Political and labor groups plan to stage a series of rallies in downtown Seoul during the Liberation Day holiday, raising the possibility of scuffles and confrontations with police amid high COVID-19 infections in the capital city. 

According to the National Police Agency and the Seoul Metropolitan Government on Friday, both conservative and progressive groups reported assembly plans in downtown areas in Seoul during the three-day holiday. 

About seven-thousand people are preparing to take part in such rallies on Sunday, while events scheduled on Saturday and Monday are expected to respectively draw some, two-thousand and one-thousand demonstrators. Around one-thouand-200 people will likely come from outside the city to join these rallies.

The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency plans to sternly deal with violators of social distancing protocols by mobilizing up to around 190 law enforcement units and set up temporary checkpoints at over 80 venues in Seoul. 

The Seoul Metropolitan City plans to file criminal changes against not only the organizers of these illegal rallies but also against its participants.