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| Anti-government protesters fill the main road near the Gwanghwamun Square and Seoul City Hall, Saturday. Yonhap |
By Kim Se-jeong
The police in Seoul said Sunday they were investigating 30 protesters from Saturday's anti-government rally in the city's downtown for refusing to comply with their orders at the rally site and increasing the risk of COVID-19 infection.
The police said 30 remained in detention and that they would seek arrest warrants for some who attempted to assault police during the rally.
The rally took place on Korea's Liberation Day, celebrating independence from the Japanese occupation in 1945.
More than 10,000 participated in the rally on Saturday, according to the police, despite the city government's early ban against it ― the city has the authority to give or reject permits for gatherings.
Mostly elderly and conservative, the protesters were enraged by the Moon Jae-in government's recent policy measures geared toward improving the lives of less-privileged citizens amid the pandemic.
The capital's downtown was in chaos on Saturday. The police attempted in vain to block the large numbers of protesters from entering Gwanghwamun Square where gatherings have been banned, but it went in vain because of the number of people who showed up.
Many protesters were holding anti-government signs in their hands. Some Christian protesters condemned the incumbent government for seeking ties with North Korea and advocated for strengthening relations with the U.S. Some advocated for former President Park Geun-hye who is in jail on corruption charges and demanded her release.
The police kept their eyes open for members of the Sarang Jeil Church from Seongbuk-gu which has been seeing a rising number of COVID-19 cases. The church had unsuccessfully sought a rally permit in advance.
Last week, the city government issued an administrative order to maintain a ban on gatherings amid concerns over the spread of COVID-19 whose cases jumped a lot over the last three days. On Saturday, the day of the protest, 279 new cases were reported.
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