CINA

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Y'day the "5th rally to mourn the victims of the Yongsan Massacre" took place in downtown Seoul. Unfortunately only a very, very small number (max. 150) of activists/citizens joined the "event"..

   But, despite the extreme small number of protesters, thousands of riot cops were deployed in downtown Seoul to oppress any "violent public disorder" (^^)...

 (source of the pics: OMN, VoP)

 
More pictures (incl. a short report) here:

☞ '5차범대회' 원천봉쇄, 산발시위 펼쳐

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동지여러분의 연대를 부탁드립니다!
열사정신계승하여 민중권리 쟁취하자
살인정권 폭력정권 이명박정권 박살내자
자본주의 박살내자!

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Since recently the World Economic Crisis (Well, it's not over, not at all!! Some analysts even forecasts an aggravation of the situation!!) is reaching the oil-rich monarchies on the Arab Peninsula.

And like everywhere the most affected are at first the poor and most exploited: hundreds of thousands of migrant workers (*) from South/South-East Asia, the poorer Arab countries and East Africa.

But there are also several thousands of Europeans affected: people with lacking job alternatives in the "own" countries (you can call them also "migrant workers", but well paid..) and many who just want to make remittance.

The following feature in last week's Guardian (UK, 2.13) describes very impressively the current situation in Dubai/UAE:

Dubai's six-year building boom grinds to halt

as financial crisis takes hold

• Expatriates flee as work dries up and visas are rescinded
• Migrant workers forced to leave with debts following them home

Arab tycoons wrapped in traditional headscarves sipped fruit juice cocktails as

they watched Russian models twirl in silk dresses.

It was the most exclusive ticket in town, a private catwalk show to which the

Middle East's biggest spenders had been personally invited.

But if the smiles at this week's Dubai fashion event looked more false than usual,

it was for a reason. The net worth of the VIPs in attendance today is a fraction of

what it was six months ago.

A six-year boom that turned sand dunes into a glittering metropolis, creating the

world's tallest building, its biggest shopping mall and, some say, a shrine to

unbridled capitalism, is grinding to a halt.

Dubai, one of seven states that make up the United Arab Emirates (UAE), is in

crisis.

So too are British expatriates. Many of the estimated 100,000-strong community

came here expecting to make millions in property, and to soak up a lavish lifestyle

living alongside footballers, actors and supermodels.

But the real estate bubble that propelled the frenetic expansion of Dubai on the

back of borrowed cash and speculative investment, has burst.

Many westerners are being made redundant or absconding before the strict legal

system catches up with them.

Half of all the UAE's construction projects, totalling $582bn (£400bn), have either

been put on hold or cancelled, leaving a trail of half-built towers on the outskirts of

the city stretching into the desert.

Among the casualties is the tower Donald Trump promised would be "the ultimate

in luxury", a $100bnresort complex by the beach, and four huge theme parks and

an artificial island developed by the state company Nakheel.

It is not all bad news: the building projects still in play are almost the equivalent of

the US stimulus package. And the city remains a haven for super-rich sheikhs,

billionaire hedge fund managers and Russian oligarchs.

But banks have stopped lending and the stock market has plunged 70%. Scrape

beneath the surface of the fashion parades and VIP parties, and the evidence of

economic slowdown are obvious. Luxury hotels are three-quarters empty.

Shopkeepers in newly-built malls are reporting a drop in sales. In Dubai you

expect to see a Ferrari parked beside a Rolls-Royce. But not, as is the case now,

with scruffy For Sale signs taped to the windows.

Living the dream

Nowhere sums up the fortunes of expatriates in Dubai quite like Palm Jumeirah,

an artificial island fanning out into the Persian Gulf, populated by residents

including the likes of David Beckham, Michael Schumacher and even, it is said,

Afghanistan's president, Hamid Karzai.

At the top of the island stands the Atlantis, a garish $1.5bn hotel complex with

1,539 rooms and a whale shark swimming in a 1 million-litre fish tank.

The Atlantis's $20m inauguration celebration, where the world's A-list celebrities

were treated to 1.7 tonnes of lobster and 1,000 bottles of Veuve Clicquot, was

promoted as the world's biggest party.

