Opposition pushes back against Lee's attack on Starbucks, far-right online community Ilbe

President Lee Jae Myung’s call to shut down the far-right online community Ilbe — amid his continued attack against Starbucks Korea for allegedly ridiculing a pro-democracy uprising — has fueled opposition to say that enough is enough. 

Lee made the remarks in a post on X on Sunday after sharing news reports of Ilbe members engaging in mocking behavior at the site of the 17th memorial ceremony for the late former President Roh Moo-hyun the previous day. 

“Under strict conditions, we need to publicly discuss and actually review [...] punishing and imposing punitive damages for ridicule and hate speech, as well as shutting down websites, including Ilbe, that neglect and encourage such ridicule and hate,” Lee wrote.

The president said that he would instruct the Cabinet to review the matter and concluded his post by asking, “What are your opinions?”

While the government held a Cabinet discussion on responses to hate speech last November, Lee’s post on Sunday marks the first time that he has directly mentioned the possibility of shutting down a specific site.

“There are conflicting arguments surrounding behavior such as Ilbe’s, which promotes social division and conflict,” Lee continued in his post. “Some people claim that [these sites] should be protected as freedom of expression, while others argue that sanctions, including punishment, against them are necessary.”

“Still, there has been controversy over shutting down Ilbe,” he wrote.

Ilbe, short for Ilgan Best, is an extremist far-right online community known for mocking numerous social tragedies and their victims, including by insulting bereaved families of the 2014 Sewol ferry disaster and spreading derogatory slurs about Roh, who took his own life in 2009.

The Sunday post built on Lee’s attack the day before on Starbucks Korea over its “Siren Classic Mug Cup” promotion launched on April 16, 2024, the 10th anniversary of the Sewol ferry sinking. The Sewol ferry capsized off the coast of Jindo, killing 304 people — most of them high school students on a school trip. 

The president shared an X post by Democratic Party lawmaker Chung Chin-ook, which pointed out that sirens are known in myths to cause shipwrecks by distracting sailors, making the timing and name of the promotional event seem insensitive to the victims of the tragedy and their loved ones.

“This is something that no [humane] person would possibly do,” Lee wrote. 

“While bereaved families [...] and the public were grieving, [Starbucks Korea] launched this cryptically mocking event, insulting the victims and ridiculing the public while enjoying themselves in their own way.”

This week, Starbucks Korea became embroiled in a similar controversy following the “Tank Day” promotional event for its tumblers. “Tank” is used in far-right online communities as a nickname for Chun Doo Hwan, the former Korean military dictator whose crackdown during the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement left hundreds dead.

The promotional materials also used “Tak! on the desk!” The phrase recalls the infamous police statement issued after student activist Park Jong-cheol’s death by torture. “Tak” is Korean onomatopoeia used to describe a sharp sound, often from one object hitting another, similar to the English language’s “bang.”

Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin released an apology over the Tank Day incident. Lee’s expanded criticism, however, has turned the dispute over corporate marketing into a broader push for the regulation of hate speech, with the ruling Democratic Party voicing its support. 

“Freedom of expression has clear limits. We cannot accept the incitement of hate to such extremes,” Jo Seoung-lae, the party’s secretary general, told reporters on Sunday. 

“I think that it’s right to consider shutting down Ilbe, and [the process] should proceed through proper legal channels.”

Jo also pushed back against the opposition’s claims that the moves were aimed at rallying liberal voters before the upcoming June 3 local elections. 

“The very attempt to politically reinterpret common sense statements is itself an effort to rally their own base,” he said.

On the other hand, the conservative People Power Party (PPP) dismissed Lee’s repeated rebukes of Starbucks as an “offense” tactic meant to swing the local elections.

Party leader Jang Dong-hyeok wrote on Facebook on Sunday that the president had “lost his reason” and was “lashing out without checking the facts.”

“A siren is the symbol of Starbucks and a common name attached to every product bearing the Starbucks logo,” Jang wrote.

“What about the Korean university progressive union, which insists that the U.S. Forces Korea must be expelled? What about Jaju Sibo, which is filled with praise for [North Korean leader] Kim Jong-un?” 

“Freedom of expression seems reserved only for pro-North Korean sites,” he added.

Oh Se-hoon, the PPP candidate for Seoul mayor, said, “Starbucks was clearly in the wrong. There's no excuse for it.” However, he agreed that “this much criticism is enough.”

“Boycotts by the public and criticism from the press and civic groups are entirely free. But it’s a completely different matter when the president, who wields public authority, and the ruling party’s candidate for Seoul mayor personally step in,” Oh said. “How about easing up at this point?”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.

BY OH HYUN-SEOK, YEO SUNG-KUK, RYU HYO-RIM [cho.yongjun1@joongang.co.kr]