hankyoreh

Groups critical of what they see as the Lee Myung-bak administration’s attempt to take control of the country’s media outlets are coming together to form a pan-national umbrella organization to fight it.

The formation of the “Pan-National Action to Stop the Seizure of the Media and Coercion of Netizens” by the National Union of Media Workers, Media Solidarity, the Korean Broadcasters Affiliation, the Citizens Coalition for a Democratic Media, and other groups will be formally announced on July 22, according to a press release issued July 21.

The Democratic Party called an urgent party caucus on July 21, at which party leaders said they would “officially join with civil society to campaign both inside the National Assembly and beyond to stop President Lee Myung-bak from manipulating the media.”

Yang Seung-dong, the head of the Federation of Broadcast Workers said that “with the Lee Myung-bak administration’s seizure of the media going on in the open, a solidarity organization to prevent it was proposed, in order to demonstrate the united strength of the pan-democratic forces.”

“The organization will officially be launched this week,” he said.

The umbrella group will work together with a task force within the Democratic Party, according to party floor spokesman Cho Jeong-sik, speaking at the party caucus.

“The Democratic Party has decided to go on an all-out struggle, putting the party’s fate on the line to stop the Lee Myung-bak administration from taking control of the broadcast media,” Cho said.

Party chairman Chung Se-kyun said his party will “resolutely crush the conspiracy.”

Party member Jun Byung-hun said the “old struggle one may have believed had disappeared, that between pro and anti-democratic elements, has seen a revival. We need a new front based on this contrast.”

Observers say the Democratic Party’s decision to be quick to take action comes from the belief that it was late in taking effective action on the issue of the “hasty” beef deal, and then was left “powerless” in the “candle-lit political landscape” that followed. The strategy, it would seem, is going to be to align the party with the candlelight protests to overcome its numerical weakness within the National Assembly, having far less seats in the parliamentary body than does the ruling party.

The National Union of Media Workers has announced it is going to engage in a one day “warning strike” on July 23.

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