SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean retail tycoon Chung Yong-jin on Tuesday issued his second apology in two weeks as Starbucks’ local operation faces a backlash over a recent marketing campaign that was widely perceived as mocking victims of a bloody military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in 1980.
Chung, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, bowed three times during a televised statement as he pleaded for forgiveness from the families of democracy activists killed by the country's former military dictatorship and from the broader public.
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Chung Yong-jin, a chairman of Shinsegae Group, leaves after apologizing in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Chung Yong-jin, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, speaks in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A sign for Starbucks is displayed in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Chung Yong-jin, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, speaks in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Chung Yong-jin, a chairman of Shinsegae Group, bows to apologize in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
The coffee chain sparked public outrage when it attempted to promote a large size of tumbler it calls a “tank” by declaring May 18 to be “Tank Day.” That's the anniversary of a democratic uprising in the southern city of Gwangju that was brutally suppressed by troops, tanks and helicopters, killing or injuring hundreds.
The campaign compounded outrage by using the slogan “Thwack it on the table!,” which many read as a reference to a notorious 1987 police statement that attempted to cover up the torture death of student activist Park Jong-chol. Police claimed that Park died suddenly after investigators “hit the desk with a thwack.”
The promotion was met with immediate outrage and within hours Shinsegae canceled it and fired the chief executive of Starbucks Korea. Police also opened an investigation based on complaints by families of people killed at Gwangju.
“I take it very seriously the fact that many people felt deep pain and anger because of Starbucks Korea’s inappropriate marketing campaign,” Chung said Tuesday.
He also asked people not to take out their frustration on staff at Starbucks shops, saying the responsibility lies with management. There were no immediate reports of major incidents at stores.
Chung issued his first apology on May 19, saying in a statement that the campaign caused “deep pain to the victims and bereaved families of the May 18 Democratization Movement as well as to the public.”
Jeon Sangjin, a senior Shinsegae Group executive, said the company has yet to find conclusive evidence that Starbucks Korea marketing employees intended to mock the pro-democracy movement, an accusation the employees have denied.
However, he said some employees refused management requests to hand over their smartphones during a weeklong internal review. Jeon said the company would look at results from the police inquiry and any employee found to have intended to ridicule protesters would be fired.
The anger over the campaign has triggered public calls for boycotts, amplified by government officials, including Interior and Safety Minister Yoon Ho-jung, who said Starbucks products will no longer be used at government events and lamented the chain’s “anti-historical behavior.”
President Lee Jae Myung said on X last week that the campaign displayed “inhumane and disgraceful behavior by cheap profiteers who deny the values of the South Korean community, basic human rights and democracy.”
The crackdown in Gwangju came months after General Chun Doo-hwan seized power in a coup in late 1979. Government records show about 200 people died in Gwangju, but activists say the true death toll was much higher. Chun’s government also imprisoned tens of thousands, saying it was rooting out social evils.
Public anger over Chun’s dictatorship led to massive nationwide protests in 1987, forcing him to accept a constitutional revision introducing direct presidential elections, which is widely seen as the start of South Korea’s transition to democracy.
Chung Yong-jin, a chairman of Shinsegae Group, leaves after apologizing in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Chung Yong-jin, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, speaks in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
A sign for Starbucks is displayed in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Chung Yong-jin, chairman of Shinsegae Group, which owns a 67.5% stake in Starbucks Korea, speaks in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Chung Yong-jin, a chairman of Shinsegae Group, bows to apologize in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, May 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
Authorities scrambling to find a safe resolution after a tank containing a hazardous chemical was damaged at a Southern California aerospace plant believe the risk of a catastrophic explosion has been eliminated and have lifted evacuation orders for about two-thirds of the 50,000 who were forced to leave their homes.
The storage tank at GKN Aerospace containing about 6,000 to 7,000 gallons (23,000 to 26,500 liters) of methyl methacrylate overheated last week in Garden Grove, a city in Orange County.
