CINA

Yesterday, 12.4, the annual Peoples Demonstration took the streets in Seoul.

The demonstration, organized by Peoples Solidarity, the National Peasents League, KCTU and many other organizations started with several rallies in Seoul’s University district Daehak-no. The main topics of the demo: (of course) the police brutality during the peasents' protest against the bill of increasing the quota of rice import (it was already reported about it here..), the current "General Strike" by KCTU for better rights and conditions of irregular workers, the wish of withdrawal of the S.K. troops out of Iraq...

After the rallies a mass demonstration, Minjung-ui Sori wrote 15,000 people participated, took the streets in downtown Seoul, leading to the Sejong-no/Jong-no crossroads, THE main traffic lines in the city.

Of course here at first, as usual, everything was blocked by police buses and large units of the infamous riot cops.

But after a while the demonstrators just took a detour around City Hall Plaza and finally, despite thousands of riot cops and water canon tanks, they were able to take the Sejong-no avenue to finish the demonstration there.

Source of the pics: Minjung-ui Sori

A little the entire thing is remembering me at the anti-USFK demonstrations in the end of 2002, where tens of thousands of unarmed people were running over, sometimes, 20,000 riot cops.

If there would be an realistic aim what for the people were on the streets yesterday, and maybe 90,000 demonstrators more, a revolution, just by the power of the people would be possible. You just have to see the documentaries... the cops, complete confused..., no plan, not at all... But unfortunately yesterday, perhaps, no-one wanted to make revolution...(^^) So, after all, situations like that are just good opportunities for training for the future...(^^) Here you can read an article in Korean and see three video docus about the event:

http://www.vop.co.kr/new/2005120433661.html

And here you can see some more impressive pictures from y'day:

http://blog.jinbo.net/torirun/?pid=163

On Saturday, 3.12, afternoon in Seoul’s Insa-dong, a small rally was held to mark the "Day of Global Protest on Climate Change". But while, for example in London at the same day 10,000 people blamed Blair as a "Killer of our planet" and in Montreal, Canada – here right now the International Climate Conference take place – about 40,000 people demonstrated against the "climate killers", in Seoul, one of the dirtiest cities, just maximum 150 joined the protest.

Source: Daham-kke

A Korean article you can read here:

http://www.vop.co.kr/new/2005120333647.html

At the same day in the evening in Myeong-dong, actually also in downtown Seoul, a small demonstratin ("unlawful"?? - There is no law for us!!!) took place to protest against the police brutality during the farmers demonstration on 11.15.

Source: Minjung-ui Sori

About 150 people, so Minjung-ui Sori, joined the demo. The Korean article (there is also a video) you can read here:

http://www.vop.co.kr/new/2005120333654.html

Ha, and the semi-official news agency Yonhap wrote yesterday (7 pm) about the peoples demo this:

5,000 workers, farmers stage street protests in Seoul

About 5,000 workers and farmers rallied in downtown Seoul on Sunday, demanding greater protection of part-time employees and the local farm market.

There were no immediate reports of violence in the protest, organized by the Korean Confederation of Trade Union, a major umbrella labor group, but traffic was seriously jammed in and around Gwanghwamun, a major intersection of the capital.