Court rules disruption of public transportation illegal even under advocacy-related circumstances

Occupying roads and crawling under buses to stop them from driving, even to advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, is illegal, according to a local court ruling.

Two representatives of Solidarity Against Disability Discrimination — a major disability rights group in Korea — were sentenced to four months in prison, suspended for one year, by the Seoul Central District Court on Thursday for obstructing public transportation during a 2021 rally.

The defendants were indicted for disrupting bus operations and illegally occupying traffic lanes during a protest near Osong Station in North Chungcheong in March 2021.

The two crawled beneath buses and occupied the roadway, causing a three-hour standstill. Prosecutors also accused them of violating the Assembly and Demonstration Act, citing the lack of official prior notification.

“Violent protests that go against the law cannot be justified, even if their objective was to guarantee mobility rights for people,” said the court. “We took into account their multiple previous convictions for similar offenses and the aggressive nature of their crime.”

However, the court acquitted them of violating the Assembly and Demonstration Act, accepting the duo’s claim that the protest arose spontaneously after they were denied entry onto a bus while heading to another rally in Sejong, a nearby city.

“The ruling [...] ignores the unique nature of protest-related actions taken in response to violations of the basic rights of people with disabilities,” the attorney representing the civic group said. “We will appeal the guilty charges.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY KO SEUNG-PYO [[email protected]]