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S Korean unions strike over beef

Roman Catholics and protesters march after a special service as part of the protest against the South Korean government’s policy toward US beef imports in Seoul, South Korea, on Tuesday. US beef went on sale in South Korea on Tuesday for the first time under a new import agreement, as the government vowed to use “all means” possible to end violent anti-government protests over health concerns about meat. PHOTO: AP

A militant South Korean union grouping said more than 130,000 members would stage work stoppages from yesterday against US beef imports, as religious leaders joined weeks of street protests.

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak is struggling to end the rallies, which were sparked by fears of mad cow disease but are now increasingly driven by liberal opponents of his new conservative government.

“We will stage an uncompromising struggle against the government, which ignores the people’s right to health,” the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) said in a statement.

A KCTU spokesman said yesterday’s partial strike would draw some 136,000 workers including those at the country’s largest automaker Hyundai Motor and 29,000 workers at its affiliate Kia Motors.

There was no immediate confirmation of the numbers who would take part.

A Hyundai Motor spokesman said some 44,000 workers would down tools for two hours during both the day and night shifts at its main factory in the southeastern city of Ulsan.

The KCTU said thousands of others who do not take part in yesterday’s stoppages would stage a four-hour partial strike on today.

It said tens of thousands of members plan to travel to Seoul late tomorrow to join candlelight protests against the beef imports on Saturday.

“Yes, this is a political strike. This strike is clearly aimed at protesting against the resumption of beef imports,” KCTU spokesman Park Soung-shik said.

“The government calls it illegal but we don’t think so. Workers are part of the people and we have every right to protect our health,” Park said.

The government is pushing ahead with the distribution of US beef, saying extra negotiations with Washington this month fully addressed public fears over mad cow perils.

The first delivery of 200kg of US beef sold out five hours after it hit the market on Tuesday, said Park Chang-gyu, who heads an association of beef importers. It costs one-third the price of domestic beef.

“Many consumers are asking for US beef,” a shopkeeper at Shihung district in southwest Seoul told JoongAng Ilbo newspaper.

The office of South Korean Prime Minister Han Seung-soo bought 12kg. “The prime minister himself will consume this beef to help dispel public concerns,” a spokesman said.

Seoul agreed in April to resume the US beef imports — which were halted in 2003 after a US mad cow case — so it can push ahead with a wider trade deal.

After mass rallies, it negotiated extra beef safeguards and called for the protests to stop, saying they are damaging the economy.

But the rallies, some of them violent, continued.

More than 200 people were injured overnight Saturday and police vowed a crackdown on illegal demonstrations.

In a new twist, Catholic priests, Buddhist monks and Protestant pastors this week joined the candlelit protests.

Hong Joon-pyo, parliamentary leader of the ruling Grand National Party (GNP), said they are complicating the situation.

“The flames of the candlelit protests, which had been fluttering out, are being rekindled by some liberal religious leaders,” Hong said at a meeting of GNP leaders.

“If the government, following 10 years of liberal rule, failed to anticipate this degree of resistance from progressive forces, it would deserve a label of naivete,” he said.
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