Political reactions split over Shinsegae chairman's Starbucks apology

South Korean political parties have offered sharply contrasting responses to Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin's public apology regarding Starbucks Korea's controversial "Tank Day" marketing campaign. The incident, which occurred shortly before the June 3 local elections and National Assembly by-elections, has become a focal point for political debate.

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Seeing Chairman Chung's late apology, I feel bitter. Given his past far-right remarks, I cannot dismiss the suspicion that this is a superficial apology to avoid the rain.

The Democratic Party largely dismissed Chung's apology as disingenuous. Party leader Jung Cheong-rae wrote on Facebook that he felt "bitter" seeing the late apology, suspecting it was a "superficial apology" aimed solely at evading criticism, given Chung's past "far-right" remarks. He urged Chung to "bow deeper" to the victims of the May 18th Gwangju Uprising and take more sincere, responsible actions to address public anger. Jo Seung-rae, the party's general election strategy chief, called the apology "lacking sincerity in all aspects, including the cause of the incident and future prevention measures," stating it "cannot be considered an apology." Rep. Park Jie-won likened it to "Part 2 of Yoon Suk-yeol's dog apology," suggesting it poured "oil on burning straw."

However, opinions within the Democratic Party were not entirely uniform. Kim Boo-kyum, a candidate for mayor of Daegu, expressed a different view, stating, "The government and the ruling party should also trust and watch the people." He argued on Facebook that the government or political circles should not create an atmosphere of publicly pressuring specific companies or criticizing consumption. A senior party official noted internal divisions, with some advocating for concluding the issue while others held differing views. Kang Joon-hyun, the party's senior spokesperson, initially stated that Chung's apology was sincere but later retracted, saying it was not discussed with the party beforehand.

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The cause of the incident and future prevention measures, in all aspects of content and form, lack sincerity. It cannot be considered an apology.

Other progressive parties also voiced strong opposition. The Jo Guk Innovation Party's statement demanded that Chung "apologize for his past far-right provocative acts as well." The Progressive Party called for an immediate resignation, labeling the apology a "face-saving 'apology show.'" In contrast, Jang Dong-hyuk, interim leader of the People Power Party, strongly criticized the government and ruling party's criticism and boycott calls against Starbucks. He declared, "We must judge a regime that tries to take away even the freedom to enjoy a cup of coffee," framing the boycott as an "infringement of freedom" and urging conservative voters to "vote to protect freedom."

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We must judge a regime that tries to take away even the freedom to enjoy a cup of coffee.