South Korea Police Disperse Protesters

SEOUL — South Korean riot police fired tear gas Monday to disperse thousands of workers who took to the streets of the southeastern city of Masan after an anti-government rally, witnesses said.

The protesters were among more than 10,000 workers who crowded a plaza in the city to demand higher wages and an end to what they called government repression of labor.

In nearby Changwon, about 2,000 strikers from consumer electronics giant Goldstar, some of them rolling gasoline-filled drums, marched in the streets but were dispersed by riot police firing tear gas.

Government officials say the export-led South Korean economy faces a crisis because of labor disputes. Stoppages affected 322 companies in the first three months of 1989, at a cost of $2.37 billion in lost production and $642 million in exports, according to Trade Ministry figures.