ON FRIDAY, 4 September, government unleashed a wave of repression in an atcountry for the past two and a half months. Police tion and an election timetable to prevent the feared 'hot September' and save the sinking dictatorship.
Police rioted against strikers at the largest manufacturing company in the country which has become the target of strike action for the second time in a month.
strike action 40,000 workers Hyundai Heavy Industries AUGUSL forced the government to intervene, declaring that they would ensure Ine company recognise the newly formed trade unions.
Last: week, 20,000 Hyundai workers resumed strike action and occupied the company's shipyard in the southern city of Ulsan.
25 per cent wage increase.
A massive demonstration of strikers and supporters wound lls way through the streets of on 3 sentember Led by scores of forklift the South Korean tempt to stem the tide of strikes that have swept the arrested 350 strikers as the regime tried to use agreement with the capitalist opposition over a constitutrucks, cranes and other heavy vehicles, Ine demonstrators destroyed windows, lypewniels. photocopying machines and furniture in the company's main office, according to AP and Reuters Two cars and a bus were set on fire as the workers chanted raise our pay!
The explosive situation at Hvundai is tust one of the literally thousands of strike struggles crea that have swept South over the Dast two and a half months. Mining, engineering, fishing, transport, catering, sectors that have been involved.
Official figures released by the Labour ministry last week showed that strikes were taking place at 797 work sites. New struggles had erupted at workplaces whilst disputes had ended at 56 companies on Thursday 3 September, the ministry reported.
of the disputes that ended was a strike by 15,000 unionised taxi drivers in the capital city of Seoul, who won a 10 pel cent wage increase.
Manv of the strikes are over wages but in addition the workers are fighting for the establishment effectively functioning in dependent trade unions.
South Korean workers face some worst work conditions anywhere Average wages are just £1.10 per The length of the working week is hours According to union officials, more than 23,000 workers were killed crippled in inaustrial accidents last year alone. In some cases. WOlKer confined to barracks-like crowded CONLONE shanties known 'chicken coops' In the face of these conditions, effective unionism is illegal. Labour laws allow the government leadership, confiscate union documents, even lo dissolve Workers planning to give 60 days' notice, and after the 60 days are up they must immediately submit to a 30 day 'cooling-off" period Combined with this workers have had to face heavy police CHICSUI and company thugs. Last instance, police weeken arrested 105 miners who had been locked out Jungam in the east of the Two strikers have been killed in the last ten days.
It is these sorts of conditions which have been at the root of South Korea's much talked about 'economic miracle' growth rate of 10 per cent and yearly exports of over £20 billion, some 36 pei cent of GNP. South Korea is the twelfth largest tradeing company in the world.
The country has beer dominated both economically politically - by US imperialism ever since it was created when Washington unilaterally divided the along the 38th parallel in 1945. Forty per cent of the country's exports are to the US which continues to maintain 40,000 troops there.
But the political stability enjoyed by the coun try's rulers was burst asunder in June when tens of thousands of students, workers and professionals 'took to the streets to de. mand an end to the dicLato silD.
The mobilisations forced the government promise free elections by the end of the year, to release political prisoners and state its commitment to 'democracy'.
The government and the main capitalist opposition party, the Democratic Reunification Party led by Kim Young Sam and Kim Dae Jung. week agreed to a new proposed La COSLEULIO.
December election date The terms of the draft constitutions fall short of what many organisations in the 15-member National Coalition for Democratic Constitution have campaigned for. The presidential powe mains intact, if restricted, and 506 political prisoners remain in the country's. jails.
But the democratic Juneingsurge has allowed opening forced hundreds of thousands of Korean South workers. students and peasants to forward their demands and deepen their struggles.