For Palm residents, it was followed by an equally impressive hangover. The value

of their villas and apartments on the Palm fell by as much as 60% in just a few

months.

"Drink your last cocktail and get out of here," said Sasha Reynolds, a 33-year-old

airhostess. "My boyfriend is an engineer and work has dried up. He's been

offered work in Qatar but who wants to go there? People are still making money

here but the parties aren't quite the same. I'm lucky ‑ I didn't buy."

The exact number of unemployed is not known. The Dubai government does not

release figures, and prevents the press from running stories that damage the

economy, such as mass redundancies.

But there were sacked expatriates ‑ bankers, lawyers and architects ‑ in all but

one of the hotel bars visited in Dubai this week.

Employees who lose work in the UAE automatically have their visa rescinded,

generally giving them 30 days to leave.

"I look out of my balcony every day and I see Brits by the pool on their laptops,"

said Andrew Hillocks, 29, a sacked telecoms consultant whose passport has

been seized. He will be escorted to the airport next week. "They're looking for

work that just isn't there. I sold my car to cover my loan, but other people are

panicking."

Under Dubai's strict legal code defaulting on debt or bouncing a cheque is

punishable with jail. Any expatriate in financial difficulty knows the safest bet is to

take the next outbound flight.

At the airport, hundreds of cars have apparently been abandoned in recent

weeks. Keys are left in the ignition and maxed out credit cards and apology letters

in the glove box.

Officials put the number of vehicles at 11. "No one believes that. There are 11

cars abandoned just on my street," said Anne, 26, a fashion editor from London.

"Over the past two months I've been getting an email a day from people trying to

sell their stuff. 'New Jaguar – need to sell before the end of the week'."

In a world of self-made millionaires and property entrepreneurs, some remain

bullish. Simon Murphy, 42, runs the exclusive Crest of Dubai social club for Palm

residents. "My job is to keep people smiling," he said.

The former hedge fund adviser's apartment is a "boy's paradise". Beside the

snooker table and darts board are photos of him beside Richard Branson, Alan

Shearer and Pele.

"I have the beach there. My local is that bar a couple of yards away. That's the

pier where they're going to dock the QE2. People ask about the whole 'living the

dream' scenario? Ain't this it?"

Some people had to lose out, he said. "As they say: eagles fly with eagles. The

motivating factor to come here is greed. You have to be selfish, have minimal

social responsibility, and want to make money quick. Brits in Dubai are gamblers.

It's the nature of the beast that not everyone wins."

The invisible losers

In the Dubai however, the losers are the invisible majority.

Taxi drivers from Egypt, Yemen and Iraq compete for work. Their clients often

ask to go to hotel bars where, at night, they will find prostitutes from Eastern

Europe, Africa and Asia.

Expatriates from the developing world maintained Dubai's orgy of consumption

during the boom years. Now they too are being forced to leave.

Perhaps those who suffer most are the construction workers from the Indian

subcontinent, who have worked on perilous building sites earning as little as £70

a month.

The Indian embassy is reportedly anticipating an exodus with 20,000 seats on

flights to India already "bulk-booked" for next month.

Buses come to pick up 250 workers every night from one dusty street on the

edge of Sonapur, a labour camp on the edge of the desert.

As night falls, the gangly silhouettes of construction workers file out of the camp

gates. "There is no work," said Jasvinder Singh, 24, placing his suitcase in a pick

-up truck, the words "Dubai to Delhi" taped to the side.

"It has been such a drama. We came here to earn money. We are going home to

see our wives but our pockets are empty."

Sanjit, 44, another construction worker from Punjab, gestures angrily in the air:

"We were treated badly here. We were slaves to the Arabs."

But unlike their British counterparts, construction workers from India, Bangladesh

and Pakistan cannot abandon lives in the glove compartment of a 4x4. Most took

loans to pay agent fees to come to Dubai, and their debts will follow them home.

"I sold our land and took loans in the village to come here," said Imran Hassan, a

20-year-old Bangladeshi farmer. "I paid the agent £2,000 to bring me. He said I

would earn 1,500 dirham [£287] a month, but we are paid 572 dirham. When I

return people in the village will want their money but I have none."

