hankyoreh

By Lee Jung-gook, staff reporter

Under growing criticism that the slew of damage lawsuits brought by the Korail and the government against the Korean Railway Workers’ Union for its strike is threatening workers’ livelihoods and their right to organize, a body for civic dialogue is being launched to discuss practical measures for addressing these issues and to push for improving policies. Recently there have been a number of court ruling on lawsuits that assessed massive financial burdens on labor unions.

According to various sources in labor organizations interviewed on Jan. 19, a meeting of a group provisionally called Hold Hands for a World without Damage Lawsuits and Seizure of Property, made up of intellectuals, civic groups, and labor activists who oppose suits for damages and seizure of property, will be held on Jan. 24 at the Peace Museum in Seoul’s Jongno district.

Group members include Han Hong-gu, professor at Sungkonghoe University; Cho Guk, professor at Seoul National University; Shin Seung-cheol, chairman of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU); Ha Jong-gang, dean of the labor college at Sungkonghoe University; fiction writer Seo Hae-seong; and Kwon Young-guk, labor chairman for MINBYUN-Lawyers for a Democratic Society.

Han Hong-gu - the driving force who proposed forming the group - had a telephone interview with the Hankyoreh on Jan. 19. “When I saw the court last month rule that union members at Ssangyong Motor must pay 4.7 billion won (US$4.43 million) in damages, as an intellectual I found myself feeling guilty about the reality that workers’ constitutionally guaranteed right to organize is being infringed upon,” Han said. “I wanted to see intellectuals and citizens hold hands and restore the severed link with organized labor so that they can fight together.”

In the short term, Hold Hands for a World without Damage Lawsuits and Seizure of Property is planning to prepare countermeasures, join the workers in their fight, and provide aid to victimized workers. It will also seek ways to improve the legal provisions related to seizing property to compensate for damages and the crime of interfering with business.

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