Seoul City, police warn of stern action against anti-Moon groups planning mass rally

Lee Dong-woo, an official from the National Revolutionary Party, a conservative Christian party, speaks during a press conference in central Seoul, Tuesday, announcing plans to hold a rally this Liberation Day, Aug. 15. Yonhap

By Jun Ji-hye

Thirty-eight organizations, including an anti-President Moon Jae-in group led by conservative pastor Jun Kwang-hoon, have reported to police their plans for rallies in Seoul during the upcoming National Liberation Day long weekend, from Aug. 14 to 16, despite mounting concerns over the ongoing fourth wave of COVID-19 infections here.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government and police urged those organizations to cancel their plans, defining them as illegal gatherings banned under the social distancing measures, and warned of stern actions against not only the leaders but also any participants of the rallies.

Concerns over the spread of the virus are intensifying, as the country's daily new caseload reached a new record of 2,223 on Wednesday, the highest number of new cases reported during the pandemic here so far.

The National Revolutionary Party, a conservative Christian party led by Jun, the lead pastor of Sarang Jeil Church, announced its plan to hold a large-scale relay rally, participated in by “10 million people,” on the occasion of Liberation Day, “to call for the impeachment of President Moon.”

Jun has already become the target of criticism after leading a massive anti-government rally during last year's Aug. 15 holiday. At the time, Jun himself was infected with the virus, and the rally became a catalyst for the second wave of infections here.

Pastor Jun Kwang-hoon / Yonhap

The party, which supports conservative former President Park Geun-hye who was impeached for corruption and bribery, said that its participants will “comply strictly with antivirus measures and maintain two-meter distance from one another, as in a one-person protest,” while marching from Seoul Station toward Seoul City Hall and the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts. It was referring to the only form of protest permitted by the current Level 4 social distancing measures, a one-person protest.

But police called the planned rally “a deformation of a one-person protest,” saying that it is still clearly illegal.

“We will proceed in accordance with the law, to disperse participants of illegal rallies,” the Seoul Metropolitan Police said in a press release, Tuesday. “We will take strong action, including immediate detention, in the event that there are any illegal activities, such as violence. We will also take legal action against those who lead illegal rallies.”

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon said that the city had already notified the 38 organizations about the prohibition of rallies under the current Level 4 social distancing measures. Thus, if a rally is organized or attended, it could be in violation of the infectious diseases prevention law.

“We will send city officials to the scene to collect evidence for filing complaints against participants. We will also consider implementing measures to control traffic, such as blocking the entrances of subway stations,” Oh said.

Rep. Yun Ho-jung, floor leader of the liberal ruling Democratic Party of Korea, also urged the pastor, Wednesday, to cancel immediately his plan to hold an “illegal rally that will place the public in danger,” asking Mayor Oh to take stronger action.

Despite warnings, the party expressed its willingness to push ahead with the rally, calling the government's ban on rallies “fraud to disturb a gathering of people who want to protect the country.”

“If police disturb our peaceful rally, we will file complaints, not only against individual police officers, but also against the head of the Seoul Metropolitan Police and the head of the National Police Agency for the obstruction of business and the abuse of their authority,” the party said in a statement. “We will also seek compensation from the state.”