Freedom of assembly

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

Opinion

Mon, December 4, 2023 | 04:51

Editorial

Freedom of assembly

Posted : 2023-06-13 16:40

Updated : 2023-06-13 16:40

Forced dispersal of nonviolent rallies abuses rule of law

President Yoon Suk Yeol is a global crusader for freedom.

Yoon mentioned "freedom" 46 times while addressing the U.S. Congress' joint session in April. He uttered it 82 times at Harvard University during a 19-minute speech, once every 15 seconds.

Americans applauded when the Korean leader said free democracies should fight together against "authoritarian forces" worldwide.

However, some commentators here were concerned that the president, intoxicated by the cheers and standing ovations, might overestimate the gestures as foreign recognition and support for his leadership. Unfortunately, their worry is becoming a reality.

Last Friday, police forcibly dispersed a nighttime cultural event held in front of the Supreme Court by an organization of irregular workers. It was the second forceful breakup of a nonviolent assembly following one on May 25. The reason: the event was an "unreported rally" under the guise of a cultural festival. Some participants were even injured during the police crackdown.

This comes after the president called for stricter responses to protesters.

Yoon said, "The previous government virtually abandoned the use of police power against illegal gatherings." Police defined the Friday night event as an illegal gathering because its organizers failed to report it. They added that any gathering that involves "chanting slogans" must be reported beforehand.

In strictly legal terms, they may be right. However, the Constitution, the law of laws, stipulates that the government must guarantee freedom of assembly and association ― if the gatherings and organizations are nonviolent. The toughened police move also came after a controversial overnight rally by the construction workers' union in central Seoul in mid-May prompted an angry response from the ruling party. Some unionists drank alcohol and urinated in places other than makeshift toilets.

However, a 2016 U.N. report said it is incompatible with democracy for (governments) to view assemblies as disruptive and approach them solely from a "law and order" perspective. Disruption of daily life is to be expected at gatherings of large numbers of people, and (disruption) should be tolerated to ensure that (their) rights are not violated. The report effectively criticized the Assembly and Demonstration Act, saying, it is inappropriate to use domestic law as a yardstick for legality when freedom of assembly is an internationally recognized legitimate right.

A government led by a chief executive who puts freedom and democracy above all else must listen.

The Korean public also must rethink freedom and its inevitable cost of inconvenience. In advanced democracies, people do not complain about the ill effects of prolonged labor actions. When street sweepers go on strike, Paris and London are littered with heaps of garbage for days, even weeks. Few citizens take issue with it. They endure the situation to respect other people's fundamental rights. If similar things happen in Seoul, the authorities will forcefully end the strike, citing people's inconvenience.

Koreans watched on TV how violently some French people protested the pension reform, fighting against riot police, setting fires and even looting shops. Most French people supported the protesters. Meanwhile, construction workers here cleaned up their rally site afterward. However, no major media outlets paid attention to it while focusing only on the mess they left.

What democracy Korea earned was thanks to free assemblies and associations, including the movements of April 19, 1960, and June 10, 1987. Korea today does not face such situations. This country has long been democratized, if on the surface only. The consciousness of people ― both the rulers and the ruled ― have yet to be democratized.

Otherwise, the ruling party cannot seek to ban rallies between midnight and 6 a.m. while lamenting the disappearance of water cannons. Yoon's police chief went to the office wearing riot gear a day after the ruling camp demanded a tougher response to protesters, leaving the decision to use red pepper sprays to squad chiefs. Are these conservatives recalling the candlelit protests of seven years ago? If so, why?

Law enforcement authorities must allow all nonviolent rallies. Or the rallies will become violent and protracted.