2016 photo goes viral as South Korea protests

Social media accounts recently posted a photo of a massive demonstration claiming it was in South Korea demanding the resignation of President Yoon Suk-yeol, “Massive protests in South Korea as protesters march toward the presidential palace to demand the resignation of President Yoon Suk-yeol amid rising public discontent.”

Kashif verified the image via “Google Images” tool, and found that it is old and falsely linked to the protests in South Korea calling for the resignation of President Yoon Suk-yeol. The image dates back to a protest against former South Korean President Park Geun-hye in December 2016. 

Gettyimages published the photo on 3/12/2016 and stated that the photo is from the South Korean capital, Seoul, taken by “Chung Sung-joon”, and documents “crowds of protesters gathered and occupied the main streets in the city center to participate in a demonstration against South Korean President Park Geun-hye.”

The website reported that “Park addressed the nation that she would leave it to parliament to decide whether she should step down from her presidential post after her friend Choi Soon-sil was accused of influencing state affairs with corruption.” 

The Constitutional Court in South Korea ruled in March 2017 to remove Korean President Park Geun-hye due to a corruption scandal, as the Korean Parliament adopted a memorandum to remove Park in December 2016 by a majority of 234 votes to 56, and Park was sentenced to 24 years in prison and a fine of 18 billion won, and a special presidential pardon was issued for her in December 2021.

The South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared a state of emergency and martial law on Tuesday, 3/12/2024, accusing the opposition of engaging in “anti-state activities” and planning a rebellion.

South Korea’s main opposition party announced on Wednesday, 4/12/2024, its intention to file a lawsuit against President Yoon Suk-yeol and a number of his top security aides for “rebellion,” due to his imposition of martial law in the country, a move that was quickly thwarted by parliament. The streets of the capital, Seoul, in South Korea, had witnessed massive demonstrations against Yoon Suk-yeol.