Queer Festival Held at Seoul Plaza Canceled Again This Year

Queer Culture Festival Again Not Allowed at Seoul Plaza This Year
'Reading Seoul Plaza' Hosted by Seoul Library Scheduled to Take Place

Following last year, it appears that the Queer Culture Festival, an event for sexual minorities, will not be held at Seoul Plaza this year either.

The scene of the Queer Culture Festival held at Seoul City Hall Plaza in 2017.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 12th, the Seoul Open Plaza Operation Citizens' Committee announced through a meeting that they decided to hold 'Reading Seoul Plaza,' hosted by the Seoul Library, at Seoul Plaza on the 31st of next month. Previously, the Seoul Queer Culture Festival Organizing Committee, Seoul Library, and the organizers of 'Boost Your Youth,' a cultural event for young people, had applied to use Seoul Plaza in front of Seoul City Hall on May 31 and June 1.

The use of Seoul Plaza is approved based on the 'Ordinance on the Use and Management of Seoul Plaza,' which prioritizes applications in case of overlapping dates. The priority order is ▲events hosted by the state or local governments for public interest ▲events that have completed assembly notification ▲cultural and artistic events such as performances and exhibitions ▲events related to children and youth ▲other public interest events.

If the priority level is the same, the applicants first negotiate among themselves to resolve the conflict. If the negotiation fails, the Citizens' Committee holds a meeting to decide which event to permit. Last month, Seoul City arranged a meeting among the three parties, including the Seoul Queer Culture Festival Organizing Committee, but no agreement was reached, so the matter was submitted to the Open Plaza Operation Citizens' Committee.

The scene of the Queer Culture Festival held at Seoul City Hall Plaza in 2017.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

At the meeting for negotiation, the Seoul Queer Culture Festival Organizing Committee and the 'Boost Your Youth' organizers agreed that the 'Reading Seoul Plaza' festival hosted by Seoul Library on June 1 was already confirmed and not subject to discussion. Afterwards, they expressed their wish to use Seoul Plaza only on May 31, when no events were scheduled.

The Citizens' Committee agreed with the principle stated in Article 6, Paragraph 3 of the ordinance that "no discrimination in the use of the plaza shall be made based on the applicant's gender, disability, political ideology, religion, etc.," but selected the plaza user based on the continuity and efficiency of the event and external credibility. The committee explained, "'Reading Seoul Plaza' has already been approved for use of the plaza on May 30, June 1, and June 2. Approving another event on May 31 raised concerns about the continuity and efficiency of the events and the trust with external organizations with whom prior consultations had been made."

Previously, the Seoul Open Plaza Operation Citizens' Committee also denied the Queer Organizing Committee's use of Seoul Plaza last year and approved the use of Seoul Plaza for the CTS Cultural Foundation's 'Youth and Young Adult Recovery Concert.' As a result, the Queer Organizing Committee held their event around Euljiro 2-ga. With the difficulty of using Seoul Plaza, the location for this year's Queer Culture Festival remains undecided.

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