Unexpected Appearance of 'Jo Guk' in the 'Avoid Double Parking' Notice, Why?

Daegu Apartment Notice Uses Former Minister Cho Kuk's Photo
Manager: "Not a Resident"...Supporters Criticize
Past Incident of Misusing 'Mesh Mask Avoidance' Photo

A man struggling to push a car was captured in a notice titled 'Request to Refrain from Double Parking on Slopes' in an apartment, and it turned out to be former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk. Upon learning this, former Minister Cho expressed his bewilderment.

The notice was found posted inside an elevator of an apartment in Maeho-dong, Suseong-gu, Daegu, on the 19th. It stated, "Female drivers and elderly people find it difficult to push double-parked vehicles, which causes contact accidents and safety hazards, so please refrain from doing so."

[Image source=Online community capture]

It also urged residents to refrain from double parking, saying, "There are plenty of parking spaces, but some residents habitually double park for their own convenience, causing frequent complaints of discomfort." The notice is scheduled to remain posted until the 27th.

However, upon closer inspection of a photo on one side of the document showing a man in a suit pushing a black car, the person was identified as former Minister Cho.

The photo was taken in August 2019 when former Minister Cho, then a nominee for Minister of Justice, was caught by media cameras pushing a double-parked car at his apartment in Bangbae-dong, Seocho-gu, Seoul, while heading to the hearing preparation office.

After learning about this, former Minister Cho expressed discomfort on his social media, saying, "It says this is an apartment in Suseong-gu, Daegu..." Supporters reacted strongly in the comments, saying things like "What on earth is this?" "Never tolerate this kind of thing again," and "Isn't this an invasion of portrait rights?"

However, regarding the notice, the apartment management office reportedly said, "He is not a resident of our apartment," and claimed they did not know the source of the photo or the identity of the person in it.

[Image source=Facebook page 'Busan Gonggam' capture]

This is not the first time former Minister Cho's photo has been misused. In 2020, an ophthalmology hospital in Busan caused controversy by using photos of former Minister Cho and his wife, Professor Jung Kyung-shim of Dongyang University, in a notice requesting people to refrain from wearing mesh masks.

At that time, former Minister Cho expressed displeasure on social media, stating, "This is clearly an infringement of portrait rights," and supporters condemned it as "malicious and defamatory." The hospital then explained, "It was a simple mistake by an employee with no malicious intent."

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