Taipei seeks to soothe anti-Korean sentiment

Taipei seeks to soothe anti-Korean sentiment

The wall of a South Korean elementary school in Taipei is strewn with eggs thrown by unidentified Taiwanese protesters Saturday morning, as anti-Korean sentiment has been spreading in the country following a controversial taekwondo ruling against a Taiwanese athlete Nov. 19 during the Asian Games in Guangzhou, China. / Korea Times By Jung Sung-ki The Taiwanese government has conveyed a message to South Korea that a controversial taekwondo ruling against a Taiwanese female athlete at the 2010 Asian Games in Guangzhou last week is not related to South Koreans, an official at Seoul’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Sunday. The message comes amid growing anti-Korean sentiment in Taiwan following a controversial decision by a Korean-Filipino referee to disqualify Yang Shu-chun during her match against a Vietnamese opponent Nov. 19. “The Taiwanese government shared the recognition that the controversial decision was never influenced by the South Korean government and the bilateral relations should not be compromised by this episode,” the ministry official said. The Taipei government, against that backdrop, will address its people soon that the taekwondo row has nothing to do with South Korea in an effort to keep the public uproar from going any further, the official said. Yang, who was a leading contender for gold in the 49-kilogram women’s taekwondo event, was disqualified because she used extra sensors in her footwear. The extra sensors may have helped her win more points, but referees had not raised the issue before the competition started. Taiwanese anger has been directed at South Korea since then because Koreans hold most of the top positions in international taekwondo organizations. Taekwondo is Korea’s traditional martial art. Hong Sung-chon, a technical committee member who disqualified Yang, is a Philippine national of Korean descent and a high-ranking official of the Asian Taekwondo Union (ATU). Taiwan’s President Ma Ying-jeou addressed the incident and demanded an apology from the ATU, while public anger has been mounting in cyberspace and the real world with a campaign of boycotting South Korean products, food, television programs and entertainers. Some Taiwanese burnt South Korean flags, while some unidentified individuals reportedly threw eggs at a Korean elementary school in Taipei Saturday morning. South Korea and Taiwan have an amicable diplomatic relationship though both sides only have their offices of representatives in Taipei and Seoul. Seoul had to sever ties with Taipei when it established diplomatic relations with China in 1992, which claims sovereignty over Taiwan. Seoul and Taipei have a robust economic interaction, with Korea standing as Taiwan’s fifth largest trading partner in 2009, and Taipei as Seoul’s ninth largest partner. Bilateral trade reached $17.8 billion in 2009 despite the financial crisis, and the amount climbed to $19.3 billion between January and September this year. 대만 정부, 반韓 감정 수습 노력 외교통상부는 21일 대만 정부가 최근 논란이 되고 있는 아시안 게임 판정 논란이 한국과는 무관하다는 입장을 전달했다고 밝혔다. 대만 측의 입장 전달은 지난 19일 대만의 양수천 태권도 선수의 실격처리 이후 반한 감정이 들끓고 있는 가운데 나온 것이다. 한 외교부 당국자는 “대만 정부는 판정 문제가 한국 정부와는 무관하고 이 문제로 인해 양국 관계가 영향을 받아서는 안 된다는 데에 인식을 공유하고 있다”라며 “조만간 대만 정부가 자국 국민들에게 금번 태권도 판정 논란이 한국정부와는 무관하다는 입장을 공식 발표할 가능성도 있다”라고 말했다. 양 선수는 여자 49키로 체급에서 유력한 금메달 후보자였으나 양말 속에 부착된 센서 때문에 베트남 선수와의 경기에서 실격패 당했다. 대만 측은 경기 전에 심판이 해당 센서에 아무 문제도 제기 하지 않았다는 점에 불만을 제기한다. 대만 국민들은 태권도 종주국인 한국이 태권도 협회의 주요 직위를 차지하고 있는 점을 들어 한국에 대한 분노를 표출하고 있다. 당시 양 선수를 실격 시킨 홍성촌씨는 한국계 필리핀 인으로 대만 국민의 비난의 표적이 되고 있다.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr