Mapo-gu Faces Backlash After Hanging Banner Banning Halloween Festival

Voluntary Removal of Banners on the Posting Day
"Blocking Unconditionally Is Not the Solution
Communication with the Local Community Must Come First"

Mapo-gu District in Seoul put up banners banning the Halloween festival around the bustling area of Hongik University, only to remove them on the same day, creating a farcical situation. While merchants and citizens understood the measure as a safety precaution ahead of the one-year anniversary of the Itaewon tragedy, they expressed regret, saying it seemed like an attempt to suppress the festive atmosphere itself.

A banner stating "Halloween Day festival is prohibited to prevent multi-crowd accidents!" was hung around the Hongdae entertainment district in Mapo-gu, Seoul, at around 6 a.m. on the 20th. [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the morning of the 20th, around 6 a.m., Mapo-gu hung banners at 12 locations around the Hongdae area stating, "Halloween Day festival is prohibited to prevent mass crowd accidents!" However, despite the lack of enforceability, internal criticism arose over the use of the word "prohibited," and merchants protested. It was confirmed that the banners were voluntarily removed around 11 p.m. the same day, just 17 hours after being posted. A Mapo-gu official said, "We intended to emphasize the hope that people would refrain from the festival, but we used the word 'prohibited.' Since the term 'prohibited' could cause misunderstandings, we decided to remove the banners on the same day." He added, "The campaign recommending restraint from the festival is still ongoing. We are preparing patrols and other measures to encourage restraint during the upcoming weekend as well."

The Hongdae area is one of the meccas for Halloween events. Although there were no official government events, companies, restaurants, and clubs have independently planned Halloween-themed events. In 2019, Netflix introduced a pop-up zone themed around the zombie series "Kingdom," set in the Joseon Dynasty. Visitors were offered zombie makeup services, and zombies in full makeup roaming the streets of Hongdae received fresh and positive reactions. Every year, pubs decorated their interiors with Halloween themes and prepared events, and clubs also organized performances fitting the Halloween atmosphere.

Merchants in the Hongdae area criticized the approach of trying to block Halloween itself. Park (29, male), a manager of a pub in Hongdae, said, "We expect higher sales during Halloween, so I am worried. While thorough preparations to prevent accidents are necessary, since Hongdae is also a street of youth, it would be good if they helped us enjoy the event safely and joyfully." Park (28, male), manager of a Halloween-themed pub, said, "I understand banning large-scale festivals since the tragedy happened recently, but I hope a mood can be created that allows events or party atmospheres at individual stores."

Citizens also hoped the festival would proceed normally, separate from the memorial. Lee (19, male), a university student, said, "This is my first Halloween as an adult, but since the tragedy happened last year, the atmosphere won’t be the same as usual. I hope they allow us to enjoy the festival safely rather than suppressing the atmosphere itself." Kim (28, male), an office worker, said, "Memorials should be held properly, but trying to block even young people from enjoying Halloween seems a bit excessive. Things are tough in Gyeonggi Province as well, and Halloween could provide some small help to small business owners."

Experts suggested that communication with the local community and efforts to prevent recurrence should come first. Professor Kim Jun-mo of Konkuk University’s Department of Public Administration said, "Since last year’s tragedy showed that local governments cannot avoid responsibility if accidents occur, this seems to be the cause of the situation. Simply banning events is not the solution; a process of thorough consultation and consideration with the local community should have preceded this." Professor Lee Min-ah of Chung-Ang University’s Department of Sociology said, "It is impossible to stop everyone who wants to enjoy the festival. Preventing festivals and telling individuals to avoid crowded places essentially shifts responsibility to the private sector. It is more important for local governments and the central government to cooperate and establish clear guidelines or manuals on how to control crowds when large numbers of people gather."