Sunday, February 16, 2003
SOUTH KOREAN FARMERS PROTEST . . . FREE TRADE WITH CHILE
My reactions to this piece are two-fold: 1) Some police probably were able to bring home a nice fruit basket assembled from the emblems of the farmers' wrath. 2) As is often the case, the "anti-American" demonstrations are not the only thing on the Korean radar screen, often not even the most significant.
Thousands of angry South Korean farmers clashed with police during a protest rally in Seoul against the country's first free-trade agreement set to be signed with Chile, a major fruit exporter. Around 3,000 protesters demanded that the trade pact be nullified, some hurling tangerines, pears and apples at the police. Under the terms of the deal, each country must scrap many tariffs on manufactured and agricultural goods.
My reactions to this piece are two-fold: 1) Some police probably were able to bring home a nice fruit basket assembled from the emblems of the farmers' wrath. 2) As is often the case, the "anti-American" demonstrations are not the only thing on the Korean radar screen, often not even the most significant.
