SEOUL, South Korea (AP) – For the fourth straight weekend, masses of South Koreans were expected to descend on major avenues in downtown Seoul demanding an end to the presidency of Park Geun-hye, who prosecutors plan to question soon over an explosive political scandal.
Police expected about 50,000 protesters to turn out on Saturday near City Hall and a boulevard in front of an old palace gate, where hundreds of thousands a week before marched in what may have been the country’s largest demonstration since it shook off dictatorship three decades ago. Organizers anticipated a crowd as large as half a million.
It will be the latest in a wave of demonstrations calling for the ouster of Park, who critics accuse of undermining the country’s democracy by allegedly allowing a secretive confidante to manipulate power from the shadows and amass an illicit fortune.
Park’s supporters were planning to hold smaller counter protests in nearby streets around Seoul Station, raising concerns about potential clashes with the anti-Park activists whose gatherings in recent weeks have been peaceful.
Prosecutors plan to formally charge Park’s friend, Choi Soon-sil, by Sunday, and also are seeking to question Park in the next few days.