Rallies by both people supporting Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment and against it are to be held on Sunday, after Friday's court ruling decided that the president should be released from physical detention during his ongoing trial for insurrection and power abuse.
Followers of far-right Protestant pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon and Sarang Jeil Church ― major supporters of Yoon ― were to hold an outdoor service near Hanjangjin Station in Yongsan-gu, Seoul at 11 a.m., near the presidential residence where Yoon arrived at on Saturday. Another group, Angry Blue, connected to the conservative YouTube channel hosted by Hwang Jang-soo, will hold a protest and walk starting at 1 p.m. at Bosingak in Jongno-gu, central Seoul, where they will protest along Jongno 3-ga Yoon's impeachment while calling for the country's nuclear armament.
Protests against the conservative president will also be held by the coalition of 1,549 left-leaning civic groups in the country, kicked off with an 11 p.m. press conference in front of the Government Complex Seoul. They will then march in support of Yoon's impeachment starting at 2 p.m., from the National Palace Museum to near Anguk Station.
The protests are scheduled to be conducted throughout the afternoon, with a pro-impeachment protest scheduled to start as late as 7 p.m. As such, the major roads including the Sejong-ro in front of Gwanghwamun Plaza and other adjacent areas are expected to be blocked off or heavily congested.
Both the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency will provide traffic information pages during the protest hours.
As supporters and opponents of Yoon being very vocal on the latest development. the suspended president himself has not addressed the public other than to voice his appreciation for what he called the court's "courage and determination in correcting the illegality" immediately after his arrest.
Officials from the presidential office told local media Sunday that Yoon will refrain from notable activities, and his messages would be "very restrained." According to them, Yoon will "await the Constitutional Court's decision humbly and in a composed manner."
minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com
