K-News: Freedom of Expression in South Korea
Highschooler’s cartoon of ‘Yoon Suk-yeol train’ ignites controversy over freedom of expression in S. Korea
Ministry of Culture vows to examine how the work satirizing the head of state was chosen at the annual comics contest
Tuesday, October 4, 2022
President Yoon Suk-yeol, who has been at the center of controversy for his swearwords toward U.S. politicians caught on hot mic during his recent New York visit, finds himself in yet another hot water - this time due to a student’s cartoon.
It was early Tuesday morning when the cartoon, titled “Yoon Suk-yeol-cha,” got the attention of the public as the satirical piece was known to have won the top prize in this year’s comics contest hosted by the Korea Manhwa Contents Agency (KOMACON).
While it seemed titled after the combination of the head of state’s full name and “yeol-cha,” the common noun for train in Korean, the cartoon apparently depicted a locomotive with Yoon’s face instead the famous British comic book character Thomas the Tank Engine. Driving the locomotive is his wife Kim Keon-hee and several public prosecutors with swords in hand, who are regarded to be masterminding the prosecutor-turned-president.
Some people wondered how this satirical work could win the top award in a contest hosted by an organization under local autonomous government. KOMACON is a foundation under Bucheon city, Gyeonggi Province.
As the cartoon sparked debates among citizens, the Ministry of Culture said it would look into the case to find out how the work has been selected for the top prize in the contest. The ministry also added that it considers halting its sponsorship for the annual contest.
However, the ministry’s move is sparking another controversy over the freedom of expression. Yoon and his ruling party have already been criticized for their latest attack on news media, which reported the president’s verbal blunders.
Foreign news outlets have also been raising concerns about the freedom of press and freedom of expression in South Korea. <The Dimplomat>, a renowned U.S. current affairs magazine, recently criticized in a report that Yoon is “harming the freedom of press in his country” only days after using the word “freedom” 21 time in his debut at the U.N. General Assembly.
Political commentators point out that this “Yoon-Suk-Yeol-Cha” cartoon could be another center of a heated controversy if the government moved further to intervene in the case going forward.