Assemblies and Demonstrations Within 100 Meters of the Presidential Office Banned...Exceptionally Allowed

President Lee Jaemyung Presides Over Cabinet Meeting on the 24th
Presidential Office Added to List of No-Assembly and No-Demonstration Zones
Allowed Only When There Is No Concern of Interference with Duties or Large-Scale Escalation

President Lee Jaemyung is speaking at a cabinet meeting held at the Blue House on the 24th. Yonhap News Agency

Going forward, assemblies and demonstrations will, in principle, be banned in the vicinity of the presidential office.

President Lee Jaemyung presided over a cabinet meeting at the Blue House on the 24th and promulgated the “Partial Amendment to the Act on Assemblies and Demonstrations (Alternative Bill)” containing these provisions.

Under the amendment, the presidential office has been added to the list of locations where outdoor assemblies and demonstrations are prohibited. Previously, the ban applied only to the presidential residence and the official residences of the Speaker of the National Assembly, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the President of the Constitutional Court, and the Prime Minister.

However, a proviso clause has been introduced that exceptionally allows assemblies and demonstrations if there is no concern that they will interfere with official duties, and if there is no concern that they will expand into large-scale gatherings.

The law takes effect from the date of promulgation, which is today.

The scope of the ban remains within 100 meters of the relevant location, as under the current standard. Since the police have interpreted this as “within 100 meters from the outer perimeter wall,” there are predictions that assemblies and demonstrations on the north side of the Cheong Wa Dae Sarangchae will be restricted.

Previously, in December 2022, the Constitutional Court had issued a decision of “incompatibility with the Constitution” regarding the provision banning assemblies and demonstrations near the presidential residence. The court held that the scope of the no-assembly zone was excessively broad and violated the principle of prohibition of excessive restriction.

At the time, the Constitutional Court ordered the provision to be revised by May 31, 2024, but this was not carried out and the provision consequently lost its legal effect. As a result, after the return to the Blue House, criticism arose that there was no legal basis for regulating assemblies and demonstrations in the surrounding area.

Meanwhile, the opposition parties and civil society have criticized the latest amendment as an infringement on the freedom of assembly, calling it a “clear regression.”

At the cabinet meeting that day, 35 promulgation bills, 40 presidential decrees, and 1 bill were reviewed and approved.