Korean peasants protest as climate crises, crop failures, rising costs and cheap imports threaten their livelihoods

Yeouido, Seoul: Enraged by the Yoon Suk-yeol government’s policies that promote the destruction of agriculture and agro-suicide, peasants across the country rallied outside the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea on July 4. They were calling for a National Congress to address the existential crisis in rural areas. The protesting peasants demanded improved national policies to protect the interests of small-scale food producers in the face of climate crises, crop losses, rising input costs, and price volatility.

More than 3,000 people attended the National Peasant Congress. Tensions rose when police blocked agricultural machinery, leading to physical confrontations in which one peasant was injured. The Korean Peasant League and the Korean Women Warriors Association, which took part in the protest, also reported that police arrested and detained a young peasant leader.

“At this rate, both farms and peasants will soon perish,” one protester exclaimed. They were particularly critical of the government’s import tariff cuts, which they said were destabilizing prices and flooding the market with imported agricultural products. Jeon Jin-gu, chairman of the Jeonno Chungnam Provincial Federation, highlighted the problem: “When apple prices rise, ‘golden apples’ are imported; when onion prices rise, onions are imported.”

In an interview with the People’s Voice news agency, leaders of the Peasant Unions in the Congress, representing various producer associations, drew attention to the widespread price declines:

Kim Chang-soo of the National Garlic Producers Association explained, “This year, the garlic could not withstand the warm and humid winter, which caused the cloves to split and resulted in garlic that was ‘bulbless.’ Disease and pest problems were serious. Despite our efforts, the cost of producing 1 kg of garlic reached 4,500 won, while the auction prices were only 3,830 won.”

He continued: “Failed pricing policies have raised production costs and reduced harvests due to insufficient disaster prevention measures. Why should peasants bear this burden alone? It is unfair.”

Nam Jong-woo of the National Onion Producers Association noted, “This year, retail prices for onions have reached 13,000 won per 20 kg. Considering labor and production costs, this is unsustainable. The influx of imported onions has decimated domestic prices since last year.”

Kim Myung-ki of the National Rice Producers Association lamented: “Rice prices have reached a 45-year low since the crisis two years ago. In October last year, the price of 20 kg of rice exceeded 54,000 won, but has now fallen to 46,000 won. Without addressing the issue of the 5 percent tariff quota allowing imports of 400,000 tons of rice per year, peasants face a dire prospect.”

The protesting peasants put forward demands including comprehensive national measures against climate disasters, stopping excessive allocations of tariffs, amending the Grain Management Law, enacting the Basic Peasant Law, supporting agricultural inputs, ensuring coverage of production costs, the legal status of women-boys, and implementing public procurement of major agricultural products.

Peasants also expressed frustration with police restrictions on entering the city and the refusal of tractors to enter. At the Gathering, peasant women dressed in white symbolized the plight of dying farms and livelihoods.

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