Arresting the Chief of Teachers‘ Union Depends on its Attitude

Won Young-man, the chief of Teachers‘ Union, and Yoo Seung-joon, the manager of the branch office of the Teachers’ Union, were returned home on April 3 after being arrested on April 2 for related to violating the election law.

The prosecution rejected an arrest warrant that the police requested against Mr. Won and demanded additional investigation that day. Accordingly, Youngdeungpo police in Seoul allowed them to return home later that night.

The prosecution said on April 4, “Regarding the arrest and the investigation, we will decide after watching the movements of the Teachers‘ Union and the outcome of additional investigation.”

“Since Mr. Won explained that the writing on the Teachers’ Union website was his personal view, further examination is necessary in order to clarify whether or not it is the official opinion of the Teachers‘ Union,” said Ahn Chang-ho, the senior prosecutor of the public security division of the Supreme Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The prosecution said, however, that “it is different from the Teachers‘ Union,” regarding eight leaders of National Public Service Union, implying arrest and investigation measures. Among them was Kim Young-kil, the chief of National Public Service Union to whom the arrest warrant was issued under the same suspicion, and Kim Jung-soo, the deputy chief, who was also arrested. Superintendent public prosecutor Lee Jae-won said, “Since the National Public Service Union expressed their support for a certain party at the general meeting of representatives through the press conference, we have to deal with them differently than in Mr. Won’s case.”

Meanwhile, the Korean Confederation Trade Union and Teachers‘ Union held a press conference on April 3 at the headquarters of the former in Seoul, stating, “The government authority should apologize for the excessive countermeasures and immediately stop political suppression of public security.”

They insisted in the statement, “the Teachers‘ emergency statement consists of censuring the impeachment movement and hollowing out corruption politics instead of supporting a certain party. Hence, it cannot be violation of the election law.”

National Public Service Union also urged through the statement, “The government should stop exercising public power that is anti-democratic and anti-constitutional and hasten legislation reform that allows public servants and laborers to have political freedom.” A large scale gathering with civic groups will be held in front of the central government complex in Sejongno on April 6 if the government does not apologize.