SEOUL, Oct 16, 2010 (The Korea Herald – McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) — Korean residents who saw Uzbekistan officials raid a South Korean-owned golf club in the central Asian country last week called the search brutal and unfair, adding to the controversy that could lead to diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
Police and tax officials in Uzbekistan raided the Lakeside Golf Club in Tashkent where more than 30 Korean guests were accommodated to take part in a friendly golf match over the weekend, an investigation Seoul’s Foreign Ministry said was «conducted for unclear reasons.» «The way the Uzbek officials handled Koreans was like that during the war,» a Korean resident who was at the scene told the media here, asking not to be named as he «feared revenge» from the Uzbekistan government.
The Korean said he also owned a small firm in Uzbekistan.
About 50 Uzbek officials barged into the golf club around 5 a.m. Saturday with their faces masked and using guns to threaten people who tried to stop them, the unnamed resident said.
Two male tourists in their 60s were asked to lie face down on the grass while a local Uzbek worker at the golf club was hit with a club for trying to help them, according to the Korean witness.
«The Uzbek officials even ignored a Korean embassy official who came and demanded to see a search warrant,» he said. «They left about five hours later, taking documents, the golf club safe and drinks from the lounge.» «This isn’t the first time I have experienced something so unreasonable here,» he added. «The Uzbek government should punish the officials responsible and the Korean government must get them to apologize properly and make sure such an incident is never repeated.» On Monday, South Korea’s chief consular affairs ambassador Moon Ha-yong summoned the Uzbek ambassador to Seoul, Vitali Fen, lodging a complaint for the reportedly violent raid.
The Uzbekistan envoy gave his word that he would deliver Seoul’s stern position back to his country and called the incident «deeply regretful,» according to the Foreign Ministry here.
Local authorities in Uzbekistan have explained the raid was part of a tax investigation, according to the Seoul Foreign Ministry.
«But we have to look more into the case, especially on whether it was necessary to search the guests and whether any violence was used,» an official at the ministry said, asking not to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue.
No injuries of South Koreans have been reported so far, although witnesses have said Uzbek authorities did use violence during the raid, he said.
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