hankyoreh

Conditions for the unionists who have been protesting mass dismissal at the Ssangyong Motors plant in Pyeongtaek are now at their worst. The management of Ssangyong Motors had police shut off water, food and gas last month, and they have now added electricity to the list in response to Sunday’s breakdown in negotiations. Making food and basic survival has just been made more difficult for the union members in the now pitch-black factory. It seems as though management is saying surrender or starve to death to union members they are regarding as their enemy.

The inhumane acts do not end there. As of yesterday, police resumed using helicopters to spray the roof of the plant with tearing agents. Dichloromethane, contained in the tearing agent, is a hazardous material that is listed as a carcinogen by both Korea’s Industrial Safety and Health Law and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The police claim it is not harmful, but this contradicts the agent’s level three (out of five) classification as a carcinogenic material by the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer. Moreover, due to the suspension of the water supply, the workers are unable to wash off the spray once they come into contact with it. Nevertheless, police continue to spray this harmful material, as if to suggest that they do not care if the workers get sick or die.

Even with electricity and without the spraying of the tearing agents, the paint shop where the strikers are demonstrating is a very dangerous place. There are few doors or windows from which to escape in an emergency. Furthermore, the plant’s fire sprinklers are unable to function properly as a result of the power shut-off and an estimated 200,000 liters of flammable material like paint thinner are stacked along the pathways of the maze-like interior of the shop.

If the police launch a raid or a fire breaks out, it will be difficult for the workers to escape from the shop to safety. The possibility is high that the slightest mistake may trigger a major catastrophe, and this is probably what has informed the actions of the Gyeonggi-do provincial firemen to issue a warning against the company for violating fire safety laws and to order it to turn the water back on. The company, however, is saying it will pay the penalties and will hold out, as the police appear ready to deploy its men. If something adverse were to occur, it would be negligent homicide. This is what we witnessed in the Yongsan tragedy in January, and accountability does not end with mere words. The police and management of Ssangyong Motors must value human life and make the decision against a crackdown on the workers. The current level of deprivation of human rights at Ssangyong Motors is already enough to bring shame to this democratic nation. We hope the management and labor return to the negotiating table before an even bigger mistake is made.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]