By Kwon Mee-yoo
Staff reporter
The Seoul Metropolitan Council (SMC), now dominated by liberal members from the opposition Democratic Party (DP), is moving to open up plazas in downtown Seoul to rallies, igniting conflict with the city government led by Mayor Oh Se-hoon.
The use of Seoul Plaza and other plazas in central Seoul requires prior approval from the authorities. But the council is reviving a move to change the process to parties simply having to inform the authorities of their intentions, without having to obtain this approval.
The move came after the People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy (PSPD) submitted a petition signed by 85,000 people earlier this year to change to the more lenient format. The bill also includes allowing lawful assemblies at the plaza.
Currently, permission is only granted for leisure and cultural activities. The bill failed to pass at the last council meeting then dominated by ruling Grand National Party (GNP) councilors.
The new municipal council, which started its term on July 1, brought up the bill to revise rules for the use of plaza as one of their first acts to pass.
Originally, the council planned to pass the bill at a special session Tuesday, but civic organizations suggested compiling a comprehensive ordinance covering rules for all plazas in the city and the council members decided to accept the idea.
If the "plaza ordinance" is passed by the municipal council, Gwanghwamun Plaza and Cheongye Plaza, where political assemblies are currently banned, will also be open to any gatherings.
"We will carry over the bill to the August special session to take time to review and reduce possible drawbacks," Kim Myung-soo, the SMC Steering Committee chairman, said.
The Seoul City Government is reluctant to open up the plazas to the public citing possible adverse effects.
"Allowing assemblies might cause friction between ralliers and citizens who want to relax at the plaza," a city official said. "For instance, what if a person or group reports to use Seoul Plaza the day before and it overlaps with a pre-planned event such as the 'Culture and Art in Seoul Plaza' program?"
He also said that large scale assemblies at Gwanghwamun Plaza might be dangerous as it is located in the middle of car lanes and close to the United States Embassy in Korea. Current law bans gatherings within 100 meters of diplomatic institutions.
But the civic organization is against the city government's move to control the use of the plazas.
"The city should accept the public sentiment and adopt the ordinances initiated by more than 85,000 citizens," a representative of the PSPD said.