A Welsh construction site manager said he had protested to his boss about the

treatment of labourers.

"We tell them to bring their clothes to work one day and then we send them

home. It makes me feel sick. I asked why it had to be done so quickly and I was

told a lot of them commit suicide and we don't want that on our hands."

Tale of two cities

Dubai's future will actually be decided well way from the shimmering skyscrapers.

To find out why, you need to drive along 90 miles south along the Gulf coastline,

past tiny Bedouin enclaves and shimmering desert mosques.

Abu Dhabi, the oil-rich capital of the UAE and the richest emirate, has opted for a

more conservative – and, some say – prudent approach to growth that contrasts

with Dubai's giddy expansion.

But it boasts 95% of the UAE's oil reserves and more than half of its GDP, and

regional experts predict it will overtake Dubai as the destination of choice for

westerners in the Middle East.

Dubai, which has barely a trickle of oil in comparison, is projecting a 42%

increase in public spending on infrastructure projects, to compensate for

vanishing private investment. But it cannot go it alone. Abu Dhabi is increasingly

expected to bail out its poorer neighbour, and the two ruling families are meeting

regularly to decide how to transfer cash into Dubai's ailing economy.

"The question is not if Abu Dhabi will come to the rescue, but how big it will be

and how public," a source with knowledge of the negotiations said. "Abu Dhabi

cannot let Dubai sink."

But Abu Dhabi has its own problems. The emirate's sovereign wealth fund – once

said to be worth $1 trillion – has taken a hit in the global recession, while the

lifeblood of the economy – the price of oil – is down more than 60%.

Thirty miles from the capital, dust rises from the barren horizon where a 10km-

long building site is being turned into al-Raha Beach, an $18bn waterfront city, a

joint venture between Aldar, Abu Dhabi's largest property developer, and Laing

O'Rourke, the UK's largest construction company.

"A lot of staff have been moved over here from Dubai," said Paul, 35, a Laing

O'Rourke project manager, raising his voice over the noise of JCBs.

"But it is all coming to a stop here too. There are mass redundancies now. We've

gone from an expat workforce of about 1,000 to about 400. There are more

waves of redundancies coming this week."

He said he could not be sure, but by his estimate more than half of the al-Raha

development had been quietly shelved.

"I've not been made redundant myself but I've decided to go home in April. The

wife and kids have already left. A lot of people are jumping ship beforethere are

no lifeboats left."

Back in Dubai the following day, a Mercedes Benz snaked along the city's main

street, Sheikh Zayed Road. Firas Darwish, 35, an Emirati property magnate

dressed in traditional Arabic clothing, sat in the driver's seat, listening as as

Veronica Chapman, 65, a real estate agent from Hull, recalled what the city was

like when she first arrived in 1980.

"No milk, no bread, no schools. It was a desert and a couple of buildings," she

said.

Darwish slowed the car to point out abandoned building sites where cranes stood

still in the baking heat. "Here we are completely reliant on foreigners," he said.

"Maybe Dubai grew too fast."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/feb/13/dubai-boom-halt

Related contributions:
☞ Dubai: Inside the Labour Camps
☞ Dubai: Migrant Workers on Strike

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 Hong Kong:

龍山區拆遷悲劇

本星期二，首爾警察廳派出反恐特警隊到市中心龍山區，鎮壓一個市區重建地盤示威活動，弄成五死廿三傷的悲劇，多份南韓報章指這是「不尋常的數字」。這也令筆者想起，去年香港警察用胡椒噴霧對付天水圍手無寸鐵的平民，相對南韓派出反恐特警隊，原來只是小巫見大巫。

四十戶居民不滿跟政府未達共識就進行拆遷，於一棟四層高樓房屋頂進行了廿五小時靜坐。到星期二深夜，首爾警方派出反恐特警隊，以吊臂貨櫃攻入屋內驅散居民，又向屋內發射多枚催淚彈。當警察強行搬走居民時，屋內突然起火。有居民為逃跑到天台邊緣，失足從四樓跌到地上至重傷，亦有廿三人被打傷、或吸入濃煙入院。火種熄滅後現場發現五具屍體，包括四名居民及一名警察，令南韓公眾憤怒...

