Celebrities IU, Park Bo-young face online attacks over protest demands

South Korean celebrities IU and Park Bo-young are facing a barrage of online criticism and harassment, with netizens demanding they send Starbucks coffee to a protest site in Seoul. The protests, which have been ongoing for three days near the Olympic Park Handball Gymnasium, are reportedly linked to ballot shortages during the recent local elections.

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Please send Starbucks coffee to Jamsil, where patriotic citizens are.

Online commenters have flooded IU's Instagram, urging her to send coffee to "patriotic citizens" in Jamsil and questioning her support for "leftist protests." These demands echo past incidents where IU pre-ordered drinks and bread for fans attending a rally calling for the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk-yeol. At the time, she was mocked as "Left-IU" by those opposing the impeachment.

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Ms. IU! The citizens are demanding their basic rights in Jamsil. Will you pre-order for them this time too?

Beyond demands for freebies, some netizens have posed what appear to be ideological questions, asking "What is the enemy of Korea?" and questioning why celebrities remain silent on issues of national sovereignty. Similar harassment has targeted actress Park Bo-young, with comments demanding she send coffee to "citizens defending democracy" and questioning her silence on the current election issues.

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Send coffee to Jamsil, IU. You have a lot of money, are only leftist protests considered the people's?

Actor Lee Dong-wook, who previously expressed support for the impeachment movement, has also become a target. Comments on his Instagram demand he speak out on the alleged infringement of citizens' voting rights and accuse him of "selective outrage." The online attacks highlight a growing trend of using social media to pressure public figures into taking political stances.

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Please pre-order near Olympic Park in Jamsil. Can't you do at least that much for the citizens working hard to protect democracy?