Tensions flared in Gwangju, South Korea, as rival rallies over the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol took place simultaneously last weekend.
A protest against the impeachment, organized by the conservative Christian group Save Korea, drew attendees including history instructor Jeon Han-gil and members of the ruling People Power Party.
Meanwhile, a separate rally supporting the impeachment, hosted by opposition groups in Gwangju, saw participation from Gwangju’s mayor, the governor of Jeollanam-do (South Jeolla-Province), and members of the Democratic Party and Rebuilding Korea Party.
Police set up a bus barricade between the two groups to prevent clashes. Both rallies attracted tens of thousands of people, marking an unprecedented turnout for a conservative gathering in Gwangju.
The simultaneous protests in Gwangju, separated by a police barricade, serve as a stark symbol of the deep polarization in S. Korean society.
A recent Gallup poll revealed that 57% of respondents support the impeachment, while 38% oppose it, a significant drop from 75% support and 21% opposition recorded in a similar poll 2nd week of last December.
Also, the latest survey also found that 40% of respondents lack trust in the Constitutional Court, suggesting that as the impeachment case progresses, the divide over the issue is intensifying.
This implies that the court’s rush to make a decision instead of prioritizing fairness has led to accusations of bias from its critics and weakened its credibility. At the same time, political leaders are making the situation worse by focusing on mobilizing their supporters for a possible early presidential election.
The unprecedented scale of the conservative rally in Gwangju drew sharp reactions from the Democratic Party.
Party leader Lee Jae-myung condemned the protest, comparing it to a rally supporting martial law and likening the participants to demons defending murderers at the site of a victim’s home. Democratic Party officials went as far as calling it an insult to democracy, with some describing the protesters as having hearts of stone.
However, given that four out of ten S. Koreans oppose the impeachment, labeling these dissenters as extreme right-wing echoes the earlier efforts to isolate the younger generation by dismissing differing opinions as divisive. It reflects Democrtic Party’s arrogance and another form of violence.
Advocating totalitarianism and using violence to suppress and exclude the weak are hallmarks of far-right ideology, as seen in past fascist and Nazi regimes.
The North Korean regime, which oppresses its people and tightly controls the state, embodies extreme right-wing principles, though the Democratic Party has never criticized it in such terms.
The hypocrisy is equally evident in the People Power Party. Party members participated in rallies against the impeachment nationwide, despite having previously expressed regret over and apologized for the imposition of martial law during past military dictatorships.
With the nation deeply divided, the Constitutional Court faces an inevitable challenge. Regardless of its ruling on the impeachment, the social backlash could be overwhelming. The political sphere must halt its role in stirring up further discord.
