"Do Not Ignore the Suffering of Workers and Residents"
Kwon Youngguk, the Democratic Labor Party presidential candidate, visited Gwangju on the first day of early voting for the 21st presidential election on the 29th, where he criticized the Kumho Tire factory fire as "a comprehensive failure of labor, environmental, and disaster management."
Kwon Youngguk, the Democratic Labor Party presidential candidate, is holding a press conference and speaking in front of the Kumho Tire factory in Gwangju on the 29th.
In the afternoon, after holding a labor-management meeting at the Kumho Tire Gwangju plant in Gwangsangu, Kwon held a press conference and pointed out, "After the factory fire, the partner company operating Kumho Tire's commuter buses announced workforce reductions. The company posted an operating profit of 590.6 billion won last year and 144.8 billion won in the first quarter of this year, but is shifting the burden of this damage onto its partners and workers."
He continued, "The union has continuously urged investment in the facilities of the plant, which was completed in 1974, but Doublestar ignored these calls. Behind this was the greed of capital seeking development profits from the plant, and this may have been a cause that exacerbated the fire." Regarding the issue of relocating the plant, he criticized, "Relocation has become a reality due to the revitalization of Gwangju Songjeong Station, but Doublestar is not disclosing its relocation plans in order to maximize development profits from the Gwangju plant."
Addressing the administrative authorities, he said, "They must prepare practical support measures for partner companies and workers, as well as compensation plans for local residents and merchants, and also consider filing claims for damages." He further emphasized, "Local governments should inspect the safety and disaster response systems of high-risk urban workplaces, and work with labor, safety, and environmental experts to establish systematic response measures."
Kwon also called on Lee Junseok, the Reform Party candidate, to "show a red card to end hate politics." He said, "There are reporting guidelines even when dealing with state violence, and sexual violence has been addressed through clear guidelines. The right to know is not the right to display. A politician without dignity is not a model of anti-authoritarianism, but a symbol of anti-civilization."
He added, "I want to ask whether reproducing sexual violence under the pretext of criticizing it is considered common sense. We must prevent a second or third Lee Junseok from appearing on TV and repeating hate speech. Lee Junseok, as the successor to Park Geunhye and the heir to Yoon Sukyeol, must be expelled from politics." He appealed to voters, saying, "Politics that overturns inequality, not hate politics that turns the stomach, must win. Please show the red card."
Democratic Labor Party candidate Kwon Youngguk is voting at the early voting station set up at Juam Village Hall in Yeosu City, Jeollanam-do, on the morning of the 29th, the first day of early voting for the 21st presidential election. Photo by Yonhap News
Earlier that morning, Kwon cast his early vote in Yeosu, Jeollanam-do. Regarding his visit to Yeosu, he explained, "I wanted to meet first with workers and residents who are facing crisis due to restructuring in the petrochemical complex, as their main concern is the issue of jobs, and I wanted to hear their voices." On the presidential candidate TV debate, he said, "It is very regrettable that the debate centered on attacks and mudslinging against opponents," and pledged, "I will visit the field in person and solve local issues through policy."
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