Yesterday we participated on the anti-war demonstration in front of Seyong Center. It was not the first time, that we supported the anti-war movement here.
Last year, in the time when the anti-USFK struggle reached his apex, only few of us were able to join. But now, jobless and in our own fight against the government, we have more possibilities to take a part in the movement.
Already in the beginning of this year, like on the demonstrations in February and March we tried to give our best, but because migrant workers even have to work (if they have work) on Saturdays at least 8 hours, only few of us were able to participate on the rallies. Last spring the famous British PeaceNews Magazine reported about our struggle against the war (the text you can read bellow).
But yesterday, like last Saturday in Daehang-no, we felt very sad. Still we have the pictures about the demonstrations last year against USFK and the then planned aggression against Iraq in our mind. Tenth of thousands, some times more than 100.000 people participated.
Now, the situation is very critical and urgent: the government plans to send thousands of troops, including combat forces, to support the occupation of Iraq. But what we have to see? Even, according to official surveys, the majority of the South Korean population was completely against the war and now against the occupation, only few people join the anti-war rallies/demonstrations.
This week the government announced that they want to send the troops in April to occupied Iraq. It means we have more three month, or so, to organize an effective resistance against it. But if we continue like the last demonstrations, we will have no chance to win. The government will send the troops, they, perhaps will murder Iraqis, or will be killed by the resistance there and here the people just will sit in the corner and cry bitter tears.
Last Saturday a Korean comrade from a leftwing youth organization described the rally/demo as a success. But this was nonsense, because we failed to mobilize the hundreds of thousands who are opposing the occupation of Iraq.
We have to learn what the failure of the anti-war movement, especially in the US and UK, taught us. Millions of people took the streets peacefully and their governments gave a shit about the public opinion…
LET’S FIGHT TOGETHER FOR A WORLD WITHOUT WARS, EXPLOITATION AND OPPRESSION! 투쟁!
"Our first priority has to be to fight against the possibility of war on the peninsula......" (PeaceNews #2451)
Migrant Workers and the anti-war movement in South Korea
"Migrant workers from different nationalities in Korea stand united against the US war against Iraq. We join in solidarity with other peace and freedom loving people in Korea and the rest of the world, and with millions of our fellow migrants and compatriots in our homelands and overseas, in saying NO! to this unjust war.", so read the text on a leaflet ETU-MB (Equal Trade Union-Migrant뭩 Branch, a part of Korean Confederation of Trade Unions/KCTU) members distributed during the anti-war demonstration here in Seoul, the South Korean capital, on 15 February 2003.
Parallel to the mass movement against the US military presence on the Korean peninsula last autumn, the anti-war movement was also increasing. As during the anti USFK (United States Forces Korea) rallies, the migrant workers movement participated in the anti-war protests actively from the beginning. On the first anti-war demonstration last October only a few migrant workers took part at the event, but very quickly the number of migrants participating in the South Korean peace movement increased.
Get organized!
But they didn뭪 just take part in the demonstrations, they also mobilized in their own communities as part of the wider anti-war movement. Along with Korean students they organized propaganda events in parts of Seoul where small factories are located, factories in which migrant workers, predominantly, are employed, and also near the main mosque. Here they came into close contact with people mainly from Indonesia, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
The consequence of their mobilization was that, on the large demonstration that took place on 15 February, more than 50 migrant workers participated and had their own block at the event. This, even though it was a Saturday in South Korea, which is generally an ordinary working day, with 12-hour days being normal (especially for migrants, who are the most exploited workers in Korea).
Playing an active role
On all the subsequent demonstrations, migrant workers, especially members of the ETU-MB, played a very active role. They wrote and distributed their own leaflets and had posters expressing their outrage at the aggression against Iraq.
"After the US imperialist invaded Iraq, Bush arrogantly said that the war is over! This is a big lie! The war is not over. It is only starting. The US Imperialist is continuing its re-mapping or re-colonization, not only in the Middle-East countries, but also in the South East Asian countries." a Filipino migrant said in a speech during the anti-war demonstration held on 12 April and organized by Daham-kke (All Together), the youth organization of the leftwing Democratic Labour Party. His words also expressed his worries about the US military presence in his home country.
As more and more migrant workers participated in the anti-war movement, they also began to organize themselves within Korean political groups ?a really new development and something which has never happen before.
So during this process, migrant workers not only took part in peace movement, they also changed their own position ?away from the periphery and closer to the center of Korean society. And because of it they also became more accepted by, and received more attention from, the Korean public.
Unity and solidarity
So it was no great surprise that on 27 April the KCTU organized a "Migrant Worker Action Day" and that on the same day, in the afternoon, Korean student groups prepared a "Struggle Cultural Festival" to offer support on the migrant worker issue in Korea.
During the cultural festival, more then 300 migrant workers and Koreans participated, the students demanded full democratic and labour rights for migrant workers and ETUMB members demanded the immediate withdrawal of South Korean troops from Iraq - and of course an end to the US occupation.
The festival strongly expressed the unity and solidarity between Koreans and migrant workers, not only in the struggle for full rights for migrant workers and the struggle against the war in Iraq but also against a possible US attack against North Korea.
Mahabuti, a migrant worker from Bangladesh commented: "Without peace in Korea we won뭪 even need a work visa anymore. So our first priority has to be to fight against the possibility of war on the peninsula and elsewhere!"
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Chosun Ilbo, English edition, about last Thursday's rallies 
