Human Rights Commissioner Choi Young-ae: "Kim Jin-suk's Reinstatement Must Be Resolved from the Perspective of Addressing Past Wrongs Caused by State Violence"

National Human Rights Commission Chairperson Choi Young-ae is greeting after meeting with the strikers at the Kim Jin-suk worker reinstatement hunger strike site in front of the Blue House on the 2nd, along with Commissioner Jeong Mun-ja and Secretary-General Song So-yeon.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] Choi Young-ae, Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission, issued a statement on the 4th urging the reinstatement of dismissed worker Kim Jin-suk, a guiding committee member of the Busan branch of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), and emphasized that "the issue should be resolved from the perspective of addressing past injustices caused by state violence beyond just labor-management relations."

Chairperson Choi stated, "Kim has continued her struggle for reinstatement and activities to promote labor rights for 35 years. Her life runs parallel to the history of labor movements and democratization struggles in our country," adding, "Kim's reinstatement is not only a restoration of personal honor but also a recovery of human dignity and a reflection on the unresolved wrongful past of our society."

In particular, Chairperson Choi highlighted the fact that Kim was a victim of state violence. She said, "After being elected as a union delegate in February 1986, Kim was tortured three times at the Busan Police Department's Public Security Division for producing and distributing leaflets exposing the union leadership's collusion with management. During this period, the company dismissed her on the grounds of 'unauthorized absence,'" and added, "Kim's reinstatement should be approached from the universal human rights perspective that seeks to clear the dark past of state violence committed during the military dictatorship era and transform our society into a warmer, more human-respecting community."

She further defined Kim's reinstatement issue as "a significant matter that measures how much our society respects human rights and life." Chairperson Choi emphasized, "I hope Hanjin Heavy Industries, the main creditor bank, and related institutions respond with proactive efforts and an open will to resolve the issue for Kim Jin-suk, a dismissed worker who has been unable to return to the workplace for 35 years and remains on the road in the bitter winter cold."

Earlier, on the 2nd, Chairperson Choi visited the hunger strike site in front of the Blue House fountain organized by the 'Remember Hope Bus Planning Group,' which demands Kim's reinstatement, and stated, "We will do everything we can (at the Human Rights Commission)."

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