Delegates confirm union’s registration within October and further struggles
KGEU congress on July 21
The KGEU held an extraordinary congress on July 21 and decided to get registered under the current special act by the end of October. During the congress, the union leaders, including president KWON Seung Bok, general secretary KIM Jeong Soo and vice presidents, stated that they would resign their offices.
The delegates confirmed that Bro. KIM Paek Kyu, Chair of KGEU Educational Administrative Organs Branch and a member of KGEU central executive committee, would take over the office as acting president. According to the result of the congress, the KGEU is expected to elect new leadership of the union in September and then to get registered by the end of October.
The delegates agreed that the June struggle was quite successful, in that the union once again managed to firmly fight back in unity against the government and repression, and that the members regained confidence in union activities. However, they also admitted that the June struggle had not produced visible outcomes in negotiations with the government. The government has not changed its attitude at all and accordingly no talks and negotiations took place.
The union leaders, as the leadership, stated that they will take all responsibility failing to make the government come out for negotiations, as well as for not being able to stop the union from splitting up.
Followings are some excerpts of the statement of the resigned union leaders issued shortly after the congress;
"We are offering our sincere apology that we had to resign. Although we had been elected under the pledge that the union would fight back for full guarantee of our basic labour rights, reinstatement of the dismissed and our rights to livelihood, we were not able to complete our term in office, leaving many problems unresolved.
As soon as the 3rd union leadership launched in March, 2006, the government tightened its hard-line stance and implemented intensive crackdown on the union. The repression has come from all directions. Our members were intimidated into withdrawing from the union. The authorities blocked our members from paying union dues. The repression was so barbaric and inhumane enough that some of us, threatened and horrified, had to leave the union. Our local union offices were attacked and forcibly closed down by the police.
However, some members voiced out that the union should accept the special act and to get registered right away in order to avoid further repression, rather than strengthening the impending struggles to defend our rights to livelihood and to fight back the repression, causing internal contention within the union. Meanwhile, our public officialdom was being attacked with introduction of forcible retrenchment system and worsening of government employees’ pension system.
We felt that the mandate of union leadership should be met and that we should fully reflect our rank and file members’ interests to defend our rights. At the congress on May 19, our delegates decided that the union should take intense struggles in June. This decision was a reaffirmation of the principles and traditions of the democratic trade union movement, whereby a union cannot live nor workers’ rights be upheld without struggles, as well as an effort to consolidate these principles within the KGEU.
The June struggle did not end with visible outcome in negotiations with the government. But all of us witnessed that we firmly fought back in unity and that the members once again became confident in union activities.
We are very sure that the new union leadership to be elected will be able to shape and reconstruct our union, to become a much stronger democratic union, by overcoming the internal contention and discord during our term. And we all fully understand the meaning of the decision the delegates made at the congress on July 21 - that the union should be registered. Yet, we also know that it does not mean that the union is giving up struggles or changing its direction into compromises or corporatist and opportunist lines.
As we did in June, let’s firmly resolve to keep fighting back to defend our democratic union, to fully guarantee our basic labour rights, and to protect our rights to livelihood. As trade unionists and proud members of the KGEU, we will be at the front of the struggle with you."
During the congress, many delegates argued that the union should continue to remain outside the special act, which is far from what we can agree upon and also not in line with international labour standards including the recent ILO recommendations in June. Moreover, they confirmed that the union should take further intense struggles in the second half of this year, especially before the presidential election in December and the general election in April in 2008. Majority of the delegates shared this view.
However, they also agreed that, in order to continue and succeed by firm struggles, the union must remain intact under the banner of the KGEU. In other words, in order to continue our struggles in unity, we needed to put the argument of registering or not registering behind us and prevent any further division from taking place.
In conclusion, about 55% of the delegates voted in favour that the union should register by the end of October. But, whether the union gets registered or not, the KGEU will not acknowledge the special act and will continue to fight back to guarantee our basic labour rights in accordance with international labour standards.
Followings are excerpts from the statement issued in the name of acting president on July 25:
"The KGEU, that we have been so proud of, has been devoting itself to the struggles for full guarantee of basic labour rights, truthful reform of public officialdom for people and eradication of corruption and injustice in civil service by unveiling the past of government employees as tools of the powerful and capital.
Since its establishment, the KGEU, on behalf of 900,000 government employees, has been fighting back the government repression, and succeeding spirits and principles of democratic trade union movement as a unique affiliate to the KCTU in civil service.
This is the time that unity is urgently needed under the banner of the KGEU more than ever. I would like to request that all union members be united to make the union stronger and sturdier with respect and trust to union’s decisions.
Until now, the KGEU has been moving forwards in spite of barbaric repression by the government and we have been capable of overcoming all difficulties with united struggles. We will keep continuing this history of struggle and making our union stronger. Let’s be united again under the banner of the KGEU and make our history filled with struggles.