become a symbol of the Korean People rather than a symbol of communism that it had been.

A young couple participate in candlelight protests, holding red banners similar to the one above as well as a green one which is also commonly seen nowadays. The green banner lists all the policies (unrestricted import of U.S. beef, total deregulation of public education, abolishment of universal health care, and privatization of various public utilities) that are at issue, together with the words: "Lee Myung-Bak, OUT!"

Just in case somebody still wants to characterize the recent turmoil in Korea as a conflict between anti-American populism and pro-American government, here's the picture of an American citizen who participated in the protest of June 28-29. Riot police beat him in the face, and he needed a fair number of stitches. What did the "pro-American" government and the U.S. embassy in Korea do to help him and punish his attacker? Nothing. What did the "anti-American" citizens do? Tended to his injuries and gave him encouragement.

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