These photographs were taken in Busan, South Korea shortly after the South Korean National Assembly voted in favor of the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-yeol after his failed coup attempt by declaring illegal and unbased martial law on the night of 3 December 2024. Protesters can be seen holding signs stating Naeralsugwoe Yoon Suk-yeol Tanhaek Chaepo on one side and Gukhimdang Haechae Pokmang, which translate to “Arrest and impeach the insurrection leader Yoon Suk-yeol" and “Dissolution, and down with People Power Party” respectively. A lot of the protesters alongside signs held K-pop light sticks, glowing batons that are commonly bought by fans as merchandise to show support for their favourite K-pop artists.

During the impeachment process of former president Park Geun-hye in 2016, the Korean people flooded the streets holding candles. Candlelight protests have been a major feature of South Korean political rallies since the impeachment attempt of former president Roh Moo-hyun in 2004, meant to symbolise a collective and peaceful fight against injustice. Kim Jin-tae, then-representative of Chuncheon, South Korea and an ally of then-president Park, infamously said that the candle goes out when the wind blows, which stirred public outrage and resulted in some of the protesters participating with LED lights instead of traditional candles, symbolizing that their anger against the corrupt president was not temporary.

The trend of carrying an LED light source replacing candles further evolved in 2024 with the new generation of protesters joining the rallies. K-pop light sticks were carried by younger protesters joining rallies calling for Yoon’s impeachment. The introduction of K-pop light sticks to the political rallies showcases the evolving protesting culture and tradition of popular engagement in politics in South Korea, especially highlighted by younger protestors who were not present in earlier impeachment rallies who grew up under the strong influence of now-established K-pop industry in the country. 

On 7 December 2024, a similar rally calling for the impeachment of Yoon was held nationwide. However, the impeachment vote on the same day was declared a failure after members of parliament belonging to the same party, as the president walked out, refusing to cast their votes. On the following week, the day the picture was taken, the impeachment voting was attempted again at the South Korean National Assembly. People gathered on the streets to once again call for Yoon’s impeachment. The people were angry that some of the MPs refused to hold a president accountable for his brazen disrespect and challenge to democracy, while equally worried that the impeachment voting could fail again like the previous week. When the Speaker of the National Assembly announced on the national TV broadcast, which was being screened at the sites of rallies, that the National Assembly had voted in favour of the impeachment, the streets were filled with cries of joy and screams of “We won!” reflecting the relief of the people that Yoon, who is seen as a threat to democracy, was now suspended from exercising his power as the president.