"Hanbok, Korean and Also Belonging to Chinese Joseonjok"...Foreign Media Highlights China's 'Hanbok Gongjeong' Reaction

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

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] As the controversy over China's 'cultural engineering' intensified with the appearance of Hanbok at the Beijing Winter Olympics opening ceremony, foreign media highlighted the issue.

Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported on the 9th, "There was controversy after a woman wearing Hanbok helped deliver the Chinese national flag at the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony, and South Korean presidential candidates also joined in," adding, "Koreans expressed anger on social media, calling it a continuous attempt by China to appropriate Korean culture, including kimchi."

This refers to a woman representing the Joseonjok (ethnic Koreans in China) among the 56 ethnic groups participating in the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony held on the 4th, who appeared wearing a white jeogori and pink chima. Koreans who saw this strongly opposed it, calling it 'Hanbok engineering.'

SCMP reported that the Chinese Embassy in South Korea denied such 'cultural appropriation' controversy. Earlier, on the 8th, the Chinese Embassy in South Korea stated, "Traditional culture (Hanbok) belongs to the Korean Peninsula and also to the Chinese Joseonjok; the so-called terms 'cultural engineering' and 'cultural plundering' are completely unfounded."

SCMP also introduced posts from Chinese netizens opposing Koreans' 'Hanbok engineering' claims, conveying the atmosphere within China. According to a Weibo post cited by the media, a Chinese netizen expressed resentment, saying, "There are 1.7 million Korean ethnic minorities in China, and it is a good thing that they wear traditional clothing. Why complain?"

The media also introduced that the two countries clashed last year over kimchi. SCMP explained, "The Hanbok controversy follows last year's 'kimchi controversy' as a conflict between the two neighbors," adding, "China received certification from the International Organization for Standardization for paocai, a pickled vegetable from Sichuan Province, and in Korea, there was anger that China was trying to claim kimchi as their own. In China, kimchi is also known as paocai."

Meanwhile, as anti-China sentiment intensified amid controversies over 'biased judging' at the Beijing Winter Olympics, presidential candidates also voiced their opinions. Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, said on the 5th, "Although it is a time for celebration during the Olympics, the Chinese government must answer the suspicion that the festival time is being used as a means of cultural engineering," adding, "In that context, I conveyed my will against cultural engineering and my belief that it is unacceptable."

Yoon Seok-youl, the People Power Party candidate, also said on Facebook on the 9th, "There is great public anger over the fact that not only Hanbok but also Ganggangsullae and Yutnori were broadcast as if they were Chinese culture at this (Beijing Winter Olympics) opening ceremony. The core of this issue is part of the Northeast Project, which aims to subordinate and incorporate Korean history into China."

Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party candidate, also posted on Facebook on the 5th, emphasizing, "Hanbok is Korean culture. I tell the Chinese authorities: it is Hanbok (韓服), not Hanfu (漢服)."

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