Thousands march in Seoul

By Alex Jensen

SEOUL

A sea of protesters gathered peacefully in central Seoul on Saturday, the almost carnival atmosphere allaying fears of a may be return to the violence experienced in last month's rally in the South Korean capital.

With several hundred groups represented under the banner of the so-called Pan-National Committee, it was challenging to pinpoint one particular cause among the thousands of attendees.

A conservative police estimate put their number at 14,000.

But a general anti-government sentiment was highlighted by the widespread wearing of masks -- the ruling party has been moving to ban protesters from hiding their identities after President Park Geun-hye compared masked activists to terrorists.

Even so, a Gallup Korea survey this week showed that 60 percent of 1,005 adult respondents backed prohibiting masks during rallies.

Another common theme among attendees was a sense of injustice after a 69-year-old man was left seriously brain damaged having been knocked off his feet by a police water cannon on Nov. 14.

There was no need for hardline policing this time around, the march passing with a celebratory air after police failed to prohibit the demonstration following a local court ruling Thursday.

Religious figures also joined the rally to emphasize the need for a peaceful protest given the dozens of injuries and arrests last month.

There were still calls for the resignation of the president, whose popularity nosedived after her administration was heavily criticized for its handling of last year's Sewol ferry disaster -- subsequent contentious issues have included labor reforms and the government's plan to enforce state-published history textbooks from 2017.

One prominent figure was absent, as union leader Han Sang-gyun continued to take refuge at a nearby Buddhist temple.

Instead, he got his message across at the rally via a big screen: "The oppressive government cannot stop our fight."

The protest gained heavyweight political support in the form of main opposition party leader Moon Jae-in.

"Today should be the starting point of setting up a culture of peaceful rallies," Moon was quoted as saying by news agency Yonhap.