Families and youths took center stage at the massive anti-President Park Geun-hye rally at the heart of Seoul on Saturday, signaling continuing public anger over a scandal involving Park’s confidante Choi Soon-sil.

Middle school, high school and university students -- some of them in school uniform -- took to the streets, vowing to “save” democracy.

“I am mad that an unelected individual ruled the country behind the scenes. It is a regression of the democracy that we have learned,” said Cho Ji-hun, an 18-year-old student. “I thought I would regret it if I did nothing in this seriously sad situation.”

Hundreds of students in school uniform paraded through the Gwanghwamun area chanting “Park Geun-hye, step down” and singing the national anthem ahead of the rally, to applause from fellow protesters.

It was the biggest rally since the Choi scandal surfaced and the first since Park apologized for the second time Friday for dropping her guard with Choi. However, she distanced herself from Choi’s alleged influence-peddling and embezzlement of public funds for personal gain. Park also said she would undergo prosecutorial questioning, if necessary, hinting that she would not step down.

Rally organizers said over 200,000 people gathered for the demonstration, which turned Gwanghwamun Square into a sea of candlelight. The police estimate was 43,000 people.

Despite being organized by labor unions and civic groups, the rally drew a lot of unaffiliated citizens who came with their families and friends to express their frustration.

They chanted phrases such as “Park Geun-hye, step down” and “The owner of this country is the Korean people,” with many holding candles and carrying anti-Park placards.

“I came here not to feel ashamed in front of my children. I have never participated in a rally, but I could not just see the president further ruining this country,” said Park Je-hee, 37, who brought her 3-year-old and 5-year-old children from Suwon, Gyeonggi Province.

She said that the president’s apology only made her angrier. “President Park does not seem to know what the real problem is. Does she think Koreans are a bunch of idiots?”

Another participant, Kim Ji-won, said, “I am shocked how Park has ignored the Korean people. She does not seem to understand that she was only elected to represent us.”

“This rally might not be able to change the situation right away, but we are showing the power of the people,” said the 25-year-old who came with her parents.

Park’s approval rating has plunged to 5 percent, setting an all-time low for any sitting South Korean president, according to a Gallup poll released Friday. The survey was conducted on 1,005 Koreans from Nov. 1-3, before the second apology.

“Looking at young students taking to the streets, I feel so ashamed and embarrassed about myself and people from our generation,” said Lee Seong-kyun, a 65-year-old retiree, who was joining an anti-Park rally for the first time. “We (adults) let this happen by not taking action earlier.”

Police dispatched some 20,000 officers in central Seoul to maintain public order. They built barricades with police buses in an apparent attempt to block protestors from marching toward the presidential office. They had initially sought to ban the march altogether, but the decision was overturned by a local court earlier in the day. 

The police appeared to avoid provoking protestors and using violence, mindful of a public backlash. There were no water cannons deployed at the scene.

The anti-Park rally coincided with the day of the funeral of Baek Nam-gi, a 69-year-old activist farmer who died after being knocked down by a police water cannon during an anti-government rally a year ago.

Baek’s funeral was held at 8 a.m. with some 200 people in attendance at Seoul National University Hospital. Thousands of citizens also paid their respects to the deceased at a send-off ceremony in Gwanghamun Square ahead of the rally.

The funeral had been delayed for more than a month amid controversy over the police’s decision to conduct an autopsy to determine the cause of death. The police withdrew the plan in the face of opposition from Baek’s bereaved family and civic groups.

By Ock Hyun-ju (laeticia.ock@heraldcorp.com)