Seogwipo Olle Market Merchants Association Files Complaint on the 5th
"Business Damaged by False Post... No Apology Given"
Although it sparked the "Jeju Island overcharging controversy," police are expected to investigate the post about the "grilled squid without a body," which has now been accused of being false.
A netizen posted a photo online claiming "I was overcharged" (above). A photo of the same priced grilled squid released by the Seogwipo Daily Olle Market Merchants Association (below). Online community · Seogwipo Daily Olle Market Merchants Association
On November 6, the Seogwipo Daily Olle Market Merchants Association announced that the previous afternoon, it had visited the Seogwipo Police Station and filed a complaint against the author of the false post, accusing them of violating the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (defamation) and obstruction of business.
The Merchants Association argued that the post misled the public into believing that the Seogwipo Daily Olle Market was engaging in overcharging, thereby damaging their reputation. The association stated, "If the author had come forward to seek forgiveness, we might have considered leniency, but since there was neither an apology nor any action taken, we ultimately decided to file a complaint." The author of the post has reportedly not yet been identified.
This controversy began on October 20, when a netizen posted on an online community, claiming, "I bought a medium-sized grilled squid for 15,000 won at Jeju Daily Olle Market, but the box was less than half full," along with a photo expressing their dissatisfaction.
The author insisted, "This was not taken after eating. They put on a fire show to attract attention and seemed to have taken some out," posting a photo that showed only a few squid legs and some scattered sauce.
The post was deleted later that evening, but it quickly spread online, reigniting the "Jeju Island overcharging controversy."
However, two days later, the situation changed. As the controversy grew, the Seogwipo Daily Olle Market Merchants Association issued an official statement refuting the claim, saying, "It is not true." The association provided actual sales photos to media outlets and explained, "There is absolutely no possibility that part of the squid disappears during the cooking process." They also emphasized, "CCTV cameras are always operating at each store's cooking station, and all footage is preserved."
Although public opinion gradually shifted, the damage was already done. The merchant at the center of the controversy said, "After the post went online, I couldn't run my business for a while as I was trying to deal with the aftermath," and appealed, "I was mentally exhausted because of the unfairness."
The Merchants Association also claimed that after the overcharging controversy, sales of grilled squid dropped by 60 to 70 percent among vendors, the market's reputation was tarnished, and the number of tourists decreased, causing significant disruption to business.
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