"I'll Stop by Starbucks Tomorrow": People Power Chungbuk Committee and Geoje Mayoral Candidate Face Criticism for Alleged 5·18 Demeaning Remarks

"Stopped by Starbucks before work" SNS post sparks controversy

Apology issued: "Failed to consider historical significance"

The Chungbuk Provincial Party Committee of the People Power Party posted about visiting Starbucks Korea on its official social network service (SNS) account amid controversy over Starbucks Korea's "5·18 Tank Day" event. After facing criticism, the post was deleted and an apology was issued. Online, some pointed out that this could be seen as sympathizing with a company marketing controversy that arose on the anniversary of the May 18 Democratization Movement.

Posts and comments uploaded on the official thread account of the People Power Party Chungbuk Provincial Party. Thread

According to political sources on May 19, the Chungbuk Provincial Party Committee of the People Power Party posted on its official SNS the previous day, saying, "I'll stop by Starbucks tomorrow before going to work. Good night." On the same post, the account of Sunmin Kim, the People Power Party candidate for mayor of Geoje, commented, "I should go and have a sandwich," to which the Chungbuk committee's account replied, "Tomorrow morning will be sandwich day."

The post became controversial as it was uploaded right after Starbucks was criticized for its "Tank Day" promotion. Online users raised concerns that the Chungbuk committee's post might be defending or supporting the Starbucks controversy. In particular, the fact that both the official party account and a candidate's account exchanged related comments publicly was criticized as inappropriate.

As the controversy grew, the Chungbuk Provincial Party Committee of the People Power Party issued an apology, stating, "We sincerely apologize to the bereaved families and the public for causing distress due to the inappropriate post on the official party SNS the previous day."

The committee added, "This post was clearly a mistake, as it failed to consider the historical significance of the May 18 Democratization Movement and the pain of its victims and honorees. We feel a deep sense of responsibility for causing significant hurt on such a solemn day when we should honor the noble intentions of those who dedicated themselves to democracy."

The Chungbuk Provincial Party Committee further stated, "We take this matter very seriously and will more carefully review all processes related to post creation and management to ensure that similar incidents do not occur again."

Previously, Starbucks was criticized for holding a tumbler promotion called "Tank Day" on May 18, the anniversary of the May 18 Democratization Movement. The promotion used the term "tank" and included the phrase "Bang on the desk!"

Online, some pointed out that "Tank Day" evoked memories of the martial law troops during the May 18 period. The phrase "Bang on the desk!" was also criticized for reminding people of the police's false explanation in the 1987 torture and death case of activist Park Jongcheol: "He died after I banged on the desk." As the controversy escalated, Starbucks suspended the event and issued an apology, and Yongjin Chung, Chairman of Shinsegae Group, also released a public apology.

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