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Kim Young Il Secretary General of the Pusan Chapter of KCTU (in Korean) |
We, KCTU and the workers have got together here demanding the
present government to implement four main things. The unemployment rate has been soaring high and we are not going to sit by and see it keep going on. Thus, we demand the government stop layoffs and restructuring Cut down working hours Guarantee the social security net Secure the rights to get a better pay, to organize individual industrial unions, and to hold meetings publicly and negotiate motions.
Q2 . What do you
think of Kim Dae Jung regime and the Pusan government and their policies?
Since the government has
repressed the workers unfairly, the clamors they make against all these
injustices are getting louder and louder. Considering that Pusan has shown the
highest unemployment rate so far, it is so clear that their policies are a failure
and they're not showing willingness to keep their word.
Q3 . How many workers are participating
in this demonstration and what are the main events for today?
Approximately fifteen hundred
workers are here to attend this demonstration. Here are we protesting against
the unfair judgment and treatment of Local Labor Committee toward workers who
are on demonstration as well as against all the traffic problems , massive
layoffs, non-implementation of public platforms that Pusan Transportation
Department has been causing. This is why we egged the buildings belonging to the
Local Labor Committee and the Transportation Department.
Q
4.What do you think IMF and other international financial institutions?
What Korean workers think of IMF
is that the mega capital organization cares none about the grass root people.
In the process of restructuring that IMF asks for is it only workers who
are asked and led to pay for the crisis. We feel like hanging on the edge of a
cliff and there must be other alternatives than that.
Q5.
Some people are crediting Kim Dae Jung's policies with recent signs of economic
recovery. How do you respond to that?
Not
at all. The underlying principle of DJ's policies are always benefiting the chaebols,
the power group in politics, and the government itself. It's never taken actions
to make them sacrifice and he must admit that the whole restructuring package
failed. The mal-conducive way to just lay off workers along downsizing won't help
anything and it's totally unfair. The only means to see a positive influence is
to change his principle from the scratch and that would only see a better life
for everyone.
Q6
. What do you think of DJ's recent promise to get tough with chaebols?
I don't believe it and have
no expectation about it. Even if he has
claimed
that over and over again, chaebols have been making profits
and fortune more and more. I couldn't
expect less about its workability.
Q7.
What would you like DJ and the government to do for the people?
DJ tends to say that his regime
is for the people. If he really means it, he should help the people survive this
economic crisis first. And that means, he must take away the chaebols control
on economy and restructuring process and get
rid
of those corrupt politicians and bureaucrats. and that's the very way to help
the economy and the people and all workers prosperous again.
Q8. Anything else you'd like
to say?
It's
IMF that drives workers of South Korea and all other non developed countries o
suffer economic turmoil. Thus, workers and civilians from all over the world should
unite and consolidate , and build up their own power to execute power
and control on the capital-oriented
organizations..