CINA

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In the last weeks, when we had to read articles/statements by the S.K. left media/organizations comparing the policy of the current (LMB) gov't with the (fascist) dictatorships in S.K.'s past, some people thought that such comparisons are (likely) a little to exaggerated. But after the "enjoyment" of following news...

Leftwing Academic Held for Subversion (Chosun Ilbo, 8.27)

Oh Se-cheol, a professor emeritus of Yonsei University and prominent leftwing academic, was arrested on Tuesday on charges of breaching the National Security Law. Oh’s arrest is seen as a start of a government crackdown on leftwing organizations which grew and expanded their realm of activities under the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun administrations.
 

Seoul Metropolitan Police said they received an arrest warrant and a search and seizure warrant for eight members of the Socialist Workers League of Korea, including Oh, and arrested seven of them on Tuesday. Police seized CDs, computers and diaries in their homes and offices.

The SWLK was founded in February this year, and publicly proclaims its aim of building a revolutionary socialist labor party. It also aims for nationalization of business and financial groups and abolition of police and standing army.

However, this does not mean the SWLK is pro-North Korea: on its homepage it calls the North “a hierarchical anti-worker society that is exploitative and repressive” and “a reactionary regime that must be overthrown by the workers.”

http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200808/200808270019.html

It's very remarkable, that "Oh’s arrest is seen as a start of a government crackdown on (other) leftwing organizations.." This may be a concrete threat against many other organizations in S.K., such as DLP ("The Socialist Alternative"), All Together ("Anti-capitalist Workers Movement"), several "radical" parts of the KCTU and other "peoples' resistance" groups and organizations...
SWLK may be only the first (supposed weak) target group, but the massive fleet of solidarity statements released since y'day by many other (student/workers/civil right...) groups shows that the S.K. progressive resistance is realizing the threat (*)!

Economist Nabbed for Praising Socialism.. (Korea Times)
 

Police arrested a renowned economist for speaking out against capitalism, which is in violation of the National Security Law. Civic groups and academics are criticizing the government for suppressing so-called progressive scholars over false information.

Some are worrying whether these new moves will bring back the "public security'' era when police used excessive force against people under the name of "keeping the peace'' in the authoritarian era of the 1970s and 1980s.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said Wednesday it had arrested Oh Se-cheol, honorary professor at Yonsei University, and seven other Socialist Workers League of Korea members on Tuesday. The eight are now being questioned in Ogin-dong, central Seoul, over whether they have criticized capitalism and praised socialism as well as other acts considered benefiting the enemy ― the North Korea.

The police spokesman said Oh, chairman of the league, and others have released leaflets and other materials denouncing liberal capitalism. The group's flags were seen at the candlelit protests against U.S. beef imports, he added.

The investigative body also said Oh openly sought the establishment of a revolutionary socialist group saying, ``We are the revolutionary forces that declare the world proletarian revolution publicly and express the determination to struggle with the proletariat of the world including Korea in the history of the workers' movement and communist movement in Korea after 1945,'' on the group's Web site.

However, academia and others are criticizing the police's moves since Oh is well known for denouncing North Korea. Roh Hoe-chan of the minor New Progressive Party said, "Oh and his groups constantly said the North has been polluted with other ideas in socialism, which all socialists should `refrain from following'. Shouldn't the group be defined as anti-North Korean?''

About 10 civic groups held protests in front of the investigation room saying, "Why should they be punished for talking about what they believe in, which is obviously not praising the enemy?''

"Oh criticized capitalism even under the military junta in the 1970s but was never prosecuted for violating the law. I do not understand the government's ethics on the issue,'' Prof. Han Sang-hee of Konkuk University said calling for the government's respect on a variety of social ideas.

Some speculate the investigation will see a revival of the debate about whether the National Security Law should be abolished. The law bans all kinds of praise, promotion or sympathy toward the enemy. In this case, the enemy is North Korea, experts say...

http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/nation/2008/08/117_30105.html

☞ Police crack down on socialist organization (JoongAng Ilbo)

☞ This Is Not How Democracies Behave (The Marmot's Hole)

☞ Unusual Suspects (1) (OneFreeKorea)

* For example:

☞ MTU's Solidarity Statement