The National Farmers’ Cooperative Federation (Jeonnong) and the Jeon Bong-jun Struggle Group are attempting to enter downtown Seoul with tractors on the 25th, urging the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol at Namtaeryeong Pass in Seocho-gu, Seoul. There were physical clashes as police blocked the protesters.
Jeonnong held a rally at Namtaeryeong Pass on the Gyeonggi Expressway from 2 p.m. on this day, urging the impeachment of President Yoon. Jeonnong mobilized 30 tractors loaded onto 25 cargo trucks to gather at this location.
About 500 Jeonnong members participating in the rally occupied approximately 300 meters of three lanes on the right side of Gyeonggi Expressway toward Seoul from 2 p.m. Over 500 people occupied about 100 meters, and cargo trucks carrying tractors lined up for 200 meters. This led to extreme congestion in the traffic around Namtaeryeong Pass that afternoon. Rally participants sat on the road shouting, "Immediately dismiss Yoon Suk-yeol," and "Police, clear the way."
Initially, Jeonnong planned to lower the tractors onto the road and march toward Gwanghwamun. However, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency issued a notice restricting the march due to "concerns about friction." Jeonnong filed for a stay of execution, but the Seoul Administrative Court denied the entry of tractors into Seoul the day before. Instead, only 20 one-ton trucks were allowed to enter Seoul from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. However, Jeonnong brought tractors and cargo trucks to Namtaeryeong Pass. As of 6 p.m. that day, tractors had not been unloaded from the cargo trucks.
The Seoul city government also announced the day before that it would not allow the entry of the "tractor protestors." Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon visited the scene that morning and stated, "The principle is strict response to behavior that threatens the safety of citizens and is not permitted," adding, "Especially since there is a risk to the public safety of Seoul citizens, the entry of tractors into the city is absolutely impossible."
Police set up barricades on the Gyeonggi Expressway toward Seoul around 5:40 p.m. Currently, the highway is divided into four lanes in the Gyeonggi direction, with traffic in both directions.
Anti-impeachment rallies by YouTubers and others are also being held near Namtaeryeong Pass. Police controlled the area to prevent contact between Jeonnong members and these individuals across the crosswalk.
This is the second attempt by the tractor protestors to come to Seoul following the emergency martial law on December 3rd. They left Jeollanam-do and Gyeongsangnam-do with tractors on December 16 last year and gathered over 30 tractors and 50 cargo trucks at Namtaeryeong Pass on December 21. When police blocked them, they were in a standoff for 28 hours, and members of the Democratic Party of Korea intervened, allowing 10 tractors to march to the presidential residence in Hannam-dong.
Tractors and other agricultural machinery are not classified as vehicles under the Road Traffic Act. They are not allowed to operate on highways, which are passenger vehicle-only roads, but they can travel on regular roads. However, their maximum speed is only about 50 km/h, so collective actions can cause severe traffic congestion. Police are in a position to restrict tractor protestors from entering Seoul based on Articles 12 and 7 of the Assembly and Demonstration Act and the Road Traffic Act.