More than 210,000 people have signed a petition on the web site of the South Korean president’s office demanding that an “abominable” gay pride festival scheduled to take place in central Seoul this weekend be cancelled.

The three-day Seoul Queer Culture Festival is marking its 19th anniversary this year and will include art exhibitions and a film festival.

The highlight of the event will be the Seoul Queer Parade on Saturday afternoon around Seoul Plaza, the historic square in front of the city’s old City Hall that was the fulcrum of the March 1919 independence movement and the June 1987 pro-democracy movement.

The festival, along with a similar event in the city of Daegu in late June, has attracted the ire of traditionalists and conservatives in South Korean society, along with the nation’s large and influential religious lobby.

The petition was started on June 14 on the web site of the Blue House, the office of President Moon Jae-in, and states, “We are not discriminating against sexual minorities, but Seoul Plaza belongs to all citizens”. Read more via Telegraph