Gun Battle Erupts as Kim Dae Jung Dines in Manila

Two men opened fire Monday outside a restaurant where South Korean opposition leader Kim Dae Jung was attending a dinner party with Philippine Defense Secretary Fidel V. Ramos, police said.

Neither Kim nor Ramos was injured in the incident, in which one assailant was killed and two of Ramos’ bodyguards were wounded.

Others at the Korean Garden Restaurant in suburban Makati at the time of the shooting included Rep. Ramon Mitra, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Foreign Secretary Raul Manglapus, Sen. Agapito Aquino and Sen. Heherson Alvarez.

The shooting apparently broke out after the assailants became angry because security guards had cordoned off the narrow street in front of the restaurant and refused to let their car pass, police said.

Two men stepped from the car, drew pistols and began firing. Security guards returned fire, wounding one of the gunmen.

The wounded man, Jefferson Bautista, an employee of the city’s transport system who also worked as a civilian intelligence agent for the Philippine Constabulary, died in the hospital. The other assailant was arrested along with a woman who had been in the car.

Two of Ramos’ bodyguards were wounded but their injuries were not serious, officials said.