CINA

Related stuff:

Police on High Alert.. (Korea Times, 6.10)

Police Tuesday stand on high alert nationwide ahead of massive candlelight rallies opposing the government's resumption of U.S. beef imports.

Organizers expect nearly 1 million people to take to the streets to join the rally that coincides with the 21st anniversary of the June 10 pro-democracy protests.

The National Police Agency issued a "Gapho'' alert at 9 a.m., ordering all police forces to be on standby until the rallies come to an end. About 37,000 police officers were mobilized across the country, and 10 of 14 traffic lanes in the Gwanghwamun area in central Seoul were closed with containers. Police plan to close the remaining four lanes in the afternoon..

To prevent demonstrators from approaching Cheong Wa Dae, police blocked three main roads to the presidential office with 60 containers. They built a wall of containers instead of patrol buses in Gwanghwamun, as protestors had attacked and destroyed them in previous rallies. Police sealed the containers tight by welding them, so as to ensure protestors could not push them down...

☞ 경찰, 컨테이너박스로 세종로 틀어막아 (통일뉴스, 6.10)

Vigils show public distrust of Lee (K. Herald, 6.10)
 
What initially began as a protest against U.S. beef imports has now turned into an anti-government rally calling for the resignation of President Lee Myung-bak, who demonstrators claim has bypassed due democratic procedures by disregarding public opinion.

In the wake of the controversial April 18 deal, tens of thousands of people have gathered for candlelight vigils for weeks in Seoul and other parts of the nation, taking to the streets to present their collective opposition.

Struggling to assuage deteriorating public outrage, the government has taken action, including calling on U.S. President George W. Bush to cooperate in banning the trade of meat from cattle aged 30 months or older, cited as dangerous for human consumption.

Such efforts, however, appeared to be too late or too weak to appease the citizens disenchanted over a series of policies against "the will of the public."

Citizens are upset over the "environmentally sensitive" project to build a cross-country canal and the appointment of Cabinet ministers suspected of unethical activities, as well as the decision to resume the imports of U.S. beef.

"I just can't trust (the president), who keeps changing his policy line. He is backing from his initial firm stance and making changes to the deal only after seeing the growing public backlash," said Bahk Seo-hyun, 29, an office worker in Seoul.

"When he appointed rich ministers, he said it was not right to rebuke them just because of their wealth. But, he recently admitted that his Cabinet appointments were problematic. Completely ignorant of public sentiment, he has frequently changed his stance, further baffling people," she added.

Some protesters noted that President Lee's CEO-style management of state affairs contributed partially to the public outrage.

"He has pursued most of his policies without public consensus properly formed. I feel that the former head of Hyundai Engineering and Construction Co. thinks of himself as a chief executive of the Korea corporation comprising 50 million employees," said Hong Seo-dong, 50, a supermarket owner in Seoul.

"At his inauguration ceremony in February, he vowed to 'serve' people. Now, I guess he meant only the top one percent of the people, not the ordinary citizens that truly need assistance from the government," said Baek Dong-soo, 48, graphic designer.

Some dismissed Lee's recent phone talks with the U.S. President as a "political stunt" to quiet down public uproar over the beef deal.

"With only simple phone talks, nothing can be guaranteed. For it to be recognized as an international trade pact, it must be put into the form of an official document. As waves of protests keep surging, the president is trying to placate the public," said Song Ki-seong, 66, a director of a welfare center in Seoul.

Some pointed out that the president has failed to genuinely communicate with the people.

"The president appears to interpret domestic situations from his own perspective and reach unilateral judgments on them without taking into account how the public would react. He initially promoted U.S. beef as safe, which gave me an impression that he was working as a representative of the U.S. livestock industry, not of Korea's," said Lee Hyun-ju, 28, a job seeker in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province.

Many, however, are concerned that the protests are getting increasingly violent, running counter to their initial purpose of letting the public voices be heard through peaceful demonstrations.

"While watching violent clashes between protesters and riot police, I felt very ashamed. The government should be blamed for having not thoroughly prepared for the deal. However, just continuing protests without thoughts of how to cope with the crisis appears to be no good for the future of our nation," said Shim Gyu-in, 28, a graduate school student at Yonsei University.

"Aside from such beef issues, there are many daunting tasks the government must push for to help the nation join the ranks of advanced nations. Calling for the ouster of the president whose term passed slightly over 100 days is ridiculous," says Kang Dong-heun, 30, a high-school teacher in Incheon.

Some cautioned that the protests against U.S. beef could stir anti-U.S. sentiment across the nation unless the government comes up with a judicious way to quell the public outrage.

"When you buy even green onions, the buyer rather than the vendor is in a position of demanding what you want," said Park Soon, 62, a housewife in Seoul.

"Unless the government scraps or brings the deal back to the drawing board, the issue could eventually stir up public resentment against the United States," she added.  

☞ Biz Organizations Call for End to Demonstrations Over US Beef (K. Times, 6.10)

李정부 박살내자!

6.10항쟁의 깃발을 들고 노동해방,

인간해방으로 나아가자!

자본주의 박살내자!