SEOUL, South Korea -- Thousands of gay-rights supporters marched under heavy police guard in the South Korean capital on Saturday as they celebrated the city's first major Pride parade in three years after a covid-19 hiatus.
Police were on alert because church-backed counterprotesters rallied in nearby streets, highlighting the tensions surrounding the rights of sexual minorities in the deeply conservative country. There were no significant scuffles or disruptions as of Saturday afternoon.
Revelers wearing or waving rainbow banners cheered during speeches and swayed to music from a stage in front of city hall at the Seoul Queer Parade. They later formed a queue of umbrellas as they marched toward a downtown business district amid drizzling rain, calling for laws banning discrimination based on sexual orientation.
Police established perimeters to separate them from conservative Christian protesters, also numbering in the thousands, who marched in nearby streets. Some of the protesters denounced conservative Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon over the city's unwillingness to block the "lewd" Pride parade.
Gay rights activists are also unhappy with Oh, who in an interview with a Christian newspaper this month said the city may prohibit the Pride event from using the city hall plaza starting next year if this year's participants "exhibit indecent materials or overexpose their bodies."
Following a standard they've maintained for years, the Pride parade's organizers required photojournalists to take pictures of participants from the "farthest possible" distance and obtain the consent of every individual whose faces are identifiable in photos -- a measure to protect participants from backlash as their images may circulate on the internet.
Thousands of police officers from nearly 60 units were deployed to watch the demonstrators from both sides, said Kim Man-seok, an official at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency. Police didn't immediately provide a crowd estimate but previously forecasted a turnout of around 40,000 for the dueling events.
While major South Korean politicians avoided the Pride parade, the event drew a number of foreign diplomats, including newly appointed U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Philip Goldberg, whose endorsement of gay rights has raised the ire of conservatives and Christian groups. Some protested in front of the U.S. Embassy in recent weeks, denouncing Goldberg's appointment as part of the Biden administration's "homosexual cultural imperialism."
Goldberg tweeted during the Pride parade that "no one should be discriminated against because of their identity," and he stands with President Joe Biden in applauding "all those working to advance the human rights" of sexual minorities in South Korea.
While views on sexual minorities in South Korea have gradually improved in recent years, they are still harshly stigmatized and frequently exposed to hate speech and crimes.
Calls for equality have so far been stymied by a powerful Christian lobby that has blocked politicians from passing laws banning discrimination.
Information for this article was contributed by Lee Jin-man of The Associated Press.
U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Philip Goldberg prepares to speak during the 23rd Seoul Queer Parade in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. The 23rd Seoul Queer Culture Festival is held from July 15 to July 31. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Participants parade as police officers guard during a parade as a part of the 23rd Seoul Queer Culture Festival which is held from from July 15 to July 31, in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Volunteers carry a huge rainbow flag as police officers guard during a parade as a part of the 23rd Seoul Queer Culture Festival which is held from from July 15 to July 31, in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. Thousands of gay rights supporters celebrated under a heavy police guard in the South Korean capital on Saturday as they marked the city’s first Pride parade in three years after a COVID-19 hiatus. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A protester holds a sign as he kneels down in front of parade trucks before a parade as a part of the 23rd Seoul Queer Culture Festival which is held from from July 15 to July 31, in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. Thousands of gay rights supporters marched under a heavy police guard in the South Korean capital on Saturday as they celebrated the city's first Pride parade in three years after a COVID-19 hiatus. The flag on the truck reads " The 23rd Seoul Queer Parade." (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A participant waves a rainbow flag before a parade as a part of the 23rd Seoul Queer Culture Festival which is held from from July 15 to July 31, in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
South Korean police officers walk during the 23rd Seoul Queer Parade in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. Thousands of gay rights supporters celebrated under a heavy police guard in the South Korean capital on Saturday as they marked the city’s first Pride parade in three years after a COVID-19 hiatus. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
People gather before a rally opposing the Seoul Queer Culture Festival in Seoul, South Korea, Saturday, July 16, 2022. Thousands of gay rights supporters marched under a heavy police guard in the South Korean capital on Saturday as they celebrated the city's first Pride parade in three years after a COVID-19 hiatus. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)