On the 23rd, People Power Party lawmaker Joo Jin-woo said the truth must be determined about suspicions that state power was mobilized after Hotel Shilla notified some couples that weddings scheduled for early November were canceled due to a state event, calling it "a dictatorial idea that forces personal sacrifice."
Posting on Facebook the same day, Joo said, "Behind Hotel Shilla's mass cancellation of weddings reserved a year ago is the government. Hotel Shilla also added that it was an unavoidable decision following an official government request," making this claim.
Joo continued, "It is the first time in at least 15 years. Without coercion by state power, the hotel would not have broken its promise to customers on its own," adding, "Forcing personal sacrifice for a state event is a dictatorial idea." Joo also said that if the government ruined the public's weddings, it has a duty to explain, demanding, "Reveal the truth about who in the government requested what, and through what channels."
Joo also raised a claim that the cancellations were because of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Joo questioned, "When U.S. President Trump stayed, there were no wedding cancellations at the hotel, so why did only Hotel Shilla, where China's President Xi Jinping will stay, cancel weddings en masse?" and added, "The public has a right to know whether state power was mobilized for excessive protocol for China."
According to the hotel industry, Hotel Shilla recently notified some people with reservations that "a state event is scheduled for early November, so we are inevitably informing you of a reservation change," and canceled wedding schedules. In the past, Chinese leaders were known to frequently use Hotel Shilla when visiting Korea. U.S. presidents mainly used the Hyatt Hotel when visiting Korea.