In Seoul square of protest and history, BTS fans welcome grand comeback

The South Korean landmark, built in 1395, has weathered centuries of destruction and restoration. Read more at straitstimes.com.

SEOUL – Through months of winter protests in support of South Korean democracy, professor Lee Ji-young clutched her K-pop glowstick – a small but telling sign of her love for K-pop megastars BTS.

Now the world’s biggest boy band is set for a comeback concert on March 21 after a nearly four-year hiatus for the septet to complete military service – and while the nation went through traumatic times.

“It feels like they’ve come back to reclaim their rightful place,” said 45-year-old Sung Young-rok, a BTS fan and traditional Korean artist, ahead of the open-air concert expected to draw 260,000 people to Seoul.

In late 2024, in a wealthy nation where democracy was thought to be well-anchored, then-president Yoon Suk Yeol shocked the world by trying to declare martial law, sending troops and helicopters to parliament.

His bid failed – Yoon is now in jail – but for a few tense hours it was touch-and-go.

And day after day, night after night, hundreds of thousands of South Koreans braved the biting cold to protest against his move.