Civic and labor groups on Wednesday held candlelight or protest rallies across the nation to demand the resignation of President Yoon Suk Yeol over his controversial martial law declaration.
The Korean Federation of Trade Unions, People's Solidarity for Participatory Democracy and other civic groups organized a massive candlelight rally at Gwanghwamun Square in downtown Seoul, with an estimated 2,000 people in attendance.
Participants criticized President Yoon for his short-lived attempt to declare emergency martial law and called for his immediate resignation.
In the southwestern city of Gwangju, about 1,000 people attended an anti-Yoon candlelight rally set to begin at 7 p.m., its organizers said, adding similar gatherings will also be held in Suncheon, Yeosu and other South Jeolla Province cities.
In the southeastern cities of Daegu and Pohang, civic and labor activists held news conferences in the morning to demand Yoon's resignation and are planning to hold similar rallies in the afternoon. They denounced the president's martial law declaration as a rebellion involving the military and police.
In Busan, civic activists plan to hold an anti-Yoon rally every day until early next week from Wednesday afternoon. A similar rally is scheduled to begin in the nearby city of Ulsan at 6 p.m. Wednesday. In the Gangwon Province city of Chuncheon and the southern Jeju Island, candlelight rallies are scheduled to be held at 7 p.m. on the day.(Yonhap)