Officials have said the tank vented vapors as pressure and temperatures rose, but that monitoring has not detected hazardous chemical levels in the atmosphere. No injuries have been reported.
While officials said Monday that an overnight inspection confirmed a crack in the tank relieved pressure and cooled the chemical, they said some risk to public safety remained including a possible fire, spill or small explosion.
After the tank overheated Thursday, firefighters repeatedly sprayed it with water in an attempt to cool the chemical inside. Officials said Sunday that a crack that developed in the tank lowered the risk of an explosion.
Orange County Fire Authority division chief Craig Covey said a team that evaluated the tank overnight concluded that the temperature inside had dropped and pressure had been released. He called this “incredibly positive news.”
The tank’s interior reached 100 degrees (37.7 Celsius) Sunday, an increase of 10 degrees Fahrenheit (5.5 Celsius) since Saturday, according to Democratic state Sen. Tom Umberg. On Monday, Covey said the temperature fell to 93 degrees F (33.9 degrees C).
Covey announced Monday night that the evacuation area had been greatly reduced and that many of the evacuees could return home.
Methyl methacrylate is a flammable, colorless liquid used in the production of resins, plastics and plastic dentures and is regulated by the federal government.
It can irritate the lungs, eyes and skin and in high doses can cause reduced lung function, along with dizziness and memory problems, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
In prolonged cases, exposure to methyl methacrylate can cause serious respiratory problems or render a person unconscious.
Tests have found that air pollution in the evacuation zone is within normal limits.
Officials have said the valves on the tank are broken or “gummed up,” which prevented crews from removing the chemical or relieving the pressure on the tank.
The facility specializes in the production of aircraft transparency systems, including cockpit windows, canopies and windshields. British company GKN Aerospace says on its website that its products are used by major commercial and military aircraft manufacturers worldwide.
The company apologized Monday for the “ongoing disruption this incident is causing,” saying in a statement that its specialists and the Orange County Fire Authority had removed external insulation material from the tank to help cool its contents.
If the temperature inside the tank climbed high enough, it would have caused pressure to build as the methyl methacrylate converted from a liquid to a gas, increasing the risk of explosion and possibly igniting other tanks.
A blast would release the chemical to a wider area and could create vapors that would be hazardous to inhale, according to Orange County's top health officer, Dr. Regina Chinsio-Kwong.
Several evacuation shelters opened over the Memorial Day weekend to house the evacuees.
The evacuation zone was west of Anaheim, home to Disneyland’s two theme parks, which were not under evacuation orders. Chinsio-Kwong said people outside the evacuation zone don't need to worry about health impacts.
Associated Press reporter Leah Willingham contributed to this report.
An American Red Cross volunteer walks outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif.,on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
People tend to their pets outside Freedom Hall, an evacuation center in Fountain Valley, Calif., on Monday, May 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Evacuees gather their pets and belongings at the John F. Kennedy High School in La Palma, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
The streets remain empty in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026, after a storage tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated Thursday at an aerospace plastics facility. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Water is sprayed on a damaged tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026, after the tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated Thursday. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
An evacuee gather their pets and belongings at the John F. Kennedy High School in La Palma, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Water is sprayed on a damaged tank at GKN Aerospace in Garden Grove, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026, after the tank containing a chemical used to make plastic parts overheated Thursday. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Orange County Fire Authority Division Chief Craig Covey speaks during a news conference at the Los Alamitos racetrack in Cypress, Calif., Friday, May 22, 2026, about hazmat situation in Garden Grove, Calif. (Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP)
Firefighters work at the scene of a chemical tank that overheated at an aerospace plant in Garden Grove, Calif., Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Oscar Bello, who evacuated Anaheim with his pets, shows them off at the John F. Kennedy High School in La Palma, Calif., on Sunday, May 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
Water is sprayed on a tank that overheated at an aerospace plant in Garden Grove, Calif., Friday, May 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope)
