Professor Seomin Criticizes "Minnochoong Rally, Is It a North Korean Military Parade... Police Marching Together"

Minnochoong, '30,000-Person Scale' General Strike Protest Goes Ahead

Union members participating in the October 20th KCTU general strike suddenly gathered at the Seodaemun Station intersection in Seoul on the 20th, occupying the road and holding a rally. / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Professor Seomin from Dankook University College of Medicine criticized the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), which forcibly held a general strike rally, by comparing their street march in downtown Seoul to a "North Korean military parade."

On the 20th, Professor Seo posted a message titled "My heart is full" on his social media service (SNS). After sharing a video of the KCTU protest, he wrote, "Look at the march of those who fear nothing in the world!"

He also left a hashtag (#) saying, "I want to be born as a KCTU member in my next life."

When a netizen commented on the post, "Would they still act like that if sent to North Korea?" Professor Seo replied, "Isn't this a North Korean military parade?"

When asked, "What about the police?" he sarcastically responded, "Weren't they marching together?" Additionally, Professor Seo commented, "KCTU is the law itself," and "(KCTU is) the supreme dignity."

Union members participating in the October 20th KCTU general strike are marching near Seodaemun Station in Seoul on the 20th, demanding the abolition of discrimination against workplaces with fewer than five employees, the elimination of irregular employment, and the securing of union activity rights for all workers. / Photo by Yonhap News

Meanwhile, on the previous day (the 20th) around 1:30 PM, the KCTU suddenly gathered near Seodaemun Station intersection in Seoul and began their general strike rally. They demanded ▲ the abolition of discrimination against workplaces with fewer than five employees and the elimination of irregular employment ▲ securing the right of all workers to union activities ▲ securing public services in care, medical, education, housing, and transportation ▲ securing a national responsibility system for jobs during industrial transition.

The police concentrated their forces around Jongno-gu to block the rally in preparation for a large-scale protest, but when the rally location was suddenly changed to Seodaemun Station, they moved toward Seodaemun Station and Daehanmun.

It is estimated that up to about 30,000 KCTU members gathered at the rally that day. Approximately 12,000 police officers were reportedly deployed to disperse the rally.