BY IGGY KIM
SEOUL — The annual National Workers' Rally, held on the weekend of November 11-12, showed signs that the decline in militancy that has plagued the South Korean labour movement this year is reversing. The leadership of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) was under intense pressure from the rank and file to properly build and prepare the weekend following the KCTU's role in the demobilisation of the protests around the Asia-Europe Meeting of parliamentarians on October 19-20 (O20).
More widely, workers' anger has been rising as South Korea's capitalist restructuring, exemplified by the collapse of Daewoo Motors, has slashed jobs and workers' conditions. The government is promoting a program of privatisation, public sector layoffs, the sell-off of "uncompetitive" firms to overseas multinationals and the drastic rationalisation of the financial and banking sector.
Immediately after O20, a wave of criticisms and denunciations of the KCTU leadership swept workplaces and among the ranks of the people's movement. Ironically, the KCTU leadership's attempt to contain the masses in October resulted in its opposite — a piston-like release of pent-up anger. In one sense, November 11-12 was the real O20 and a refutation of the bureaucrats' squeals about the "dynamism of the ranks" being exhausted. There had been attempts to organise the weekend jointly with the conservative Federation of Korean Trade Unions.
Last month, the KCTU's Public Sector Federation and the FKTU's public sector affiliate had begun discussing a struggle against privatisation. Faced with government attacks that will severely affect FKTU members, the federation's leadership has pulled out of the commission that brings together the unions, government and bosses. The FKTU is to discuss a complete and formal withdrawal. The FKTU is planning to stage a general strike on December 3.
At the National Workers' Rally cultural rally on November 11 at Dong-kook University, the mood of intolerance towards the union leaderships' compromises was evident among the 10,000 workers and students present.
The rally marked the 30th anniversary tribute to the death of Jun Tae-il. On November 13, 1970, the self-immolation of the young worker activist aroused the fury of the first wave of today's democratic labour movement, then led by women workers in light industry. Huddled around bonfires, to ward off the icy cold wind and to symbolise Jun Tae-il's legacy, the cultural rally sang, drank, danced and listened to speeches in the traditional, night-long process of building the momentum, inspiration and resolve for the next day. At 11am the next morning, with cries of "Continue in the spirit of Jun Tae-il!", the street rally began explosively.
As 25,000 began gathering in University Road, just north of the city centre, riot police amassed provocatively and attempted to hem in the rally in a bid to control it.
However, unlike previous demonstrations this year, the leadership had been forced to organise a 1000-strong sun-bong-dae (the traditional advance defence guard of militants armed with steel pipes and clubs) beforehand. The sun-bong-dae fought off the riot cops at the northern end of University Road and ensured that the protesters could continue to assemble. Fiery speeches, songs of the democratic union movement and political dance troupes with their martial arts-cum-socialist realist dance performances followed.
The main demands were for a halt to the looming "reform" of the labour laws and an end to the current wave of capitalist restructuring. The government wants to offset a reduction of the working week by legislating cuts to annual leave, monthly bonus days off and menstruation leave.
In mid-afternoon, the mother of Jun Tae-il presented the annual Jun Tae-il award to the union that best represented the spirit of her martyred son. It was jointly received by the Lotte Hotel Workers Union and the National Social Insurance Union. As a flame of tribute was lit, against the backdrop of more dances, contingents of workers and students began falling into line for the march to Myongdong Cathedral.
The march began to the thunder of the heavy rhythms of traditional drummers. Following closely behind was the helmeted sun-bong-dae, rhythmically stamping their steel pipes as they marched. At this point, a lively contingent of immigrant workers from south-east Asia and the Indian subcontinent made their way to the front of the march and lined either side of the march route. These workers were demanding an end to the "traineeship system", a system that allows them to work in South Korea but legally subjugates them to an inferior status in the workplace.
After about a kilometre, at the turn into Jong Road which runs through the heart of the city centre, a mass of riot cops made another attempt to obstruct the demonstration and press them into one traffic lane. Again, the sun-bong-dae were ready. Repeated charges briefly pushed the cops back, but the cops counter-charged and completely blocked the street.
A couple of hours later, after a series of determined offensives, the workers and students broke through and forced the cops to retreat, after which the march triumphantly continued down Jong Road. Reaching the turnoff to Myongdong Cathedral, the cops made yet another, more resolute attempt to block the march.
A tense stand-off prevailed as the workers and students sat on the road and refused to budge. Despite all efforts, the march could not break through. By 8pm, it was decided to make a tactical retreat and disperse. However, unlike previous occasions, the workers had put up a fight this time and been made to retreat, not by the dead weight of the leadership, but by the force of objective circumstances.
Most importantly, in the planning and execution of the day's actions, there was a shift in the balance of forces within the movement. Since 1995, the KCTU had dominated responsibility for organising all the major mobilisations of the people's movement. In recent years, the KCTU leadership has been increasingly half-hearted in this task as it searched for an institutional role within South Korea's emerging bourgeois democracy.
The major challenge for the radical left was the restoration of the traditional militancy and direct action of the mobilisations. Often, this entailed organising separate actions, such as this year's May Day.
This year's National Workers' Rally saw a break in the stifling hegemony of the KCTU. The left was able to unite with the mass of the ranks of the movement. The left-wing student organisations shared equal responsibility with the unions for organising the sun-bong-dae. Within this process, the comrades of the Power of the Working Class played an important role.
The National Workers' Rally has put the KCTU leadership on notice that the ranks expect a genuine fight against the labour law changes. The National Assembly is due to discuss the bill in December. To coincide with this, there are plans underway for a general strike.