"China Steals and Introduces Our Culture... Bae Hyun-jin Issues Warning Ahead of Beijing Olympics 'Hanbok Appearance Controversy'"

On the afternoon of the 4th, at the National Stadium in Beijing, China, a performer wearing Hanbok waved their hand during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Seoyoung] Amid controversy over an outfit presumed to be hanbok appearing at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, the political sphere has also raised objections.

At 9 p.m. (Korean time) on the 4th, during the opening ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics, a so-called "national relay" took place, passing the Chinese national flag, the Five-star Red Flag, from hand to hand. In this process, children, social leaders, recipients of national honors, and representatives of 56 ethnic minorities from across China participated, expressing a sense of connection to the Five-star Red Flag.

Among the ethnic minority representatives appearing in the scene, the attire of one woman sparked controversy among Korean netizens. The woman, with long hair braided and decorated with daenggi, dressed in a white jeogori and a pink chima, reminded viewers of Korea's traditional clothing, hanbok. This scene spread widely across various online communities and social networking services (SNS), provoking backlash.

A post uploaded by Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, after the opening ceremony of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics.
[Photo by Lee Jae-myung, Democratic Party presidential candidate, Facebook capture]

In response, on the 4th, Bae Hyunjin, a member of the People Power Party, wrote on Facebook, "I warned last year during the national audit that our culture was being stolen and introduced in the Beijing Olympics preparation video, and the minister clearly said they would be cautious," adding, "Didn't Speaker Park Byeongseok and Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee watch it live?" and sarcastically questioned, "Was the opening ceremony so excitingly careless as to completely disregard the minimum pride and dignity of the people?"

Won Heeryong, head of policy at the People Power Party's election campaign headquarters, wrote, "Even if it is a local congratulatory event, I believe such an incident should never occur," and added, "The country must respond urgently to China's cultural invasion." On the same day, Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate, posted on his Facebook page a phrase saying, "Do not covet culture. Oppose cultural engineering."

Lee Soyoung, a member of the Democratic Party, pointed out, "China's Northeast Project and cultural engineering, which flare up frequently, have never been resolved and have accumulated until now," adding, "We cannot remain silent while such blatant cultural engineering is being carried out. If this issue is left unattended and anti-China sentiment among our people grows stronger, it will become a major obstacle in conducting diplomacy with China in the future."

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