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(LEAD) Factory in Kaesong complex closed down over dispute
By Shim Sun-ah
SEOUL, June 30 (Yonhap) -- A South Korean factory operating in the joint industrial complex in Kaesong has been closed for nearly 20 days over a feud with a North Korean controller, government and company officials said Monday.
The company, which employs around 300 North Korean workers, took the measure on June 12 after South Korean employees and North Korean officials scuffled over supplies, they said.
The firm demanded the North Korean authorities replace the North Korean controller who allegedly assaulted South Koreans in the fight, but the demand was not met.
It was not known exactly what caused the fight.
The Kaesong industrial complex, located just north of the heavily armed inter-Korean border, is one of the tangible fruit of the 2000 historic summit between leaders of the two Koreas.
A total of 28,277 North Koreans were working for 70 South Korean labor-intensive manufacturers in Kaesong as of the end of May, according to the Unification Ministry.
The North Korean office overseeing the management of the complex is known to have lodged a protest over the South Korean firm's "unilateral decision" to close down.
"Things got complicated, as emotional issues combined with the sort of dispute that usually happens between labor and management," another source said. "The company is trying to find a way out with the North Korean government office," he added.
sshim@yna.co.kr
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