South Korea probes forklift abuse of migrant

South Korea's president has directed officials to seek measures to prevent the mistreatment of migrant workers following public outrage over a video showing a Sri Lankan worker being transported by a forklift while bound at a South Korean factory.

“After watching the video, I couldn't believe my eyes,” President Lee Jae Myung expressed in a Facebook post on Thursday. “That was an intolerable violation and clear human rights abuses of a minority person.” During a subsequent Cabinet Council meeting, Lee reiterated his condemnation of the abuse and voiced concerns regarding South Korea's international reputation. He instructed government ministries to assess the human rights situation facing migrant workers and other minorities and to develop pragmatic steps to prevent such violations.

South Korean human rights activists released the video on Wednesday. The footage, filmed at a brick factory in the southwestern city of Naju in late February, was captured and provided by a fellow Sri Lankan worker.

The video depicts a forklift operator, identified as South Korean, lifting another worker bound with plastic wraps and tied to bricks. As the forklift maneuvers him around the factory yard, laughter from another individual is audible.

The 31-year-old victim, who arrived in South Korea in November, endured this abuse for approximately five minutes as a punishment by the South Korean forklift operator, dissatisfied with the victim's brick wrapping skills, according to Mun Gil Ju, a local activist involved in releasing the video.

Naju city officials stated that the factory head mentioned the event was organized as a prank. However, Mun emphasized that “bounding a person with plastic wraps” should not be trivialized as a prank.

The company employs about 24 workers, including seven from East Timor and Sri Lanka, in addition to South Koreans. According to Naju officials, the Sri Lankan victim continues to work at the factory.

The Labour Ministry announced on Thursday that it will launch an investigation into the factory and review whether foreign workers have been subjected to beating, bullying, and delayed wages.

Many migrant workers, predominantly from Southeast Asia and China, engage in low-paying or hazardous jobs at factories, farms, and other sites, where activists report frequent discrimination and mistreatment. (AP)

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