Police dealt violently with student protestors who tried to march on the U.S. embassy

SEOUL, October 2 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) – U.S. special envoy James Kelly was greeted by a boisterous anti-American demonstration Wednesday, October 2, as he arrived in South Korea for consultations on his landmark trip to Stalinist North Korea.

More than 2,000 students trampled on a giant U.S. flag, shouting slogans dubbing U.S. President George W. Bush a "war-monger," at a rally in central Seoul, Agence France-Presse (AFP) said.

Scuffles broke out as baton-wielding riot police blocked the protestors' march towards the U.S. embassy several blocks away.

The students with South Korean national flags wrapped around their heads carried placards opposing U.S. plans for an attack on Iraq. "No to U.S. war on Iraq," one placard read.

Police with riot shields formed a human barricade as the demonstrators began a march on the embassy and lashed out with their batons as some students tried to break through their lines, AFP said.

The students from Hanchongryon, an association of leftwing students, called for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from South Korea and blasted President George W. Bush for heightening tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Police formed a massive security cordon around the U.S. embassy just across the road from the foreign ministry where Kelly was holding consultations with South Korean Foreign Minister Choi Sung-Hong.

Thousands of riot police were deployed on roads leading to the embassy, which has issued a warning notice for Americans in South Korea, one of Washington's key allies.

The association, banned by the Seoul government for leftist activities, has spearheaded a wave of anti-U.S. protests since an American armored vehicle crushed two South Korean girls to death in June 2002.

Two American soldiers were accused of murder, but the U.S. military has refused to hand them over for trial by South Korean authorities, instead ordering their court martial.

Ten college activists broke into the U.S. embassy compound Tuesday, October 1, to demand an apology from the U.S. President for the girls' deaths.

"Bush apologize to South Koreans," Hanchongryon said in a statement through its website.

It denounced Bush's hardline policy towards North Korea and called for the immediate withdrawal of 37,000 U.S. troops stationed in South Korea under a mutual defense pact dating back to the 1950-53 Korean War.

"We cannot live with U.S. troops who are raising tensions on the Korean peninsula," the association said.

Following the arrest of the 10 students, the U.S. embassy urged U.S. citizens to avoid confrontation with South Korean protestors.

"U.S. citizens are reminded that political, labor and student demonstrations and marches in Korea can become confrontational or violent," the embassy notice said.

Anti-U.S. sentiment has been growing since a watershed inter-Korean summit in 2000 accelerated a reconciliation between the North and South, which are still technically at war.

But President Kim Dae-Jung – at a cabinet meeting earlier Wednesday – urged the students to stop anti-U.S. demonstrations, calling the United States "our very important ally."

"The alliance between South Korea and the United States is essential for our security," he added.

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