|
Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea,
said group executives and employees at Starbucks Korea’s
headquarters will attend training led by history and sociology
professors on Wednesday. All Starbucks stores nationwide will
close at 3 p.m. next Monday so employees can watch a recording
of the session, Shinsegae said in a statement.
The coffee chain triggered an uproar when it attempted to
promote a series of stainless-steel tumblers it called “SS Tank”
by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” The date marks the
anniversary of the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in the southern
city of Gwangju. It was violently suppressed by Seoul’s military
government at the time, which deployed troops, tanks and
helicopters, leaving hundreds dead or injured.
The campaign further fueled outrage by using the slogan “Thwack
it on the table!” which many read as a reference to a notorious
1987 police statement that attempted to cover up the torture
death of student activist Park Jong-chol. Authorities had
falsely said Park died after investigators “hit the desk with a
thwack.”
With the promotion sparking immediate backlash, Shinsegae
canceled it within hours and fired the chief executive of
Starbucks Korea. Shinsegae Chairman Chung Yong-jin later issued
a nationally televised apology as police opened an investigation
following complaints from relatives of the victims of the
Gwangju crackdown. Chung will undergo separate training with the
chief executives of Shinsegae affiliates on June 24.
Shinsegae said the decision to close all Starbucks stores early
for the first time since the chain’s 1999 launch in South Korea
and require companywide training shows “how seriously it views
the marketing controversy and its determination to prevent a
recurrence."
The crackdown in Gwangju came months after General Chun Doo-hwan
seized power in a coup in late 1979. Government records show
about 200 people died in Gwangju, but activists say the true
death toll was much higher. Chun’s government also imprisoned
tens of thousands, saying it was rooting out social evils.
Public anger over Chun’s dictatorship led to massive nationwide
protests in 1987, forcing him to accept a constitutional
revision introducing direct presidential elections, which is
widely seen as the start of South Korea’s transition to
democracy.
All contents © copyright 2026 Associated Press. All rights reserved
|
|
