Photo of 'Kanda Shrine' in Japan Appears in Video for 'King Sejong's Birthday'
Screened Multiple Times Before the Main Event
Regarding the appearance of a Japanese shrine in a commemorative video for 'King Sejong's Birthday,' Professor Seo Kyungduk of Sungshin Women's University strongly criticized the incident, calling it "unacceptable."
On May 16, through social media, Professor Seo explained, "A video produced by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism was screened multiple times before the official event held at Gyeongbokgung Palace," and added, "The video became controversial because it included the image of a Japanese shrine."
He stated, "The background of the video, created to mark King Sejong's Birthday, featured not a Korean hanok but a Japanese shrine in black and white," and specified, "It was a photo of 'Kanda Shrine' in Tokyo, which is a nationally registered tangible cultural property of Japan." He also noted, "Another building shown in the video was a photo of a Chinese temple."
Professor Seo pointed out, "Although the video was played several times before the main event began, it was not used during the official ceremony." He emphasized, "While spreading Hangeul and the Korean language worldwide is important, it is simply unacceptable for us to make such a careless mistake at a domestic event." He further stressed, "Rather than blaming the production company, government agencies that failed to properly manage and supervise the process should reflect more deeply."
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