Starbucks Korea head fired after Tank Day promotion sparks public uproar

SEOUL — The head of Starbucks Korea has been fired after a marketing campaign sparked public outrage for evoking painful memories of a brutal military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1980.

Shinsegae Group, the retail conglomerate that licenses and manages the US coffee chain in South Korea, said it had sacked Sohn Jeong-hyun, the head of Starbucks Korea, for carrying out "inappropriate marketing".

Sohn's dismissal came hours after Starbucks launched its Tank Day campaign on Monday (May 18) promoting what it called its Tank line of tumblers with the tagline "put it on the table with a sound of 'Tak!'"

Monday also marked Democratisation Movement Day, which commemorates the student-led Gwangju Uprising of May 1980, and the campaign drew strong criticism in South Korea.

Hundreds of people are estimated to have died or gone missing when the military dictatorship of Chun Doo-hwan deployed troops and tanks to crack down on the protests. 

Many details remain unconfirmed, including who gave the order to open fire on the protesters. Chun finally stepped down in 1988 amid growing calls for democracy.

Critics also questioned the use of the phrase "tak" for being reminiscent of explanations by South Korean police in 1987 for the death of a student protester, who was found to have been tortured. 

At the time, police said the student died after investigators struck a desk making a "tak" sound, according to local media reports.

Reuters was unable to reach Sohn for comment and Starbucks Korea declined to make him available for comment, saying he had already left the company. 

The company has withdrawn the campaign.

Writing on X on Monday, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said he was "enraged" by Starbucks' campaign and demanded it apologise to families of people killed during the uprising.

The campaign "tarnished the bloody protests of Gwangju citizens and the victims of the protests", Lee said, calling it the act of a "degenerate peddler".

Starbucks Korea posted a statement on its website apologising for the promotion while Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin also issued a public apology.

"I deeply bow in apology as the representative of the group," Chung said. The marketing "deeply hurt the public, the bereaved families, and the victims of the May 18 demonstration".

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