The details can be summarized briefly. In May 1967, a legitimate labor union was formed at Simdo Textile in Ganghwa Island, with JOC members (Young Christian Workers) from the Ganghwa Parish playing a leading role. Among the 21 textile companies in Ganghwa, some had already established unions. Father Michael Bransfield, a Maryknoll missionary (1929-1989), the then parish priest of Ganghwa, indirectly supported the union activities by allowing them to use the meeting space.
The company president, a member of parliament, not only dismissed the union officials but also forced the protesting workers out of the factory. Other company presidents seized this opportunity to fire active union members. Sixteen of the dismissed workers were all practicing Catholics. The business owners also went so far as to approach the priest, accusing him of being a subversive element who was inciting the workers, and threatened him, holding him responsible for the factory's losses.
They issued a resolution stating that they would not employ any Catholics, and the president of Simdo Textile claimed that 'the factory was paralyzed due to the unfair interference of the priest before announcing a closure. There were instances where workers, instigated by the company owners, gathered at the church to protest. The police chief of Ganghwa, along with the business owners, urged the priest to formally apologize to the employers, citing accusations of violating anti-communist laws. This situation led to divisions not only among the local residents but also among some of the parishioners.
Management attempted to dismantle the union by unlawfully dismissing two members, prompting union members to gather at the Ganghwa Church to hold a meeting on the situation. This time, the police intervened, apprehending about 30 Catholic believers, and the owner of Simdo Textile, along with the head of the Ganghwa police station, threatened Father Bransfield, saying he would be arrested for violating anti-communism laws if he continued to interfere with union activities.
The 'Ganghwa Textile Council,' an association of 21 textile companies in Ganghwa, published a statement in a central daily newspaper declaring that they would no longer hire JOC members. Following this, the management mobilized over 150 workers to protest against Father Bransfield, and the police detained him, demanding an apology. Furthermore, they pressured Bishop William McNaughton, the head of the Incheon diocese, to have Father Bransfield reassigned elsewhere. In this worsening situation, the bishop expressed intense regret through a statement addressed to the management and police authorities, protesting against the infringement of workers' legitimate rights.
The bishop considered this incident as a full-scale repression of the Church, beyond just a simple labor dispute. At the time, the president of JOC was Cardinal Kim Soo-hwan (Stefano), who would be appointed as Korea's first cardinal in 1969. Cardinal Kim assessed the situation and persuaded other bishops, leading the bishops' conference to issue a statement titled 'We uphold social justice and workers' rights' on February 9, 1968. The statement acknowledged the rights of workers to form unions and engage in collective action, reflecting the Church's fundamental stance on labor issues.
Although the bishops' statement might have seemed radical in Korean society at that time, Pope Paul VI sent a letter of encouragement and support to the Korean bishops' conference.
As the consistent protests from the entire Korean church and the support from the Vatican were conveyed, the government eventually stepped in to resolve the situation, leading the textile council, led by Simdo Textiles, to annul previous resolutions and reinstate the dismissed workers. The Ganghwa textile incident was a symbolic event where the Korean church actively expressed its stance on social issues for the first time after the council. Subsequently, the Korean church would assume a prophetic role in various areas of social engagement, including labor issues, democratization, human rights movements, national reconciliation, and the pursuit of social justice, drawing on this valuable experience.
