Tens of thousands of people marched through South Korea's capital of Seoul Saturday to protest against a series of government policies they claim weaken democracy in the country.
About 30,000 protesters, wearing masks in defiance of ban on mask-wearing during demonstrations, gathered in the city centre accusing President Park Geun-Hye of pushing pro-business labour laws and attacking personal freedoms, Al Jazeera reported.
About 18,000 police have been deployed in the capital to contain the protests, the BBC reported. Despite larger estimates, police claim only 14,000 attended the protest.
Park's conservative government has planned to make it possible for employers to dismiss workers based on performance and to cap the salaries of senior employees.
Activists said they were also protesting against Park's decision to replace privately published school history textbooks with government versions, a move they said will whitewash military dictators' oppression of democracy and human rights in South Korea until the mid-1980s, Reuters reported.
The demonstrations took place a month after similar protests turned into a riot and police used water cannons to prevent marchers from getting to the presidential palace.