For more please check out:
☞ 龍山拆遷悲劇：南韓恢復「公安政局」

Taiwan:

☞ 2009韓國龍山區拆遷鎮壓事件 的文章
☞ 首爾龍山慘劇/韓人權團體發起反迫遷行動

Japan:

☞ トピック: 龍山殺人鎮圧

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Today Kim Jong-il, the "Dear Leader" of the D.P.R.K., the "Sun of the 21st Century", the "Beloved Father of the Korean Nation" (*), the "Greatest Commander on Earth, Created in Heaven" etc., etc... celebrates his 67th birthday!

 
And with him - of course - the entire world pupulation is celebrating, according to KCNA

But despite Don Kirk's prediction that the Dear Leader's party will be a blast (Asia Times, 2.14) so far there's nothing special going on. No Taepodong missile attack against Alaska/USA, no naval battle in the Yellow Sea... What a drag!! (**)

* The "Korean Nation" means - of course - the entire Korean nation, incl. S. Korea!!
** But it might be that the "Dear Leader" is celebrating his birthday with binge drinking... and tomorrow he'll be screwed! And sooner or later he'll bite the dust - hopefully!

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Class Struggle: "That's Fun!"

Last year's fall French progressive/left activists have found a new way to grab the headlines in protest at the decreasing purchase power of the Euro in their pockets - the picnic protest. The collective "L'appel et la pioche", literally "The call and the pick axe" (a play on words - "Shovel and Pick"), use text messaging to organise flash mob gatherings in targeted supermarkets.

They spread out a picnic in one of the aisles using goods from the supermarket's shelves and invite shoppers to join them until the police or security guards arrive. The collective aim to publicise the situation of low income workers hit by the effects of the credit crunch and France's "Génération Y", possibly the first group of young people in centuries who are likely to face a standard of living lower than their parents'.

Low-income workers have a picnic among shoppers using food taken from the aisles a giant

super market in Bagnolet, near Paris, during a protest action last October.. 

..several dozen people from "L'Appel et la Pioche" entered a supermarket, selected food items

without paying, and ate a picnic amongst shoppers to protest rising food prices and low salaries.

Last month (1.25) The Observer (UK) published following report about the activities of "L'appel et la pioche":

French left pioneers a radical new tactic: the picnic protest

Activists take food off the shelves and invite shoppers to dine with them to highlight the plight of 'Generation Y'

In exactly a week's time, in a supermarket somewhere in or around Paris, a couple of dozen young French activists are going to choose an aisle, unfold tables, put on some music and, taking what they want from the shelves, start a little picnic. The group "L'Appel et la Pioche" (The call and the pick axe) will have struck again - fruit and veg, dairy or the fish counter will have been transformed into a flash protest against global capitalism, rampant consumerism, bank bail-outs, poor housing, expensive food, profit margins and pretty much everything else that is wrong in the world.

The "supermarket picnic" will go on for as long as it can - before the security guards throw the activists out or the police arrive. Shoppers will be invited to join in, either bringing what they want from the shelves or just taking something lifted lightly from among the crisps, sweets or quality fruit already on the tables.

"L'Appel et la Pioche" have struck four times so far and have no intention of stopping what they claim is a highly effective new way of protesting.

"Everyone is bored of demonstrations. And handing out tracts at 6am at a market is neither effective nor fun," said Leïla Chaïbi, 26, the leader of the group. "This is fun, festive, non-threatening and attracts the media. It's the perfect way of getting our message across."

Linked to a new left-wing political party committed to a renewal of politics and activism, Chaïbi's group represents more than just a radical fringe and has been gaining nationwide attention.

A veteran of fights to get pay and better conditions for young people doing work experience, Chaïbi claims to represent millions of young Frenchmen and women who feel betrayed by the system.

"We played the game and worked hard and got a good education because we were told we would get a flat and a job at the end of it. But it wasn't true," said Victor, 34, another member of the group. "We have huge difficulty getting a proper job and a decent apartment."

Chaïbi, who works on short-term contracts in public relations and is currently looking for work, told the Observer that the group's aspirations were limited. "I am not asking for thousands and thousands of euros a month as a salary or a vast five-room apartment. Just something decent."

