Police in the southeastern city of Busan have prevented activists installing a statue symbolizing the Koreans who were subjected to forced labor under Japanese colonial rule.
The conflict is expected to intensify as the Korean government insists the statue should not be erected in front of the Japanese consulate in the city.
Kim Hyo-sun reports.
Dozens of labor union activists clashed with police on Tuesday as they tried to erect a bronze statue symbolizing the Korean victims of forced labor under Japan's colonial rule outside the Japanese consulate in Busan.
The streets around the consulate were guarded by some 500 police officers as the group rallied to install the statue beside an existing comfort woman statue, to pay tribute to the forced workers on Labor Day.

"If we want Japan to offer a sincere apology, I believe the statue must be installed outside the Japanese consulate. It's the only way to ensure our voices are heard."

The row is expected to continue as the central government and the Busan City Government are insisting the statue be installed elsewhere, and not next to the statue representing comfort women,... those who were forced to work in Japanese military brothels before and during World War II.
The comfort women statue was established by a different civic group in late 2016,... and led to Tokyo's recall of its consul general in Busan as well as its ambassador to Korea in protest.
The Japanese government also expressed regret over the incident on Tuesday,... and urged Seoul to prevent the forced workers statue from being erected, citing diplomatic protocol.
Historians say millions of Koreans were coerced into labor during Japan's colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945.
Kim Hyo-sun, Arirang News.