Military Boot Found Hanging on 'May 18 Guide Sign'... Gwangju City Launches Investigation

"We Will Investigate Any Intent to Distort the May 18 Movement"

Amid ongoing controversy over disparaging and mocking remarks related to the May 18 Democratization Movement, an incident has occurred where a pair of military boots was found hanging on an "Owol-gil" guide sign installed in downtown Gwangju. Authorities are currently investigating the circumstances.

On the afternoon of the 30th, a military boot was hanging on a utility pole at an intersection near the Gwangju Bank headquarters in Daein-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

According to Yonhap News on the 30th, the city of Gwangju and the May 18 Memorial Foundation received a report that a single military boot was hanging from a signpost installed on a utility pole at the intersection near the Gwangju Bank headquarters in Daein-dong, Dong-gu, Gwangju. This sign was installed to guide visitors to the Owol-gil, which is located near the former Gwangju Intercity Bus Terminal, designated as Historic Site No. 3 of the May 18 Democratization Movement.

The city of Gwangju and the Memorial Foundation are investigating whether the act was intended to ridicule the May 18 Democratization Movement by symbolizing the martial law troops with the military boot. Park Kangbae, Executive Director of the May 18 Memorial Foundation, told Yonhap News, "We will carefully verify the facts and then determine whether there was any intention to distort or deny the meaning of May 18."

Recently, a series of controversies has arisen regarding the disparagement and mockery of the May 18 Democratization Movement. In May, Starbucks Korea faced criticism for allegedly insulting the Gwangju Democratization Movement by using slogans such as "Tank Day" and "Bang the Desk!" in their marketing campaign ahead of the anniversary of the May 18 movement. Following the criticism, Starbucks suspended the event, issued an official apology, and provided historical awareness training to all employees.

Controversy also erupted at a high school baseball tournament when some students from Paichai High School in Seoul chanted slogans belittling the May 18 Democratization Movement at their opponents, Gwangju Jeil High School. During the Cheongryonggi National High School Baseball Championship game between Paichai High School and Gwangju Jeil High School on the 29th, several Paichai players repeatedly shouted, "Let's go, let's go, let's go to Starbucks, Tank Day," toward their rivals. As a result, Gwangju Jeil High School protested, causing a temporary suspension of the game. The slogans reminded many of the earlier Starbucks controversy and led to criticism that the chants mocked May 18 and Gwangju. Paichai High School issued an official apology, and the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education has launched an investigation into the incident.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.