South Korea's judiciary has recently adopted a tougher stance on violent public protests, ordering heavy fines for both protesters and police who engage in such activity, the Supreme Court said Monday amid growing concerns over violent protests against U.S. beef imports, Yonhap news agency reported.
Violence flared over the weekend when thousands of people trying to march to the presidential office clashed with riot police wielding shields in downtown Seoul. About 60 protesters and police officers were injured during the protests over the government's deal with Washington to fully resume U.S. beef imports.
To deter violent action, the top court presented a series of recent rulings in which both protesters who used violence and police officers who used excessive force to put down disturbances were punished.
In a compensation suit, a district court in the southern city of Jeonju recently ruled in favor of the family of a victim who was allegedly beaten to death by a policeman wielding a baton during a farmers' protest over the opening of the country's rice market.
Even though there was no direct evidence that police violence was to blame for his death, the court took note of the increasing use of police shields against protesters in general and an internal directive for an aggressive crackdown at the time.
"Police have to take caution to minimize physical damage when they use batons," the verdict said, ordering the government to pay the victim's family 64 million won (about 62,000 U.S. dollars).
Another district court in the central city of Cheongju ordered the government to pay 160 million won to a citizen who lost sight in one eye when he was accidentally hit by a stone thrown by a riot policeman at protesters.
The court said in the verdict, "The throwing of stones by police during a clash with protesters is illegal activity that is beyond their scope of operations."
The judiciary has also been equally harsh on violent protesters.
The Cheongju district court ordered a group of 11 protesters to pay 10 million won in compensation to the government for destroying a police ban and the fence of the provincial office during their protest over the country's free trade agreement with the United States.
"Peaceful rallies and demonstrations should be acknowledged as much as possible within the lawful boundaries, but when they degenerate into illegal violent protests, those who engage in them should be held accountable and compensate for damages," the verdict said.
The police crackdown on U.S. beef protests recently sparked severe public criticism after video footage circulated on the Internet showing a riot police officer stepping on a female university student's face. The officer faces a trial, police said.
Source: Xinhua
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