ReutersThe protesters chanted and waved multicolored light sticks as pulsating rave song rang out of listeners set up outside Seoul’s National Assembly.
” Impeach Yoon Suk Yeol! Imprisonment Yoon Suk Yeol”! they chanted.
The feeling was colorful, but the masses was there for a major cause – to get rid of the country’s president. Authorities estimated the audience to be around 100, 000 individuals.
On Saturday morning, four days after Yoon’s abortive attempt to declare martial law, the president once again appeared on television. This time it was to say sorry to the nation, just hours before an impeachment vote.
However, his mea guilt was unpopular with the populace. Numerous opposition rallies erupted all over Seoul as lawmakers began to march to the national council. While a few voted in favor of the troubled president, the majority demanded that he step over or be impeached.
By 3 p.m., the majority of the demonstrators had gathered in front of the National Assembly. As police officers lined the avenue, there were a lot of people seated in neat rows along the main street. In the side streets sellers sold pancakes and pastries stuffed with red-bean powder to starving protesters while opposition flags fluttered in the frigid winter weather.
With rock songs, large windows and hoist cameras, North Korean opposition rallies tend to mirror outside music festivals, and this one was no different. Throughout the day, the group was entertained by merry acapella tunes, romantic traditions songs, and protest anthems.
The group sang on to” South Korea is a Democratic Republic” – a clever children’s song extolling the virtues of politics, the stirring” A March Song for You”, and even the Vietnamese version of” Do You Hear the People Sing” from the music Les Miserables.
There were also blazing statements. ” We must clean out the criminals! All 1.5 million people of our coalition will move straight to the presidency if the prosecution vote fails,” vowed one union leader.
The people’s sharpened blade will be used to judge the criminals, they say!
” Impeach! Impeach”! the group chanted again.
But as the spring light faded into day, but did the expectations of the protesters.
EPAThe ruling People’s Party ( PPP ) announced a boycott when the impeachment bill was due to be cast, stymieing the opposition’s lack of eight votes.
As members of the opposition yelled and tried to stop them from leaving, nearly every PPP senator rose from their seats and left the room.
Some activists were enraged as they watched these obscene events unfold on the outside panels.
” The liberty of politics is crumbling because of a single man,” he said. It’s killing me”, lamented an department worker who attended the opposition.
” I think the politicians are irresponsible”, said one person.
She had left her house at 5 am and had to travel for days to Seoul in order to participate in the demonstration. I had been anticipating this all day. I hope they return and cast ballots. I’m trying to stay enthusiastic but I don’t expect it to transpire”.
Some were worse. ” I think Yoon’s a total disgrace for democracy in this region. And the legislators, they may represent the people, not the leader … we’re very upset”, said a female advocate.
” We will not go backwards until he is impeached; we will move on until our democracy eventually overcomes this absurdity,” the president said.
The rally leaders on stage demanded the masses to encircle the National Assembly in the hopes that by blocking the entrance and locking PPP members outside, they could give the opposition enough time to convince enough PPP members to support their impeachment.
The crowd advanced toward the walls in a surge. As opposition leaders read out the labels of every PPP senator, protesters chanted” Go back in, ballot”! after each brand.
Kim Sang-wook, a part of PPP, re-entered the room to cast a ballot, joining two other members of his group who had stayed in. As activists cheered and chanted Kim’s brand like he was a rock star, trust permeated the crowd.
Organisers blasted K-pop, and the group started dancing, singing and waving lightsticks. In the distance, some did a Latino wave to a Girls Generation music. Suddenly, the opposition transformed into a pleasant pop music.
For a while, the feeling remained exuberant. More members of the ruling party were expected to take the floor by the date of 1am, according to protesters.
But there were ominous symptoms. Kim admitted to voting against prosecution in front of writers. And for days, anyone else from the PPP joined.
Suddenly, at about 9pm, the Speaker said he would close the vote first. Soon, the festive feeling evaporated. Only five more votes were required to pass the senate costs, but they were nowhere to be found and were quickly approaching.
The group moved closer to the walls. ” Come in, come in”! they pleaded, urging PPP politicians to re-enter the room to vote.
ReutersAt 9.20pm, the speech closed the vote. As political candidates went through the ballots, the crowd sat silent. Some let out unhappy sobs, while a couple screamed furiously at the windows. The typical chorus of “impeach, dismiss” floated through the weather, but it seemed to have lost its vitality.
The speech announced the bill didn’t go after what seemed like an eternity. It did not meet the vote of 200 vote for counting. In the group, a person cried out in pain and buried her face in her husband’s neck, sobbing.
The opposition leaders rushed to the stage, this time to march women’s spirits. ” We will not cease until Yoon is punished. The PPP’s lifestyle will not be accepted by the populace. We will fight till the end, till Yoon is impeached”, vowed one listener. ” Dear people, did you meet us in our struggle to reduce Yoon”?
The audience roared again emphatically:” Yes”!
In the interim, opposition leaders pledged to bring up the prosecution costs repeatedly until they removed Yoon from the National Assembly. The government is on their aspect: according to the most recent polls, three in four South Koreans want an impeachment, and Yoon’s approval rating has fallen even further to really 13 %.
The opposition leaders played All I Want for Christmas as a finale in an effort to finish the year large. ” Don’t ignore your possessions, and please take your rubbish with you”, they urged the dispersing group, as Mariah Carey’s voice echoed down the fast emptying street.
It won’t be long till that path may fill up suddenly. On Sunday, another round of demonstrations are already planned.
Jake Kwon provided further monitoring.