After an investigation triggered by a complaint involving a unionists" rally at the Hyeongsan Junction in Pohang, which was filed by the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions on July 16, 2006, the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) has confirmed that there was an overuse of ban notices and excessive repression by the police. The Commission has decided to request that prosecutors investigate the death of Mr. Jung-Geun Ha, a member of the POSEC Labour Union who died during the demonstration. It also plans to issue recommendations that the Chief Constable of the Pohang Nambu Police Station be disciplined for using excessive control measures and that the Chief Commander of the Seoul Special Mobile Police be given a warning.
The NHRCK launched a team of nine investigators on August 2, 2006, and the team has since performed a wide range of investigations into the matter. First, the team has conducted a series of field studies: they visited Pohang and interviewed witnesses and injured people as well as the commander of the repression mobile police and his charges. In addition, the investigators reviewed documentation submitted by the police and the fact-finding team under the Pohang Joint Task Force of the labor community, as well as relevant videos and photos. They also listened to the opinions of forensic medical doctors. A total of five rounds of deliberation took place before the Plenary Committee adopted a final resolution on November 27.
In the resolution, the NHRCK recognized that the police" s move to ban all assemblies following, and on account of, the labour union members" occupation of POSCO" s headquarters was a violation of the freedom of assembly guaranteed by the Constitution of the Republic of Korea. Moreover, the Commission has confirmed that the security forces used their shields not only for self-protection, but often used as a weapon of aggression by wielding their shields horizontally or lifting their shields up high to strike down demonstrators. This occurred even though police are urged to exercise minimal physical force in dispersing demonstrators, even in the case of illegal assembly. The Commission has also found that as a result of such aggressive repression, many of the injured were struck on parts of the body above the neck, e.g., the face or back of the head. In particular, the investigation has determined that during the second round of forceful dispersion, the police used fire extinguishers and discharged the chemical agent toward the demonstrators to fog up the air thus avoid violent collisions between the police and demonstrators. Despite the good intension, the use of fire extinguishers backfired: The security forces and demonstrators wielded bamboo bars (demonstrators), billy clubs (police), and shields (police) against each other when they could not see each other well, resulting in more injuries on such sensitive body parts as the faces and heads of demonstrators. The use of fire extinguishers is prohibited for purposes other than firefighting. Meanwhile, the Assembly and Demonstration Act stipulates that before attempting to forcefully disperse an assembly, the police must air a warning at least three times, but the security forces did not comply this provision. What is worse, such warnings were given through a portable electrical megaphone whose rated power was weak, and many demonstrators could not hear the warnings.
In the case of the death of Mr. Jung-Geun Ha, a member of the POSEC Labour Union, it has been recognized that he died during the police" s forceful disperse of the rally, but the Commission has nonetheless decided to request that the Prosecutor General investigate the specific cause of death.
