hankyoreh

Five protesters were arrested Thursday after prosecutors sought arrest warrants for six protesters involved in a demonstration against a fire that killed six people on the roof of a commercial building at Hangangno 2-ga in Seoul’s Yongsan district before dawn on Tuesday. The prosecution says it will investigate whether the police commando unit that stormed the rundown building used improper procedures in carrying out its duties.

The prosecution also reported, however, that the fire was ignited by Molotov cocktails held by the protesters, touching off concerns that the prosecution will overlook the actions taken by police and pass responsibility for the incident directly on to protesters, who were demonstrating against their scheduled displacement by a redevelopment project.

There are also questions about just how effective the prosecution’s investigation can be. Some prosecution insiders doubt whether current policy will allow them to punish police for an incident that took place while they were on duty, this following Justice Minister Kim Kyung-han’s declaration last March that police officers committing rights infringements in the line of duty would be given immunity from prosecution.

Five protesters were arrested Thursday after an investigative division of the Seoul Central Prosecutors’ Office asked a court to issue arrest warrants for six people on charges that they threw Molotov cocktails to prevent police from removing them from the site and caused the fire that resulted in the deaths of six other people, including one policeman.

The five who stand charged were among 25 others detained by police after Tuesday’s deadly blaze. Two of the five were area residents, the other three are members of the Federation Against House Demolition (Jun Chul Yun) and are suspected of having played major roles in organizing the protest. The five people were also charged with removing doors, occupying the building and starting fires at other buildings with Molotov cocktails thrown to prevent policemen from approaching. They entered the building against the wishes of tenants and renters who had received compensation for their property blocked protesters from entry.

Senior Prosecutor Jeong Byeong-du, who heads the prosecution’s investigative division, said, “There is evidence that they had been preparing for the protest for a long time. They had thoroughly prepared. Since last year, they have raised tens of millions of won and stored a three-months supply of food, paint thinner and other flammable materials in the building. This was not a protest to defend their right to survive. There was evidence of criminal behavior. After painstaking consideration, we had no choice but to seek arrest warrants.” He added that the prosecution “attributed the fire to the Molotov cocktails.”

The prosecution also said it is planning to investigate senior members of Jun Chul Yun. “It is necessary to investigate the people who were involved in preparing for the protest and those involved in its implementation, even if they didn’t participate in the occupation of the building,” Jeong said.

The prosecution downplayed the extent of the planned investigation, saying that “It’s not aimed at core Jun Cheol Yun members.” But it is likely the prosecution will choose to launch a full-scale investigation into Jun Chul Yun, given that its current investigation is focused on whether Jun Chul Yun and to what extent Jun Chul Yun was involved in the protest planning and execution.

Meanwhile, there are mounting questions about the prosecution’s ability to investigate the police’s responsibility for the damage that resulted from the Tuesday incident.

Jang Seo-yeon, a lawyer, said, “If the exact cause of the fire isn’t proven, it will become appropriate for prosecutors to look into what happened both before and after the fire. But because the prosecution is already conducting an in-depth probe against the protesters, I get the feeling that the prosecution might be preparing to pass responsibility for the fire on to the protesters.”

In seeking the arrest warrants, a prosecution official who is investigating the case said, “Though (the police) could be criticized for using excessive force, it will be difficult to assign them criminal responsibility because this was an operation formally approved by the head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency.”

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