» Children light candles at Gwanghwamun on June 10, 2008, when approximately 1 million people gathered to protest the government’s plan to import U.S. beef. The event was one among many “candlelight demonstrations” that took place over the summer. Recently, the police classified all of the groups that were listed as having organized the demonstrations as “illegal and violent protests,” which makes them ineligible for government funding.

According to the police, Korea has no less than 1,842 organizations classified as “violent,” including opposition parties in the National Assembly, labor and civic groups, and even organizations of beekeepers and ginseng growers.

The National Police Agency arrived at the number by looking up all the organizations that joined together to form the People’s Countermeasure Council against Mad Cow Disease, a national umbrella group that organized “candlelight protests” against the resumption of U.S. beef imports, officially defining even member organizations that participated only in name as “groups involved in illegal and violent protests.”

Any organization listed as an “illegal and violent protest” group is excluded from receiving any government financial assistance.

The list of 1,842 “illegal and violent protest” organizations includes the Democratic Labor, the Renewal of Korea, and New Progressive Parties, progressive groups like the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, the Korean Federation for the Environmental Movement, the Korean Teachers and Education Workers’ Union ( Jeon Gyo Jo), and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (Minju Nochong).

But it also includes groups that added their names as signatories to the umbrella anti-US beef protest organization but whose involvement was otherwise minimal, including the Korea Federation of Organizations of the Disabled, itself an umbrella organization for groups for the disabled, professional craft guilds like the Korea Beekeeping Association and the Korea Ginseng Farmers’ Association, as well as groups like the Uijeongbu Living Welfare Center, and the Surviving Families of Persons of Distinguished Service to the Independence Movement, an official organization of families with members cited by the government for their participation in the campaign for independence from Japan.

Police officials have formally reported the list of violent groups to the ministries of Labor, Unification, and Gender Equality, and to the Nakdong River Valley Environmental Authority, and will soon inform the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, Korea’s equivalent to an interior ministry.

“We determined that all the organizations who added their names to the umbrella task force were involved in illegal and violent protests,” said Jang Jeon-bae of the National Police Agency. “There can be no exception for opposition parties and professional guilds.”

Since 2007 the government has been refusing government financial assistance of any kind to groups “involved with” protests deemed “illegal and violent.” There are two types of government financial subsidy for Korean organizations: “project funds for public interest activities by non-profit, non-governmental groups,” which is the type of funding received by civic groups, and funding for organizations “related to the government.”

“Funding for ‘public interest activities’ is different in character from money that goes to labor costs and operational expenses, and it is given only after a strict selection process,” said Jang Man-hui of the Ministry of Public Administration and Security. “It is all part of serving the Korean public, with non-governmental groups carrying out work in individual areas the government can’t manage on its own.”

Meanwhile, PSPD and Jinbo Korea, which were actively involved in organizing the protest against U.S. beef imports, have not been receiving government funds.

The government cut “project funds for public interest activities” by 10 billion won (US$7.3 million) last year to 5 billion won (US$ 3.7 million) for 2009 and is currently accepting applications for this year’s funding.

“I understand that the government wants to uses money to tame civic groups to its liking,” said the PSPD’s An Jin-geol. “But it is the Korean citizen who is going to suffer” from poor funding.

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