40,000 Expected at Gwanghwamun on the 15th...How Will Crowd Management Be Handled?

Presidential Appointment Ceremony to Be Held at Gwanghwamun
Honoring the Couple Who Blocked an Armored Vehicle During Impeachment Protests,
Lee Gukjong, Lee Sedol, and Other Citizen Representatives Receive Certificates

On the evening of August 15, a crowd of around 40,000 people is expected to gather at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul for the National Sovereignty Grand Festival and the Presidential Appointment Ceremony for President Lee Jaemyung, marking the 80th anniversary of Liberation Day. In response, the government is implementing intensive safety management measures.

On August 14, the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, led by Disaster and Safety Management Headquarters Chief Kim Kwangyong, held a "Countermeasure Meeting for Crowd Accident Prevention at the National Sovereignty Grand Festival" to review safety plans by each relevant agency.

A rehearsal for the 'National Sovereignty Grand Festival' is taking place on the stage set up at Gwanghwamun Square in Seoul on the 14th. Photo by Yonhap News

At 8 p.m. on August 15, the National Sovereignty Grand Festival will take place at Gwanghwamun, featuring the "21st Presidential National Appointment Ceremony," in which 80 citizen representatives will directly present President Lee Jaemyung with a certificate of appointment. As a result, approximately 10,000 invited guests are expected to gather in Gwanghwamun Square itself, and including citizens coming to enjoy the festivities in the surrounding area, the total crowd is projected to reach about 40,000 people.

In particular, as rain is forecast to continue until the event, thorough safety management is required to prevent crowd accidents during the nighttime hours. The government will deploy about 2,200 public officials, including police and firefighters, in and around the venue to prevent crowd-related incidents.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety will set up an on-site situation room on the first floor of the Government Seoul Complex on the day of the event. It will share real-time updates from the field with relevant agencies through the disaster safety communication network and group chat rooms on social networking services (SNS), enabling joint response efforts. Additionally, situation managers will be dispatched to the site to focus on managing areas at risk for crowd accidents, such as safety fences, bottleneck zones, and subway stations.

The police, in cooperation with the Presidential Security Service, plan to deploy personnel around the venue to maintain order and support smooth traffic flow. The fire department will station rescue and emergency medical personnel, as well as ambulances, at various locations to prepare for possible safety incidents.

However, measures such as bypassing subway stops at Gwanghwamun Station and Anguk Station, which were implemented during large-scale rallies such as the impeachment protests in the past, will not be enacted.

A Ministry of the Interior and Safety official stated, "Although we expect about 40,000 people to gather for the event, the number may decrease somewhat if it rains. We will focus on crowd management to ensure the event is held safely."

Presidential Appointment Certificates for the Couple Who Blocked an Armored Vehicle During Impeachment Protests, Lee Gukjong, Lee Sedol, and Others

During the "National Appointment Ceremony" held on the circular stage set up at Gwanghwamun Square, President Lee will receive certificates of appointment from 80 citizen representatives specially selected to mark the 80th anniversary of Liberation Day. The representatives include: the couple who stood in front of an armored vehicle during the impeachment protests; Lee Gukjong, director of the Armed Forces Daejeon Hospital; director Heo Gayoung, who became the first Korean to win first place in the student section at the 78th Cannes Film Festival; Go player Lee Sedol, who competed against AlphaGo; and the couple Kim Junyoung and Sagong Hyeran, who gave birth to quintuplets through natural conception for the first time in Korea.

After receiving the certificates, President Lee is expected to deliver a message of gratitude to the people, expressing his appreciation and his commitment to serve the public with even greater dedication.

Following the message of thanks, the cast and attendees will join the crowd in singing "Into the New World," a song previously sung by the people gathered at the square. The event will then showcase the cultural vibrancy of Korea through performances by DJ Aster, the world-renowned street dance team The Stories, the Taekwondo demonstration team Taekwon Hallyu, singers Sandeul and Jung Eunji, the group IZNA, and singer Lee Seunghwan.

About 3,000 people are expected to attend the appointment ceremony, including former President Moon Jaein and his wife, Kwon Yangsook, the wife of the late former President Roh Moo-hyun, various representatives from different sectors, and members of the public selected through advance application. The Ministry of the Interior and Safety has also prepared for members of the public who did not receive a formal invitation to enjoy the festivities near Gwanghwamun Square.