▲ The scene of the blockade protest at the Jamsil vote-counting station on June 14
The blockade protest at the Jamsil vote-counting station, which had shrunk during the week, is showing signs of becoming a prolonged standoff as it regained momentum over the weekend.
People in their 20s and 30s have joined the groups claiming election fraud, arguing that the current situation is not a matter of left-right ideology.
As a result, the scale of the protest has swelled back to the tens of thousands, leaving the police deeply concerned over how to respond.
As of 10 a.m. today (June 14), about 600 people, according to unofficial police estimates, are continuing their protest around the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium in Songpa-gu, Seoul, which serves as the vote-counting station.
As of 10:30 p.m. yesterday (June 13), the peak number of participants reached approximately 19,000.
A pattern has been repeating where the crowd thins out during the early morning and morning hours, only to swell rapidly during the afternoon and evening.
While the slogans at the scene were unified under "re-election" last weekend, slogans such as "re-election over rigged election" and "hand-counting of same-day votes" have been chanted in succession this weekend.
The sound of protesters intermittently singing the national anthem, Aegukga, could also be heard.
In front of the gates, an increasing number of people are sleeping outdoors in tents or mosquito nets.
Park facilities, including automated parking payment machines, were covered with flyers featuring the South Korean national flag (Taegeukgi).
Demands calling for a joint international investigation between South Korea and the United States regarding the situation were also noticeable.
Since the protest has no official organizer, the police also find themselves with weak legal grounds to take active measures.
Unlike the blockade protest at the Jamsil 7-dong No. 2 Polling Station, which lasted for three days and two nights, Olympic Park is located away from residential areas, resulting in relatively fewer complaints regarding noise and other issues.
Furthermore, because the vote counting has already been completed, it is difficult for the police to restrict the current protest under the pretext of election administration.
As the protest entered its tenth day, the police, concluding that dispersing the crowd in the short term is impossible, are preparing for a prolonged situation.
A police official said they believe the situation will only be resolved once the protesters' demands are addressed to some extent through lawsuits to invalidate the election, parliamentary investigations, or joint investigations by the prosecution and police.
The police plan to guarantee peaceful protests but respond strictly to individual illegal acts.
Some analyze that the disruption of sports organizations' operations due to the blockade of the handball gymnasium is leading to actual damage, which could serve as a turning point in the situation.
Sports organizations plan to hold a press conference tomorrow (June 15) to demand that they be allowed into the gymnasium.
They are also expected to attempt to enter the venue again alongside the police.
Police investigations are also underway regarding the searching of luggage belonging to youth national handball team players and the assault of a broadcast reporter.
Although such requests have already been dismissed twice, a change in the situation on the ground is expected if the court issues a preservation order for the ballot boxes and ballots inside the counting station.
Experts predict that the momentum of the protest will continue for the time being, compounded by the controversy over the National Election Commission's poor administrative handling.
Jeon Sang-jin, a sociology professor at Sogang University, analyzed that the protest site has acquired its own symbolic meaning in connection with the shortage of ballot papers.
He added that it is unlikely to be resolved quickly as the poor administration of the National Election Commission is increasingly being exposed.
Professor Jeon emphasized the need to pay attention to the coexistence of hardline conservative forces and people in their 20s and 30s who claim to be center-right in this protest.
He also projected that how the relationship is defined between the far-right forces and the broader right-wing groups will be a key variable in the future direction of the protests.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.