Thousands of supporters of President Yoon Seok-yeol have been camped out on the pavement near President Yoon Seok-yeol’s home for several days to prevent anyone from trying to detain or arrest him.
At a subsequent rally near the president’s home, supporters said his congressional impeachment was “null and void.” On Thursday evening, they waved Taegeukgi and batons and shouted, “Let’s protect Yoon Seok-yeol!”
More news came as officials arrived at the residence Friday morning to execute a court warrant to detain Mr. Yun for questioning on sedition charges.
“I’m here to save the president and the country!” Kim Soon-i, 80, said this outside her home in Seoul on Friday.
Mr. Yoon’s sudden declaration of martial law on December 3 sparked public anger, led the opposition-controlled National Assembly to impeach Mr. Yoon and sparked numerous large-scale protests against him. But Yoon still had die-hard supporters among the majority of older Koreans, and conservative churches organized large rallies in downtown Seoul to organize them.
Many of them moved near Yoon’s home after a Seoul court issued a warrant to detain and interrogate him on New Year’s Eve. In a message sent to his supporters on New Year’s Day, Mr. Yoon called them “citizens who love freedom and democracy” and thanked them for their support despite the cold weather.
Mr. Yoon said, “I will fight with you until the end to save this country.”
Former conservative lawmaker Cha Myung-in urged Yoon’s supporters to form a “human chain” to block public officials from entering the Blue House. Across the alley leading to Yoon’s home, dozens of supporters were lying on the sidewalk with their arms folded. Police removed them and some protesters were dragged away.
“The president is like a king. How can he treat the king like this?” Lee Young-jin, 65, said, referring to a court warrant that gave officials the authority to detain Yoon. “The president’s bodyguards should, if necessary, throw grenades to prevent anyone from getting close to the president.”
Lee Won-ok (59), who appeared at the pro-Yoon rally with her white Maltese dog, accused opposition party members of desperately trying to push Yun into declaring martial law.
“They did everything they could to hinder his work, including cutting government budget plans,” she said. “This is so unfair because I don’t think President Yoon did anything wrong.”
