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| Protesters leave after looting a store in South Africa's eastern city of Durban, Monday (local time). AP-Yonhap |
LG Durban plant burnt down; Samsung warehouse pillaged
By Kim Bo-eun
Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics seek to take corresponding measures to recover from damage to their respective operations in South Africa, following riots and looting in the country's largest city, Johannesburg, and adjacent areas.
The imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma last week prompted his supporters to protest, which developed into political unrest that resulted in at least 72 deaths as of Wednesday.
LG Electronics saw the greatest damage among Korean firms there, as its TV manufacturing plant in the eastern port city of Durban was burned down and its warehouse looted. LG said it could not provide an estimate of the scale of damage, but confirmed no casualties have been reported among employees. The damage is estimated to amount to several billions to tens of billions of won.
LG said the plant operated one production line manufacturing TVs and monitors, which employed about 100 workers. The plant is estimated to have manufactured LCD TVs and monitors amounting for $50 million on an annual basis.
"The company will have to figure out where it will source TV shipments as its factory burned down," an industry official said. "But given the factory produces LG TVs sold in South Africa, the damage will not be great."
The company said it has yet to decide on where its TV shipments to South Africa will be sourced from. LG Electronics also has plants in Southeast Asia and Europe. The electronics maker will also have to decide whether it will set up another plant in Durban or relocate to a different region.
In the meantime, employees have been directed to work from home.
Samsung Electronics' warehouse in KwaZulu-Natal was also pillaged, but its Durban plant has remained intact, the company said. Samsung's Durban plant is known to have enhanced security features.
"No casualties have occurred within the workforce and employees have been ordered to work from home," an official said.
Most of the deaths occurred in stampedes during the pillaging of stores, according to reports. Other casualties arose from explosions at ATMs. The Cyril Ramaphosa administration has deployed forces to suppress the unrest, under which more than 1,200 arrests have taken place.
The riot, which has continued for five days, was triggered by Zuma's imprisonment but appears to have grown backed by growing difficulties of the poor amid the COVID-19 pandemic and high rates of unemployment amid an economic downturn.
More than half of South Africa's population of 60 million are estimated to live in poverty. The country saw a record unemployment rate of 32.6 percent in the first quarter of this year ― the highest figure ever recorded by the survey, which began in 2008.
The former president was imprisoned for contempt, as he refused to cooperate in a state probe into allegations of corruption that took place during his presidency from 2009 to 2018. Zuma began serving a 15-month term, Thursday, but an application was filed to have his sentence rescinded.
