"Accepting Punishment" KCTU Rally Proceeds... Police Detain About 20 People

The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) is holding a "Rally Urging Direct Employment of Non-Regular Workers" on the afternoon of the 30th at a sit-in site in front of the National Health Insurance Service in Wonju, Gangwon Province.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Dong-hoon] The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) once again held a rally with over 100 participants in Wonju, Gangwon Province.

On the previous day (the 30th), starting around 1:50 PM, about 100 people gathered at the lawn square in front of the National Health Insurance Service (NHIS) for a sit-in protest, holding a "Rally to Urge Direct Employment of Non-Regular Workers." During the approximately 1 hour and 20 minutes rally, they raised their voices demanding the direct employment of union members from the NHIS Customer Service Center branch.

The police demanded the dispersal of the rally based on violations of the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act. However, the KCTU continued the rally, stating that no confirmed cases had emerged during the nationwide workers' rally in Seoul on the 3rd, and citing freedom of assembly, they expressed their willingness to accept punishment.

The KCTU conducted the rally by live streaming on YouTube at the site and using an online protest platform to connect the sit-in site with one-person protests across the country. Outside the NHIS, union members held one-person protests, while local residents opposing the rally also conducted one-person protests, creating a contrast.

Yang Kyung-soo, the chairman of the KCTU, did not attend the rally that day. In addition to violating the administrative order of Wonju City, the sit-in site was an unregistered location for assembly, making the KCTU's rally that day entirely "illegal."

The police deployed about 1,300 officers from 19 companies in preparation for the large-scale rally, installed vehicle barriers, and controlled access around the NHIS. Following the illegal rally on the 23rd, the police plan to strictly investigate the organizers and participants of this rally for violations of the Infectious Disease Prevention Act and the Assembly and Demonstration Act.