S. Korean Students Battle Police to Protest End of Constitutional Talks

Thousands of students throughout the country chanted “Down with dictatorship!” and fought police Thursday in protest of President Chun Doo Hwan’s decision to stop debate on constitutional change.

News reports said the demonstrations involved 13,000 students at 24 universities in Seoul and other cities. There were no overall reports on arrests and casualties, but witnesses reported at least 10 demonstrators injured in Seoul.

Chun this week ended talks between the ruling party and the opposition on amending the constitution to change the way his successor is chosen when he steps down next February. The opposition seeks direct election of the president, but Chun’s decision means that the next leader will be chosen by an electoral college, a method that the opposition says is easily manipulated to allow the president to pick his successor.

The government says stern action will be taken against anyone who attempts to foment “social chaos” and endanger the 1988 Summer Olympics to be held in South Korea.

South Korea’s 120,000 national police were put on alert Thursday in case of demonstrations. A spokesman said the readiness will continue through the 27th anniversary Sunday of a student uprising April 19, 1960, that brought down the government of President Syngman Rhee.

South Korean students, traditionally critical of the government, usually mark the day with large demonstrations on campuses and in the streets.

Authorities ruled Thursday that anyone under a suspended sentence cannot be a member of a political party or influence the affairs of a political group, a directive that would include prominent dissident leader Kim Dae Jung.

The ruling was given by the Central Election Management Committee, whose jurisdiction covers political parties, in reply to a request by an anti-Kim Dae Jung opposition politician for an authoritative ruling on the issue. The request did not specifically name Kim Dae Jung and neither did the ruling, but analysts said it was obvious that both were directed against Kim.