Pharmacists to launch protest this week

The Korean Pharmacists Association resolved to begin a protest Monday against the government-led separation of the professional roles of doctors and pharmacists. The protest will take the form of selling individual tablets, which was banned by the government. Government officials are prepared to crack down on the druggists` civil disobedience campaign and plan to monitor for violations of specific legal provisions.

After a mass rally by thousands of protestors Sunday in front of the government complex in Kwachon, the association declared it would mount demonstrations Monday.

Pharmacists also plan to defy the ban on allowing clinics to handle and dispense injections, kicking off a drive to collect 10 million signatures in support of their cause. Pharmacists earlier threatened to close down drug stores or sell specific medicines without doctors` prescriptions if the ban on handling injections was upheld. Observers said not all pharmacists backed the campaign.

Under the pharmaceutical law, selling general medicines by the tablet is punishable with a 15-day business suspension. Repeat offenders would be subject to one-month shutdowns for the second offense and license revocation for the third.

Song Sang-Keun songmoon@donga.com