CINA

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Last week The Hankyoreh published an article about the collaboration between the police and so-called "security guards". And I added that's not a new realization!

Since many years it's a common practice for the construction mafia (i.e. the construction companies who are involved in the "redevelopment" projects) to use such kind of "security guards" (in reality they are just organized gangs of criminals) to intimidate and terrorize residents/tenants who are resisting their evictions. And "normally" the "service" of the "security guards" has (at least) the approval by the appropriate (city/district) authorities and the police.

Usually, when the "security guards" are on the move to attack resisting residents/tenants, they're backed by (in some cases in the past) thousands of riot cops. Some "very famous" examples: the Ilsan/Pung-dong Struggle (spring/summer 2004) and the attack on Seoul's Samgak/Suha-dong (winter 2004/05).

Anyway, today's Hankyoreh published following up-to-date report:

Construction companies hiring security guards

to intimidate residents in Yongsan

Area residents and businesspeople claim guards use violence, including verbal threats and blackmail

The recent deadly police crackdown on demonstrators in Yongsan, which left five civilians and one police officer dead, is putting the spotlight on security guards hired to use violence to evict residents to make way for redevelopment projects. Like many sites slated for redevelopment, the Yongsan area has been cited as a place where security guards have used diverse types of violence on residents and store owners to facilitate the redevelopment process.

Horam Construction, a small demolition company, is currently spearheading efforts to evict residents and businesses near Yongsan Station, where the deadly demonstration took place. Another company, Hyunam Construction, was hired to evict people living and doing business near the ChungAng University Medical Center building, also in the Yongsan area. Residents in both areas claim that the two companies used diverse types of violence, including verbal threats and blackmail, to force them out.

Ms. Kim, the owner of a convenience store in Yongsan, said, “Last summer, a few security guards stormed into our store and threatened our part-time female staff, saying, ‘Are you also a member of Jun Chul Yun, b**ch?,’” referring to the Federation Against House Demolition, which is suspected of having played a leading role in the protest. Kim said that she reported the incident to the police immediately, but that it took 30 minutes for officers to arrive at the scene. “I showed police a CCTV tape that recorded the threats of the security guards and told them that they prevented me from doing business, but no actual measures were taken.”

An anonymous official at Hyunam Construction admitted that some hired security guards use violence on residents, but added that Jun Chul Yun is also to be blamed for such clashes. “It’s true that some security guards use violence.” The individual went on to explain that residents seldom accept offers of compensation in exchange for moving out of areas slated for redevelopment, and said that this is because Jun Chul Yun forbids such action by individual members.

Officially, Hyunam claims that it has not used any violence on residents. Tenants and store owners, however, say that security guards have harassed them in many different ways. They say they have had stinking garbage dumped on their property or water poured on the roofs of their homes.

Yu Eui-seon, an activist with another tenants’ rights group, said, “The main mission of these security guards was to demolish vacant houses, but the mission seems to have changed and includes evicting tenants. The reason why they use such unbridled violence might be because they feel they have the support of large construction firms, which are often seeking to complete lucrative redevelopment projects as quickly as possible.”

http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/335462.html