hankyoreh

Seoul Plaza was decorated with tens of thousands of colorful rainbows on an intermittently rainy July 15. Appearing everywhere from flags to headbands, the rainbow-colored symbols were a message of support for LGBT rights by people assembled for the 18th Queer Culture Festival - 70,000 according to the organizers, 9,000 by police estimates.

“There is no later. We’re changing things now,” attendees proclaimed, voicing a festival slogan declaring that now is the time to oppose hatred toward LGBT people. The festival kicked off at 11 am with a booth event, for which around 100 booths were set up around Seoul Plaza. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) became the first South Korean state institution to set up a booth, while others were organized by the US Embassy and 12 other foreign missions, progressive Protestants, the Jogye Order of Buddhism, and companies like Google Korea and Lush Korea. Roberto Powers, Consul General for the US Embassy, delivered a congratulatory address saying he was “proud to support people working on behalf of LGBT rights around the world” and calling on listeners to “look beyond the rainbows.”

A 17-year-old attendee identified by the initial “K” said, “I go to a Christian school, so I encounter a lot of anti-queer remarks on a daily basis.”

“Now that I‘m here, it’s just as exciting and energetic as any other festival,” she added. “It’s great.”

Robert Michael Evans, a 27-year-old English teacher from the US, came dressed as Jesus Christ.

“I oppose Christians opposing homosexuality because of the Bible. I came dressed like this because I wanted to share the message that Jesus loves all people,” Evans said.

NHRCK employees held up signs reading “You cannot oppose people” and “We don’t discriminate against difference.”

“Our participation this year set a good precedent, and I look forward to continuing to be able to attend in the future,” said Shin Hong-ju, head of the commission‘s communication and cooperation team.

“The NHRCK agrees that we need to actively reduce and overcome the discrimination that LGBT people face,” Shin said.

The Jogye Order’s social labor committee made its first appearance at this year’s Queer Cultural Festival, the only Buddhist group to do so. Monks drew loud applause as they played the beopgo (dharma drum) and danced.

Justice Party leader Lee Jung-mi also became the first leader of a political party in the National Assembly to visit the festival. Lee took the stage to pledge the abolition of Article 92-6 of the Military Criminal Act - which dictates punishment for homosexual acts by soldiers - and the legalization of gay marriage.

“I believe that overcoming a society in which people are branded as criminals for their sexual identity is the first step toward achieving a new Republic of Korea,” Lee said.

At 4 pm, attendees began a 4-km parade march from Seoul Plaza to the entrance to Eulji Road, Toegye-ro 1-ga Street, Hoehyeon Rotary, and back to the plaza. The Queer Cultural Festival comes to an end with the Korea Queer Film Festival, which takes place on July 20-23 at the Lotte Cinema Broadway in Seoul’s Gangnam district.

Across the street from Seoul Plaza, a rally was held at Daehan Gate by the Preparatory Committee for the Citizens‘ Rally against Homosexuality and the Queer Festival, a group of conservative Christian religious orders in South Korea. Police erected a fence around Seoul Plaza and prevented clashes between festival attendees and demonstrators. No major clashes occurred.

By Park Su-ji and Hwang Keum-bi, staff reporters

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