In recent years, the problems of France's "Generation Y" or "babylosers" have made headlines. As with many other European societies, after decades of growth, this is the first set of young people for centuries who are likely to have standards of living lower than their parents. According to recent research, in 1973, only 6% of recent university leavers were unemployed, currently the rate is 25-30%; salaries have stagnated for 20 years while property prices have doubled or trebled; in 1970, salaries for 50-year-olds were only 15% higher than those for workers aged 30, the gap now is 40%. The young are also likely to be hard hit by the economic crisis.

New ways of working mean new ways of demonstrating, too. "We are already on precarious short-term contracts, so there's no point in going on strike," said Chaïbi. "But a supermarket is very public and we make sure the media are there to cover our actions."

So far reactions have been good, the group claims. In one supermarket in a suburb of Paris, the activists say they got a spontaneous round of applause from the checkout workers. Elsewhere, security guards have been "friendly". Everywhere in France, the problem of a weakening "pouvoir d'achat" - the buying power of static wages - is a cause for resentment.

The economic crisis is further fuelling anger. Though not yet as badly hit as the UK, thanks to tighter regulation and much lower levels of personal borrowing, French businesses have still been laying off staff amid predictions of a massive rise in unemployment this year. Unions have been largely passive in the face of threatened redundancies, accepting go-slows to preserve jobs.

With the French Socialist party in disarray, alternative forms of political protest on the left, particularly a breakaway communist faction led by charismatic postman Olivier Besancenot, have made inroads. Protests about the homeless or against the expulsion of immigrants have largely taken place independently of the Socialist party, which is mired in feuds and ideological incoherence.

One new group is the Jeudi Noir, which organises heavily publicised squats of vacant buildings in Paris. Named Black Thursday after the day classified advertisements for flats appear, activists recently took over a clinic that has lain empty at the heart of the Left Bank for nearly five years.

"This is not just about finding myself somewhere to live," said Julien Bayou, 28, who is now living in one of the former clinic's offices. "We are making a political point. We just think it is wrong that a building in perfect condition should be empty for years when so many people need somewhere to live."

Chaïbi sat in the kitchen of the former clinic. "It's not just about the supermarkets," she said. "It's about fighting the system."

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/25/france-picnic-protests-appel-pioche

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동지여러분의 연대를 부탁드립니다!
열사정신계승하여 민중권리 쟁취하자
살인정권 폭력정권 이명박정권 박살내자
자본주의 박살내자!

 자본주의 박살내자!

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The following article in today's Hankyoreh is drawing attention to the "slightly tense relationship" (^^) between the LMB administration (i.e. the prosecution/police) and the Federation Against House Demolition/Jeoncheolyeon (JCY), especially since the Yongsan Massacre and the following - and ongoing - protests. Well, you also might call it simply: The (increasing) State Terror against JCY!!

Prosecution intensifies its investigation into

demolition protest group
 

Group’s involvement in past demonstrations against redevelopment projects will likely be examined

The prosecution is intensifying its investigation into the Federation Against House Demolition (Jun Chul Yun/Jeoncheolyeon), the organization accused of spearheading the anti-urban development protest in Yongsan last month that left five civilians and one policeman dead following a fire ignited in the course of the protest. The jurisdiction for the probe has been handed off from the Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office’s criminal division, which was in charge of investigating the fire, and passed to the public safety division.

In an emergency question and answer session at the National Assembly related to the tragic Yongsan blaze, Justice Minister Kim Kyung-han said, “Prosecutors are investigating Jun Chul Yun, which turned out to be behind (the protest). They will soon uncover every part of the truth.”

Kim Hee-kwan, a prosecutor in charge of the probe, added, “Our public safety team is investigating allegations raised against Jun Chul Yun. Everything deemed to be illegal will be checked.” This means that the prosecution will expand the scope of its investigation to include demonstrations against redevelopment projects with which the federation was involved in the past.

The investigative team will continue its efforts to arrest Nam Gyeong-nam, the head of Jun Chul Yun who is believed to be in hiding, but the public safety division will take over the investigation if Nam is not captured, a prosecutor said.

