Tens of thousands of LGBTQ South Koreans and their supporters gathered in central Seoul for annual Pride celebrations Saturday, despite the event’s traditional venue being banned by authorities for the second consecutive year.
Same-sex marriage remains unrecognized in Asia’s fourth largest economy, and activists have long emphasized the need for legislation outlawing discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.
This year’s Pride Parade, marking its 25th anniversary and one of the largest in Asia, was denied permission to gather at the Seoul Plaza in front of City Hall, where the main festivities have traditionally been held.
Seoul’s conservative mayor Oh Se-hoon has said he “personally can’t agree with homosexuality,” but municipal authorities blamed a scheduling conflict and said the venue had already been reserved for an outdoor event themed around books.
It instead took place in the streets in central Seoul, with companies and organisations including the US embassy, IKEA, and Amnesty International participating to show support.
Areas surrounding Seoul’s major thoroughfares Namdaemun-ro and Ujeongguk-ro were packed with excited participants wearing rainbow-themed costumes and make-up, some blowing bubbles and many waving orange balloons – the theme color for this year’s edition.
“The color range symbolises an intermediary quality between red and yellow. It doesn’t belong anywhere but exists independently, … akin to our queer way of being,” organizers said in a statement.
According to the Pride organizers, three other venues managed by the Seoul city government, including the Seoul Museum of History, were also prohibited from being used for side events due to “causing social conflict.”
The authorities’ decision was “nonsensical,” but it does not diminish the pride that LGBTQ individuals feel for the annual event, participant Na Joo-youn told AFP.”
“I’m openly queer, which means I often have to fight for what I believe, which sometimes makes it hard to live as myself,” Na, 26, said.
“Today, I get to enjoy being myself. Those who oppose the Pride Parade have been around for a long time, but whatever they do or say, they cannot erase our existence.”
LGBTQ festivals have often been targeted by evangelical Christian groups, who have thrown water bottles and verbally abused Pride marchers and tried to block their route by lying down in the street in the past.
