Huge protests in South Korea that the media isn't covering...

[MikeWB]

Meanwhile in South Korea...largest protests since 2008

Police firing water cannon heavily laced with liquid tear gas (November 14th, 2015)


                           
69 year old man named Baek Nam-gi who is currently in the hospital for head injuries.
                               
So why are 100,000-130,000 people protesting?



(protesters gathering at Seoul City hall)

First it is important to note that President Park Geun-Hye is daughter of Park Chung Hee. Park Chung Hee was also president but he ran Korea as a military dictatorship for 17 years in the 60s and 70s until he was assassinated by his own head of security. 

People are angry with President Park Geun-Hye for a variety of reasons.
-Starting in 2017, the government will only allow middle and high schools to use a single government written history textbook. People are worried that her father's history will be white washed and paint that the militarist dictatorship was fine. That it was ok to take away democratic rights. 
-People are angry that policies are being pushed by the president where it makes it easier to fire people and take away worker's rights. Also, policies that only benefit the rich.
-Graduated college students have a high unemployment rate. About 410,000 youth in their 20s are currently unemployed. (total population of South Korea stands at about 50 million). 
-Farmers are angry about the falling price of rice.
-People are also angry that she leaves the country every time there is a protest. She lacks action when it comes to national events such as a Sewol Ferry disaster.

tl;dr: People angry at the President about jobs, education, and her ability to be president.
                               
Protesters planned to march from Seoul City Hall to Cheong Wa Dae (blue House) which is where the president lives



(You can see the blue roof of Cheong Wa Dae in the distance).

But police set up a barrier and lined all nearby streets with buses to block protesters.

This is an area in central Seoul called Gwanghwamun which is very popular for protesters for its proximity to the Cheong Wa Dae and historical icons such as Gyeongbuk Palace (the Kings' palace of the Joseon dynasty), the bronze statue of King Sejeong the Great, and the  statue of the navy general Lee Sunshin.

Police blocked off exits of subways near where protesters planned to go.



When protesters tried to march, the police blocked the roads and blasted protesters with water cannons laced with tear gas.



Some people say some of the water cannons had blue paint in them so protesters could be identified later and arrested.



Only 50~60 people were arrested which included some high school students.

This is a can of oil. Police oiled up police buses so protesters couldn't get leverage to move them or knock them over



That didn't stop protesters from wrapping rope around the tires of buses to try to move them to make an entry point



The water from the cannon is so white because there was a huge amount of tear gas in it



Police brutality to just push people to the ground.