President Lee Visits Lula's Union Office: "Building a World that Respects Labor is the Same for Brazil and Korea"

On July 28 (local time), President Jae-myung Lee toured the metalworkers' union office in São Paulo, Brazil, where Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was once active.

Kang Yoo-jung, Senior Presidential Spokesperson, announced in the afternoon that President Lee had visited the headquarters of the São Bernardo do Campo area "ABC" Metalworkers' Union in São Paulo. The São Paulo ABC Metalworkers' Union is a symbol of the local labor movement and is where President Lula, a former metalworker, once served as union chairman.

President Jae-myung Lee, who is on a state visit to Brazil, visited the São Paulo Metalworkers' Union office in Brazil on the 28th (local time) and examined the items displayed in the office used by President Lula during his time as the union chairman. Photo by Yonhap News.

President Lee's visit to the São Paulo Metalworkers' Union was not originally included in his official state visit itinerary. The previous day, during a joint press briefing after the Korea-Brazil summit, President Lee mentioned, "If I visit São Paulo, I plan to visit the Metalworkers' Union office where our president worked in his younger years."

President Lee, accompanied by union chairman Wellington Damasceno, examined the office President Lula used during his tenure as union chairman from 1975 to 1981. President Lee inquired about the number of union members, the main industries involved, and the total number of unions across Brazil.

When Chairman Damasceno showed President Lee the alcohol and glasses inside a cabinet and explained, "This is where everyone would recharge their energy," President Lee replied, "That's very interesting," and laughed heartily. Chairman Damasceno also asked President Lee how he became a lawyer, to which President Lee answered, "I used to make watches."

Immediately after visiting the São Paulo Metalworkers' Union headquarters, President Lee shared his impressions on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "The work of building a world where labor is respected is no different in Brazil or in the Republic of Korea."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.