Starbucks Korea executive steps down after controversial campaign

Starbucks Coreia CEO Son Jung-hyun was fired by the company over the weekend. The decision came after the coffee chain launched a promotional campaign that evoked symbols of the massacre of pro-democracy protesters that occurred in 1980 during the country’s military dictatorship. The president of Grupo Shinsegae, Chung Yong-jin — whose subsidiary Emart controls the majority of shares in the operator of Starbucks Korea under license — ordered the executive to leave and also demanded the resignation of the person directly responsible for the campaign.

Campanha “Tank Day” associated with historic violence

On May 18, Starbucks Coreia launched the “Tank Day” promotion for its “Tank” line of thermal cups. Esse day marks one of the most politically sensitive dates in Coreia of Sul, when the country commemorates the democratization movement of 1980 in Gwangju, a city 270 kilometers southwest of Seul. The online campaign associated the date “5/18” with the slogan “Tanque Day”, making direct reference to the armored vehicles that the military regime used to crush the uprising.

Gwangju’s uprising began on May 18, 1980. Paraquedistas were sent to suppress student-led protests against martial law imposed by dictator Chun Doo-hwan. Nos For the next 10 days, regime troops used bayonets, batons and live ammunition against unarmed civilians. Victim support Grupos estimates that hundreds of people died during the episode.

Referências to torture worsened public outrage

The promotion also included the phrase “thwack on the desk”, an expression that refers to an infamous episode of the military dictatorship. In 1987, authorities attempted to cover up the torture death of student activist Park Jong-chul by claiming that an agent had “hit the table hard”, causing him to faint. The lie became synonymous with the regime’s brutality when the torture was publicly exposed, helping to spark nationwide protests that forced the government to accept direct presidential elections.

Coalizão Memorial Gwangju-Jeonnam, an organization that preserves the memory of the victims, classified the campaign as “a clearly malicious mockery.” In an official statement, the entity stated that it “strongly suspects that this is the result of a biased historical awareness of the administration, expressed in a cunning way through the mask of marketing.”

Quick Retratação did not avoid layoffs

Poucas hours after public outrage spread across social media and local media, Starbucks Coreia withdrew the promotion from the platform. The company issued a formal apology and promised to implement stricter internal reviews of campaign approval processes. Apesar of containment measures, the political and social repercussions of the incident resulted in immediate pressure for dismissals.

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Chung Yong-jin, president of Grupo Shinsegae, acted quickly. Conforme information from news agency Yonhap, he fired CEO Son Jung-hyun and ordered the departure of the executive who directly oversaw the campaign. The decision sought to demonstrate corporate responsibility in the face of the reputation crisis.

Reação politics intensifies pressure on brand

President Lee Jae Myung attended Gwangju’s memorial ceremony on May 18th. Upon learning of Starbucks’s campaign, he publicly condemned the promotion in a post on platform The president demanded that those responsible for the promotion be held accountable for their actions.

The reaction from political leaders amplified the call to boycott the brand among segments of the population. Cidadãos shared messages of support for the victims’ manifesto and criticism of corporate insensitivity. The episode reinforced debates about historical consciousness in South Korean corporations and about the responsibility of multinationals when operating in markets with deep collective trauma.

Historical sensitivity Contexto on Coreia of Sul

• Levante of Gwangju occurred between May 18 and 27, 1980
• Estimativas indicates hundreds of deaths among civilians and protesters
• Data is a national holiday dedicated to the memory of victims of political repression
• Military Regime lasted until 1987, when direct elections were restored
• Campanhas corporate companies must respect historically sensitive dates in the national calendar

The incident marks another chapter in larger discussions about how global brands navigate complex political contexts in different markets. Coreia of Sul, as a nation that faced military dictatorship and is now a consolidated democracy, maintains continuous vigilance over references that trivialize or trivialize the suffering of victims of political repression.