Crackdown on 'Extreme Anti-China Rallies' Leads to Restrictions on Peaceful Protests

President Lee Jae-myung's strong stance against extreme anti-China protests, particularly those involving hateful rhetoric, has prompted a significant increase in police "assembly restriction notices" in Seoul. These notices, while not outright bans, impose limitations on the location and methods of assemblies. The number of such notices issued for anti-China protests alone jumped from 10 in the four months prior to the President's remarks to over 41 in the subsequent four months.

However, the crackdown on hate speech appears to have cast a wider net, impacting peaceful demonstrations as well. The overall number of assembly restriction notices issued by the police has risen by 49% since October of last year. This increase is notable given that the number of reported assemblies has actually decreased during the same period, suggesting a higher proportion of assemblies are facing restrictions.

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Specific countries and citizens are indiscriminately spreading absurd and groundless rumors and hate speech, and racist rallies continue. Such acts that undermine national dignity must never be tolerated.

Concerns are mounting that the focus has shifted from restricting hate speech to simply limiting assemblies targeting foreign governments. For instance, the group "People in Solidarity with Palestinians" has repeatedly received notices to change their march routes, citing potential traffic disruptions and safety concerns in tourist areas like Insadong and Myeongdong. Police officials acknowledge that protests against foreign governments often draw complaints from embassies, making it difficult to restrict only anti-China demonstrations.

Civil society groups are advocating for more nuanced approaches. They argue that while restricting hate speech is necessary, the police's broad application of assembly restrictions risks being misused. Lawyers suggest that instead of broad restrictions based on content, limitations should be reserved for cases posing a "grave and clear danger." They propose that hate speech be regulated separately, perhaps through the enactment of anti-discrimination laws, to better balance public order with the protection of freedom of expression.

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The police's approach of restricting or prohibiting assemblies based on their content carries a high risk of being widely misused. Unless there is a grave and clear danger, it should be refrained from. It is desirable to regulate hate speech separately through the enactment of anti-discrimination laws.