Kim Hee-cheul of Super Junior apologized a day after criticizing Incheon City for drawing the Taegeukgi incorrectly on a Liberation Day banner. It was confirmed that the Taegeukgi was depicted from a low angle looking up at an independence activist waving the flag.
Kim Hee-cheul said on the 9th on Instagram, "You may find it absurd to see an apology in just one day, but I am at fault," and added, "I failed to recognize that a person was holding it and, in the moment, got angry just looking at the Taegeuk symbol."
He continued, "This is clearly my fault, caused by poor spatial awareness and haste. I am sorry," and said, "It was my fault for not looking closely at the image, and because it is only right to apologize when one is wrong, please rebuke me for not being prudent."
On the 6th, ahead of the 81st Liberation Day, Incheon City put up a commemorative banner near the back gate of City Hall. The banner featured the phrase "The day we regained the light" along with an image of an independence activist waving the Taegeukgi with both hands.
But online, some pointed out that the positions of the red and blue in the Taegeuk symbol on the banner appeared reversed compared with a typical Taegeukgi. Kim Hee-cheul joined the criticism by leaving a strongly worded comment on a related post.
As the controversy grew, Incheon City explained that the flag was not drawn incorrectly but was depicted from a low angle looking up at an independence activist waving the Taegeukgi. It said the basic elements of the Taegeukgi, including the positions of the geon, gon, gam, and ri trigrams, were correct.
After Incheon City's explanation, Kim Hee-cheul acknowledged that his judgment was wrong. He said, "As the saying goes, once startled by a lizard, you're startled by a pot lid; these days I keep seeing people, videos, and photos where the Taegeukgi is hung or drawn upside down, so I must have built up a lot of anger inside."
He added, "Setting aside left or right, it was just about my feelings toward Korea's national flag," and "including myself, I hope from now on the Taegeukgi does not get distorted into a different meaning or a misunderstanding."
Determining that the banner could cause misunderstanding, Incheon City took it down on the 8th, two days after it was posted.