Yesterday, the prosecution arrested Chung Ju-seok, 47, who was treated at a hospital for injuries from the protest, and it plans to indict him along with Lee Choong-yeon, the head of the Countermeasure Committee for Displaced Tenants in Yongsan.

Also yesterday, civic and human rights groups held an all-night demonstration (in Myeong-dong). The groups called for the government to bring to justice those who are responsible for the deadly blaze. (*)

Before the demonstration began, the Committee Against the Brutal Suppression of the Yongsan Demolition Protest held a press conference at Myeong-dong Cathedral in central Seoul, demanding an immediate apology from President Lee Myung-bak and punishment of Seoul Police Chief Kim Seok-ki and Minister of Public Administration and Security Won Sei-hoon. Kim recently withdrew his name from consideration for the top post at the National Police Agency and Won is under consideration for the position of National Intelligence Agency director. The protest was attended by around 30 people, including Jeong Kwang-hoon, the head of the Korea Alliance for Progressive Movement, and Bae Eun-shim, the mother of the late Lee Han-yeol, the Yonsei University student activist who died during a 1987 protest and came to symbolize South Korea’s democracy movement.

http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/338354.html

* Related report:
☞ 용산참사 항의 철야 시국농성 돌입 (KCTU, 2.11)

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Following (worth reading!!) article was published y'day on IMC S. Korea:

The Murderer Is Not guilty; Guilty Is the Victim?

The weird logic of the S. Korean prosecution

The result of the prosecution’s investigation is full of lies, exaggerations and distortions. They described that the evictee-strugglers acted like terrorists. They said the strugglers shot slingshots (not guns, just slingshots. The police might have been deadly scared of the slingshots, ha!) and they went as far as 160 meters (maybe they had rocket engines), and they set fires by spreading the paint thinner on water. (Does it mean that the strugglers set fire on thelselves???) Also, the prosecution assumed that Jun Chul Yun, or the Federation Against House Demolition maneuvered everything from behind the scene even though they are actually a spontaneous solidarity network of evictees. Based on all of these false allegations, they concluded that the police’s crackdown was reasonable.

As for the cause of the fire, the prosecution repeated that the fire was broken out by a molotov cocktail a protester had thrown. Moreover, they said that a movie they have in which someone is pouring some liquid is a proof that the protesters deliberately spread paint thinner. However, nobody knows who poured the liquid and whether it is paint thinner, or water the police had sprayed toward the strugglers.

Meanwhile, the prosecution announced that the police was not guilty and their operation was not illegal. The construction thugs’ obvious involvement in the murder was also covered up, too, despite the evident record of the conversation with the police by radio transmissions and a movie that shows a guy is spraying water cannons at the operation.

The prosecution distorted obvious facts and denied the truth. Finally they prosecuted 20 evictees for ‘obstructing police in carrying out their duties and causing death’ and no one from the police and was indicted. (A moment ago, the news reported that the Seoul Police Commissioner offered to resign.)

The evictees were ‘killed’ three times. The first time was when they were deprived of their houses, stores and restaurants in the name of “New Town” redevelopment project. The second was when they were killed by the police. Now they were killed again by the Korean prosecution’s lies and bias investigation.

On February 14 in Cheong-gye Square (*), Seoul, there will be another large candlelight vigil to mourn for the evictees’ death and protest against the police murder and forced eviction.

The police will definitely block around the square and crackdown us as they always do. However, they won’t be able to put out all of the candles we are holding with our hands and in our hearts.

http://indymedia.cast.or.kr/drupal/?q=ko/node/30

* ATTENTION: The rally will be in front of Yongsan Stn.!!

Police State Transformer

With President Lee Myung-bak at the helm, the prosecution and the police working from the inside,

and the National Intelligence Service listening in, this Transformer wields a water cannon and a

canister of tear gas. “It’s turning into more of a monster every day,” someone says.

(Hankyoreh cartoon, 2.11)
 

Related articles:
☞ Protesters to blame for fatal Yongsan fire: prosecutors (JoongAng Ilbo)

☞ Prosecution blames protesters for Yongsan tragedy.. (Hankyoreh)

Latest news:

☞ 용산참사 항의 철야 시국농성 돌입 (KCTU)

☞ "도의적 책임지고 사퇴할 사람은 MB" (VoP)

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