Ongoing Seat Disputes in Front of the Statue of a Girl... Could It Escalate to a Lawsuit?

Conservative Group Files Complaint Against Over 20 Peace Nabi Network Members for Violation of Assembly Act on the 4th

On the last day of the Lunar New Year holiday, February 2, members of Banil Action held a rally in front of the Statue of Peace in front of the former Japanese Embassy in Jongno-gu, Seoul, urging the resolution of the issue of Japanese military sexual slavery. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Gong Byung-sun] The territorial dispute between the Justice and Memory Foundation (Jeonguiyeon) and conservative groups around the 'Statue of Peace' is escalating into a legal battle.

On the 7th, the conservative group Action for the Abolition of the Comfort Women Law announced that on the 4th, they filed a complaint with the Jongno Police Station in Seoul against about 20 members of the Peace Butterfly Network (Pyeonghwa Nabi) for violating the Assembly and Demonstration Act. Peace Butterfly is a student group addressing the issue of Japanese military sexual slavery, and on the 1st and 2nd, they occupied the sidewalk in front of Yonhap News in Susong-dong, Jongno-gu, where the Action for the Abolition of the Comfort Women Law had previously filed a protest notification. They claimed they occupied the area to ensure that the Wednesday demonstrations commemorating the Statue of Peace could be held peacefully.

The conservative group also filed a complaint against the police. Joo Ok-soon, the representative of the conservative group Mothers’ Unit, announced that on the 4th, she filed a complaint against officers at the Jongno Police Station for violating the Assembly and Demonstration Act and the Police Duties Execution Act. Representative Joo stated, "On the 23rd of last month, we had the right to hold a rally on the sidewalk in front of the Seoul Regional Tax Office, but the Jongno Police officers pushed us out to prevent the assembly and set up a cordon line to block access," adding, "We suffered damages as we could not proceed with the assembly and demonstration."

The territorial dispute around the Statue of Peace began after allegations of embezzlement of donations by independent lawmaker Yoon Mee-hyang surfaced. Since May 2020, conservative groups have been filing assembly notifications first in front of the Statue of Peace and demanding its removal.

Jeonguiyeon, which has been unable to hold assemblies and demonstrations in front of the Statue of Peace, has continued protests on the road about 70 meters away from the statue since the 23rd of last month. It is currently reported that Jeonguiyeon is considering responding to the complaints filed by the conservative groups.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.