Why Is There Controversy Over the Enforcement Decree of the Assembly Act Allowing 'Yongsan Rally Ban'?

Itaewon-ro Added to Roads with Assembly Restrictions... Noise Standards Also Strengthened
"Suppression of Citizens' Assembly Freedom... De Facto Assembly Permit System"

With the police now able to ban assemblies and demonstrations on roads near the Yongsan Presidential Office for traffic flow reasons, concerns have arisen that the purpose is to block protests in front of the Presidential Office.

According to the partial amendment to the Assembly and Demonstration Act (ADA), which was promulgated and enforced on the 17th, 11 roads including Itaewon-ro and Seobinggo-ro surrounding the Yongsan Presidential Office and the official residence have been added to the list of "major roads" in major cities where the head of the local police station can impose restrictions for maintaining traffic order.

Twelve existing roads where assemblies and demonstrations have not been held in the past five years or where traffic has improved compared to before were excluded, while new locations such as the Seocho-dong courthouse and prosecutor's office intersection and Gangnam-daero were newly included.

The noise control standards were also strengthened. For assemblies and demonstrations held near residential areas, schools, and general hospitals, the maximum number of noise violations changed from "three or more times within one hour" to "two or more times within one hour," and the average noise measurement time was shortened from "10 minutes" to "5 minutes."

The photo shows a civic group holding a rally in front of the Yongsan Presidential Office on the 17th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Until now, the police have regarded the presidential office as the presidential residence and blocked assemblies under Article 11 of the ADA (prohibition of assemblies within 100 meters of the residence). In response, assembly organizers repeatedly filed injunctions with the courts, which ruled that "the presidential office cannot be considered the residence," siding with the organizers.

However, based on this recent amendment to the enforcement decree, the police can now prohibit or restrict assemblies held near the presidential office.

Civil society groups have opposed this, saying it suppresses the freedom to choose assembly locations and intends to gag public protests against major government offices.

Kwon Young-guk, head of the Assembly and Demonstration Human Rights Violation Monitoring Lawyers Group at the Lawyers for a Democratic Society, criticized, "The police are confirming through the enforcement decree that they will strictly control assemblies in the surrounding areas."

Kwon stated, "The police now almost routinely ban or partially ban assemblies citing reasons such as major roads, rush hours, or nighttime assemblies. Each time, we file injunctions with the courts. It has effectively turned into a permit system for assemblies, as assemblies are held only after court decisions."

He added, "During the previous administration's four years, there were only two cases of banning assemblies and demonstrations for traffic flow reasons on major roads, but under the current administration, 315 assemblies have been banned or restricted in just one year and five months. This number clearly shows how arbitrarily the police partially ban or restrict assemblies citing rush hours or traffic inconvenience."

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