[Vol. 73] Demonstrate that your thoughts are justifiable in Demonstrations

  At 7 P.M. Thursday, April 16th, 2015 in Seoul Plaza, about fifty thousand people gathered to look back upon the memory of Sewol ferry accident. There were speeches of bereaved families, musical performances for the anniversary and it seemed very peaceful until that time. After all planned events ended, people started to march toward the same direction ? Gwanghwa-mun plaza. Suddenly, a large group of police officer began approaching and they started blocking every road that people were headed..
  Here, the mayhem began. Many citizens expressed their anger by smashing the blockswhile the police officers tried to stop them. A few journals in Korea defined their actions as “violent demonstration.” From this experience, INDIGO had chance to think about the essence of demonstration, furthermore, to the freedom of expression in Democratic society. Today, many people demonstrate in a variety ways with a lot of purposes. However, only a few of us have the right knowledge about demonstration and have much interest in it. 

What is demonstration?
  Then, what does demonstration mean exactly? The ”demonstration“ normally indicates an action by a mass group or collection of groups of people in favor of a political or other cause.
  In the modern society, thre are many forms of demonstration and the reasons for having it.; it normally consists of walking in a mass march formation and either beginning with or meeting at a designated endpoint, or rally, to hear speakers. People gather in the same place for expressing their voices or protecting their profits. In fact, large-scale demonstrations that you might have watched on TV are normally related with the political issues. 

Where does the justification of the demonstration come from?
  The right to demonstration is guaranteed by the two laws in Korea. According to the constitution of Korea, especially in the provision twenty first, every person in Korea has freedom of journal, publication, assembly, and demonstration. Aside from the constitution, the more detailed rules for demonstration are defined in the Law on Assembly and Demonstration in Korea. Both people and nation are restricted or guaranteed for their rights to demonstrate by the law. Recently, however, a few provisions of the laws were reviewed by constitutional court in Korea. Why are they controversial? What is the borderline between legal and illegal demonstrations? If you want to be the main bodies for legitimate demonstrations, you have to consider the following factors:

<Some brief explanations of the law on assembly and demonstration> 
- What extent is the demonstration considered legal?

1. provision one (1조): Any person or group who wants to demonstrate should report their actions to their local police chief at least 48 hours before the actions.
2. provision ten (10조): People cannot do any actions of demonstration before sunrise or after sunset.
  
  It is the most controversial clause lately because it means people cannot demonstrate freely at night. Considering the additional clause, of course, people can go on a demonstration only if the main bodies of the demonstration report their actions to the police in advance. According to constitutional law cases in 2014, it is stated that restricting the demonstration before midnight is illegal and the decision to allow the demonstration after midnight is up to the National Assembly. 

3. provision eleven (11조): People cannot demonstrate   100 meters from the following buildings; the National Assembly, court of law, the blue house, the official residence, any buildings for foreign affairs or diplomacy. 
4. provision fourteen (14조): Even if the demonstration was reported before, if the demonstration makes noise over 75 decibel (during daytime) and 65 decibel (at night) or cannot be controlled, it is regarded as an illegal action.
 
  If the demonstratorsdo not  follow thelaws mentioned above, their actions are regarded as illegal. However, there is one lingering question; then, what are the responsibilities or roles of the police when the demonstration is considered illegal  ? In reality, the police officers blocking the demonstrators with building blocks or firing the water cannon and capsaicin may be a familiar scene when you think about demonstrations.. In fact, there has been controversy regarding those actions of police for suppressing the illegal demonstrations

The controversial issues: police vs. citizen  
  According to the Law on Assembly and Demonstration, the police officers can intervene the demonstration only when they wear uniforms and local chief police officers have the right to disperse the demonstrators when they become illegal or harmful to normal citizens. The ways of suppressing the illegal demonstrations are defined in the Act on the Performance of Duties by Police Officers. It guarantees that policemen can use tear gas or bomb if the demonstration is regarded as illegal and harmful to other people’s lives and fortune. Of course, using water cannon or other tools should be minimized, considering the conditions of distances, powers, and other factors. In using water cannons, the angle should keep over 15 degrees and should not use them directly to the demonstrators within 20 meters. However, the problem is that as many NGO argues, in reality, there have been many cases that police officers shot water guns or capsaicin directly to demonstrators.
  The building blocks that prevent the demonstrators from marching have also been controversial. The constitutional law cases in 2011 state that police’s blocking the road for passing is illegal because it is restricting the freedom of action. However, despite the verdict, the police still built   blocks during the recent marching regarding the Sewol ferry accident. The police argued that building the blocks were legal because it can maintain   public order. 

Lonely, but strong - I express my interests and thoughts alone!
  Some people thought that the Law on Assembly and Demonstration is strongly restricting the freedom of expression. So, they tried to express their voices in different ways not to violate the laws. Let’s look at this picture. In this picture, you can see that a person is protesting in front of the National Assembly. Then, is his action illegal because he violated provision eleven as explained before? NO! It is a legal action. 
  The demonstration alone is one of the special forms of demonstration that people created to avoid the application of the Law on Assembly and Demonstration. The present Law on Assembly and Demonstration only defines a large number of people’s actions (more than two people) and by using this, people can express their voices even in front of exhibited places such as National Assembly, court of law, and the blue house. Today, this new form of demonstration has been deeply rooted as strong way of expressing their thoughts. 
In a democratic society, the meanings and powerful effects of demonstrations themselves cannot be deniable. Even at this moment, a lot of people all over the world are gathering and demonstrating for expressing their opinions or profits. As natural forms of achieving the freedom of expression, the demonstrations are effective ways to evaluate the nation’s democratic levels. Meanwhile, this demonstration has been appeared legally or illegallySome were regarded as legitimate yet counter-democratic events. On the other hand, there were some cases that events were illegal yet promote democracy. How should we judge their legitemacy? The next stories will help you gain better perspectives.