[Summary] "Cancel Korea"... Anti-Korean Sentiment Spreads in the Philippines Due to Racist Comments

Filipino-American Influencer Apologizes After Posting Tattoo Resembling Rising Sun Flag
Some Korean Netizens Continue Racist Criticism Calling Them "Small and Ugly Nation"
Backlash in the Philippines with Calls to "Cancel Korea" and "Can't Tolerate the Attack"

Filipino-American social network service (SNS) star Bella Poarch posted a tattoo photo on the video application sharing service TikTok on the 6th (local time). After receiving criticism from some domestic netizens that it resembled the Rising Sun flag, Poarch expressed her apologies. / Photo by TikTok capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Recently, an anti-Korean movement using the so-called 'Cancel Korea' hashtag has been spreading among Filipino netizens on online communities. This started after Filipino-American social network service (SNS) star 'Bella Poarch' faced controversy over a tattoo she revealed, which some claimed resembled the Rising Sun Flag, leading some Korean netizens to make discriminatory remarks targeting Filipinos.

Bella Poarch is an SNS star with 17 million followers on the video-sharing application TikTok and 2.47 million followers on the photo-sharing SNS Instagram.

On the 6th (local time), Poarch posted a photo of a tattoo on her left arm on her TikTok account, sparking controversy. The tattoo features an image centered on a heart with red sun rays spreading out, which some netizens pointed out as reminiscent of the Japanese Rising Sun Flag.

As the controversy grew, Poarch posted another video on TikTok saying, "I am sorry if my tattoo hurt anyone's feelings. I love Korea. Please forgive me."

She also wrote on her Twitter account, "Six months ago, I got a red sun pattern tattoo. At that time, I did not know the history," adding, "But when I learned the truth, I immediately covered the tattoo with another design and made an appointment to have it removed. I am ashamed of myself for not researching properly and sincerely apologize to Koreans," repeatedly asking for forgiveness.

Filipino-American SNS star Bella Poarch. / Photo by Manila Bulletin website capture

However, some Korean netizens did not stop criticizing Poarch. Some continued to make racist remarks about the Philippines, calling it a "poor country," "small and ignorant people," and "ugly."

In response, Filipino netizens launched an anti-Korean movement by posting the 'Cancel Korea' hashtag on various SNS platforms. Some shared their experiences of racial discrimination in Korea or mentioned the fact that the Philippines participated in the Korean War in 1953, pointing out, "You are the ones uneducated."

Another Filipino netizen criticized, "Koreans say they 'cannot forget history' regarding Japan's actions during the Japanese colonial period, but they seem to have forgotten that the Philippines fought against the Chinese People's Volunteer Army during the Korean War," calling it a contradiction.

Poarch also criticized some Korean netizens' attitudes on Twitter on the 9th, saying, "It's okay to attack me. But I cannot tolerate attacking and mocking Filipinos."

Voices of self-reflection also emerged domestically. On the 10th, some Korean netizens posted the hashtag 'SorryToFilipinos' on Twitter and other SNS, apologizing with messages such as "We apologize for our rudeness" and "This is a disgrace to our country."

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