Japanese Right-Wing Groups Mock by Combining Rising Sun Flag with Taegeukgi... Seo Kyungduk Calls It "Simply Pathetic"

Seo Kyungduk Emphasizes the Need for Legal Penalties
for the Use of the Rising Sun Flag

As Japanese right-wing groups are creating and sharing files that combine the Rising Sun flag and the Taegeukgi on social networking services (SNS), Professor Seo Kyungduk of Sungshin Women's University criticized the move as "simply pathetic."

A composite image of the Taegeukgi and the Rising Sun flag created by Japanese right-wing extremists. Professor Seo Kyungduk

On June 19, Professor Seo stated via SNS, "Recently, I was concerned that a domestic university student exhibited a work on campus that combined the Rising Sun flag, a symbol of Japanese imperialism, and the Taegeukgi, which could end up giving justification to Japanese right-wing extremists. In the end, this has actually happened."

He pointed out, "As a result, Japanese right-wing groups have started to create bizarre files combining the Rising Sun flag and the Taegeukgi to mock us. They keep sending them to me via SNS direct messages, and I truly find it pathetic."

Recently in Korea, there have been incidents such as a Mercedes-Benz covered with the Rising Sun flag, a large Rising Sun flag displayed at an apartment in Busan, and a person wearing a Rising Sun flag T-shirt while riding a motorcycle. Such incidents have repeatedly sparked controversy.

In relation to these events, Professor Seo pointed out, "If these kinds of incidents keep occurring in Korea, it will only provide further pretext for Japanese right-wing groups."

He especially emphasized, "These should not be dismissed as merely individual acts of deviation," and added, "To prevent such incidents from recurring in the future, it is essential to establish relevant punitive laws."