A local court has rejected an injunction seeking to stop police from banning one-man protests in front of the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, court records showed Friday.
Five progressive lawyers had taken the legal action after the Jongno district police force prevented them from taking turns staging one-man protests last week over the potential deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system.
The police physically denied the lawyers access to the front of the embassy.
The Seoul Central District Court rejected to rule on the matter, saying it has no jurisdiction to stop the exercise of public power through injunction.
“We will review other measures to confirm illegitimacy of the police’s action,” Ha Joo-hee, one of the plaintiffs, said after the ruling was delivered.
The lawyers are currently holding a one-man demonstration just across a crosswalk from the embassy.
Under South Korean law, holding rallies or demonstrations within 100 meters of diplomatic missions or residences is prohibited.
The lawyers argue that a one-man demonstration is not regulated under the law on assembly and demonstration. (Yonhap)
