Hundreds Of South Korean Truckers Detained Over Violence
SEOUL (AFP)--More than 300 South Korean truckers and union activists were
still being held for questioning Monday about a weekend protest that left more
than 150 people injured, police said.
Police detained 457 people Saturday after the clash in the central city of
Daejeon involving about 6,000 truckers and members of the militant Korean
Confederation of Trade Unions.
Of them, 123 have been released while 334 are still being questioned, Ahn
Jong-koo, a police spokesman in Daejeon, said.
"The protesters hurled rocks or wielded bamboo staves, injuring 104 policemen
and damaging 99 police vehicles," Ahn said.
The confederation said more than 50 protesters were also injured.
Newspapers said the truckers displayed antigovernment slogans and streamers
mourning the death of Park Jong-tae, a union leader who committed suicide in
Daejeon on May 3.
Park, 33, had been wanted by police for leading illegal protests.
The clash came after the truckers voted to go on strike for better working
conditions, wage rises and the reinstatement of dismissed union activists. They
haven't yet announced when the stoppage will start.
A week-long strike by the truckers in June last year hit the trade-dependent
economy hard, causing an estimated $7.2 billion of missed imports and exports.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
05-18-090215ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
|