Constitutional Basic Rights Debate at Daegu Queer Culture Festival, Delayed Opening After 1-Hour Standoff

Agreement Reversed, Organizing Committee and Police Confrontation
Stage Setup 30 Minutes Later Than Scheduled
Organizing Committee "Police Control Assembly Report Moment by Moment"

The 16th Daegu Queer Culture Festival was on the brink of being canceled on the 28th due to a standoff between the organizers and the police over the constitutional fundamental right of 'freedom of assembly and demonstration,' but ultimately overcame this and was held.

After the Daejeon Queer Culture Festival "Sarangiju, Uri Yeogi Isseo" held in Sojedong, Dong-gu, Daejeon in July, participants are marching. [Image source=Yonhap News]

This year's Daegu Queer Culture Festival was scheduled to take place from around noon to 7 p.m. on three lanes of Dalgubeol-daero near Banwoldang Intersection in Jung-gu, Daegu. However, tensions arose as the police unilaterally issued assembly restrictions to the organizing committee, reversing agreements made until the morning of the previous day.

Initially, the police had agreed to restrict traffic on a 180-meter stretch of road near Exit 12 of Banwoldang Station on Subway Line 2, where the main stage was to be set up, starting from 10 a.m., and to cooperate with the Daegu Queer Culture Festival organizers in holding the event. However, actual road control only began around 11 a.m. Furthermore, when police buses, patrol cars, and safety fences were installed within the three lanes designated for the assembly, the festival organizers protested.

Jingyo Bae, chairman of the Daegu Queer Culture Festival organizing committee, stated, "Until midnight the previous day, the police kept changing their stance regarding the assembly. They say they issued restriction notices, but I am the assembly notifier. I never received any restriction notice." He added, "The police keep interfering with our festival and controlling it moment by moment. Under these circumstances, it is absolutely impossible to hold the festival."

After about an hour-long standoff with the police, the main stage for the Daegu Queer Culture Festival was finally set up around 12:35 p.m., about 30 minutes after the scheduled start time.

The organizing committee had originally reported the assembly at the public transportation-only zone in Jung-gu, the usual festival location, but the police notified the committee of restrictions on the use of some lanes citing vehicle congestion. The committee filed a provisional injunction with the court to suspend the enforcement of the outdoor assembly ban, but after it was dismissed, they changed the assembly location from the public transportation-only zone to the area around Banwoldang Intersection on Dalgubeol-daero.

Due to the change in the festival location, buses in the public transportation-only zone operated in both directions on the day. From 5 p.m., when the march began, roads surrounding Daegu's Dongseong-ro were closed.