[Screen capture from Mworenghamaen's YouTube channel]
[Screen capture from Mworenghamaen's YouTube channel]

Amid a string of disturbing incidents on Jeju Island, some people have been leaving hate comments targeting a well-known local YouTuber and demanding that he take responsibility — drawing widespread criticism.

The YouTuber, known as Mworenghamaen, posted a short video to his account on Aug. 28 under the title "About recent events."

In the video, Mworenghamaen showed hate comments left on his channel and said he had received more than 1,000 of them. "It's gotten to the point where news outlets are covering the flood of hate comments directed at me," he said. Among the comments were messages such as "Aren't you partly responsible?", "Everyone who lives on Jeju is in on it together," and "Why haven't you apologized?"

He went on to explain the island's traditional identity. "Jeju has long been called 'Sammu-do' — the island of three absences: no beggars, no thieves, and no gates," he said. "There were no beggars because people helped one another, no one went hungry so there were no thieves, and because there were no thieves, there was no need for gates."

"I grew up hearing these stories," he added, "and so I have always believed Jeju to be a safe and peaceful island."

He said the recent events on Jeju worried him as a resident of the island. "Many people have questions about what has been happening, and I share those questions," he said. "I believe the truth needs to come out fully."

He then questioned why the hate comments were being directed at him. "I live on Jeju. My family is here, and the people I love are here," he said. "If things like this keep happening on Jeju, the ones who will be most worried are me and the other people who actually live here."

Mworenghamaen said he was not taking anyone's side. "What I want is simply for every question that people — both those on Jeju and those outside — are carrying right now to be answered completely, leaving not a single question mark behind," he said.


123@heraldcorp.com