Published : Nov. 14, 2016 - 17:25
Supporters of beleaguered President Park Geun-hye are being asked to show up in droves Saturday to counter last week’s record-breaking anti-Park rally.
An online fan club of the conservative leader, who call themselves an “association of those who love President Park Geun-hye,” plans to hold a rally at Seoul Station on Saturday.
The 73,000-member group plans to march toward Gwanghwamun Square, where over 1 million gathered last Saturday to demand Park’s removal from office over the influence-peddling scandal involving her longtime friend Choi Soon-sil.
Although it is unclear how many will turn up for the pro-Park event, it is highly likely to be outrun by anti-Park protesters. Park’s approval rating has sunken to an abysmal 5 percent.
Another massive rally is scheduled to take place on the same day in the Gwanghwamun area, with regional demonstrations to be held at more than 100 locations around the country.
“Koreans no longer recognize Park Geun-hye as our president,” the rally organizers -- an association of some 1,500 civic groups and labor unions -- said through a statement on Facebook. “If Park, who is at the center of a series of crimes, tries to cling to her power, more Koreans ranging from farmers to laborers and students will expand their resistance.”
Leading up to Saturday’s event, a wave of smaller protests will continue across the nation to ramp up pressure on President Park to resign.
Daily candlelight vigils will be held in major cities, with university students planning to stage rallies simultaneously at several locations in Seoul on Tuesday.
Under the theme “Finding Hidden Sovereignty,” university students will gather at four locations from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m to light candles and make impromptu speeches. They are set to march around the area with white masks covering their faces.
The students who organized the event said on their Facebook page that they wanted to reach out to more people in a new way other than the conventional street demonstration. Around 1,500 students have already signed up to participate, they said.
On Saturday, more students are expected to fill the streets, in particular 19-year-old students who will take their college entrance exams Thursday.
Last Saturday’s protest, the largest since Korea’s democratization in 1987, was mostly peaceful, without major clashes reported. Police reported 64 injuries, all minor ones.
Violence erupted between police and protestors near Gyeongbokgung in the early hours of Sunday, which led to 23 people being taken to police stations for questioning. They were released Monday.
Kim Jeong-hoon, chief of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency, said the police will respond flexibly to protestors.
Protestors stage a rally in downtown Seoul on Saturday evening, demanding President Park Geun-hye regsign. (Joint Press Corp)
“It is surprising that the rally ended peacefully without violence despite a record number of participants taking to the streets,” Kim told reporters Monday. “I appreciate citizens who showed mature civic awareness at the rally.”
On Tuesday, universities on the southern side of the Han River -- Seoul National University, Chungang University and Soongsil University -- will gather at Gangnam Station, while universities in western Seoul -- Sogang University, Yonsei University, Ewha Womans University -- will meet in Sinchon. Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Kyung Hee University and University of Seoul will gather at the entrance gate of HUFS.
Meanwhile, Kookmin University and Sungkyunkwan University will hold a rally in Daehangno.
By Ock Hyun-ju (
laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)