The relations between the government and the second largest trade union confederation in South Korea become all the more turbulent. This past weekend, almost 700 South Korean police officers raided the headquarters of the KCTU, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, and other affiliated organisations. Documents and I.T. material was seized as part of an open investigation into violence which occurred during the last large-scale protest, which took place in Seoul on 14 November, the largest in Korea for 7 years. More than 70,000 people attended the protest against, among other things, the labour reform that had been initiated by the government. Notably, the text involved softening the conditions for dismissal and extending the working period permitted in temporary contracts.
According to the daily newspaper Korea Times, this is the first time since the creation of the organisation in 1995 that a police raid has been organised. An arrest warrant has been issued for the president of the trade union confederation Han Sang-Gyun, and it is thought that he has found refuge in a temple in the capital.
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