RULING AGAINST SSANGYONG WORKERS OVERTURNED

[Anchor Lead]

Back in 2009, the police used forces to dismiss protesters during a strike by unionized Sssangyong Motor workers protesting their layoff. During the process, the police mobilized helicopters, and protesters responded by shooting slingshots at the helicopters. After the strike ended, the police filed for damage compensation from union members, claiming that their resistance damaged the helicopters and the cranes. In the first and second trials, the judges recognized the union members' responsibility. But the Supreme Court yesterday overturned their previous ruling.

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A police helicopter dropped a riot control agent, bagged tear gas from the sky while on the ground, the riot police were deployed like in a military operation. The police ended the strike protesting the layoff of some 2,000 Ssangyong Motor workers in 77 days.

[Soundbite] Cho Hyun-oh(Then-Commissioner of Gyeonggi Police Agency(2009)) : "Those who threatened the lives and safety of police officers as well as company employees must be found and held accountable by law."

This very warning led to a damage compensation lawsuit. The police filed a suit claiming that the union workers' resistance damaged the helicopters and the cranes. In the first and second trials, the judges set the damage compensation for the amount of more than one billion won. Since the unionized workers did not pay the court-ruled amount, the accrued interest over the past six years resulted in a total compensation of more than three billion won. But, the Supreme Court focused on what had caused the damage in the first place. The justices pointed out that the police helicopter intentionally flew low to cause strong winds during the protest control. The Supreme Court concluded that because the police endangered the protesters by misusing the equipment, the police had carried out its job illegally. So the Supreme Court sent the case back to the High Court, asking them to also determine whether the workers' shooting slingshots constituted self-defense. Until now, courts had been giving broad discretionary authority to the police when controlling demonstrations. But the Supreme Court made it clear that excessive suppression cannot be justified even in illegal protests.

[Soundbite] "We won! Retract the damage compensation!"

The Supreme Court's ruling comes 13 years after the protest. Union workers welcomed the court decision but still felt bitter because the court could have made this ruling much earlier.