[AFP]
[AFP]

Seo Kyoung-duk, a professor at Sungshin Women's University, said Wednesday that some online users have been sending him retaliatory messages after he filed a formal complaint with FIFA over Japanese fans displaying the rising sun flag — a symbol of Japanese imperialism — at the 2026 North America World Cup, calling the harassment "foolish."

Seo posted on his social media accounts Wednesday saying he was being "bombarded with massive attacks again" and shared an image that had been sent to him — a composite of the South Korean national flag and the rising sun flag.

The image was delivered to Seo via direct message and is believed to have been created by an online user sympathetic to Japanese imperialism.

"I am well aware that the rising sun flag has been used by Japanese people to symbolize things like a good catch of fish or childbirth," Seo said. "But they are completely ignoring the fact that it was the flag Japan put at the forefront when it invaded countries across Asia, including during the Pacific War."

"It is truly foolish not to properly acknowledge history," he said. "They could just attack me, but they keep sending me direct messages with the rising sun flag superimposed on our Taegukgi. Does doing this hide or change the history of the rising sun flag?"

He also warned those behind the attacks: "It seems my activities frighten them greatly. Keep attacking. I will turn this against them and make sure the world learns the true history of the rising sun flag."

The flag had appeared at two World Cup group stage matches involving Japan — first on June 16 during a Group F opener against the Netherlands, and again on June 21 during Japan's second match against Tunisia.

In a post on Tuesday, Seo said the flag had been spotted inside the stadium during the Japan-Tunisia group stage match and that he had sent FIFA a complaint email detailing the incident.

"It is unacceptable for rising sun flag cheering to take place at a World Cup, where people from all nations and backgrounds come together as one," he said. "It is an act that reminds Asian football fans of the wounds of war."

He also demanded that FIFA "immediately block Japanese fans from bringing the rising sun flag into venues going forward and take swift action to ensure this never happens again."

Seo added Wednesday that his formal complaint to FIFA had sparked a major reaction in Japan. "Yahoo Japan erupted," he said. "Related articles made the main news and thousands of comments poured in — it has become a huge issue."

"It seems that our historically grounded complaint to FIFA — aimed at correcting something wrong — has really struck a nerve," he said.

Meanwhile, CNN reported Tuesday that Japanese fans waving the rising sun flag at the World Cup had drawn criticism from neighboring countries, noting that the flag has appeared at various international sporting events and that similar controversies have arisen before.

CNN said Japan maintains that the rising sun flag has been in use for hundreds of years and that it is used today by the country's Maritime Self-Defense Force, as it was by the Imperial Japanese military during World War II. For South Korea and China, the network said, the flag evokes Japan's wartime atrocities, and South Korean politicians have compared it to the Nazi swastika.

CNN also noted that Japan has adopted a pacifist constitution and has repeatedly apologized and expressed remorse for war crimes, but has not banned the flag. FIFA strictly prohibits flags carrying political messages, discriminatory language or military imagery, the network said, but has not taken an official position on the rising sun flag.


ygmoon@heraldcorp.com