"Chinese Cultural Fireworks, Is Korea Trying to Steal It?"... Laughter at China's Unreasonable Claim

"Han, Never Applied for Fireworks UNESCO Listing"

Chinese netizens are making unfounded claims that the South Korean government is trying to steal their culture by applying to have fireworks recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage.

Previously, the Chinese government had banned fireworks during the Spring Festival, the largest holiday in China, since the 1990s, but at the end of last year, it changed its policy to allow them again. In this context, the Chinese media outlet 'Guo Pa Xinwen' surveyed Chinese netizens' perceptions of fireworks.

43% of respondents said, 'Fireworks should be allowed again to preserve traditional culture.' Notably, 27% of respondents in the survey expressed the opinion that 'South Korea is trying to steal Chinese culture by applying to have fireworks recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage.'

Regarding this, Professor Seokyungdeok from Sungshin Women's University wrote on his Facebook on the 14th, "Some netizens reported this to me during the Spring Festival, the biggest holiday in China, and I find it utterly ridiculous," adding, "I am truly speechless." He continued, "Since we have been promoting Korea's UNESCO World Heritage sites worldwide in various ways, we are more interested in World Heritage than anyone else, and Korea has never applied to have fireworks recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage," emphasizing this point.

[Image source=Seokyungdeok, Professor at Sungshin Women's University, Facebook]

Professor Seokyungdeok said, "Last year during the Lunar New Year holiday, Koreans were accused of stealing their 'Chinese New Year' by calling it 'Lunar New Year,' and this year they are making baseless claims that fireworks are being stolen again," adding, "China tries to steal Korea's kimchi, hanbok, fan dance, and even the nationality and ethnicity of independence activists first, yet they accuse us of stealing their culture, which is truly 'the pot calling the kettle black.'" He further pointed out, "Chinese people must always remember that only by respecting other countries' cultures first can their own culture be respected."

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