Nobelpreisträger Han Kang wurde vom von Präsident Yoon während der Amtszeit von Park Geun-hye ernannten Kulturminister auf die schwarze Liste gesetzt | Nobelpreis für Literatur „Han River“ auf schwarze Liste gesetzt… Überreicht durch die Ernennung des Ersten Vizeministers für Kultur, Sport und Tourismus Yoon

On the 11th, Yoo In-chon, Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, the agency responsible for supporting publication, translation, and writers, issued a congratulatory message for novelist Han Kang’s Nobel Prize in Literature.

During the 38th annual Book Day ceremony held that day, Minister Yoo stated, “Han Kang’s award is a monumental event, as she is the first Korean writer and the first female writer from Asia to win the Nobel Prize in Literature. It is a glorious achievement for Korean literature and publishing, and a national celebration.”

When the news of the award was announced around 8 p.m. on the 10th, cheers and applause erupted from both ruling and opposition party members at the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports, and Tourism Committee audit. Political figures such as President Yoon Suk-yeol, Minister Han Dong-hoon, and Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung also issued congratulatory messages.

Minister Yoo had previously sent a congratulatory message on the same day when Kim Hyesoon became the first Korean to win the National Book Critics Circle Award in March. However, this time, despite the Nobel Prize being even more significant, his congratulatory message was delayed by nearly a day and was delivered during the Book Day ceremony. The Ministry of Culture explained that they had contacted Han Kang’s side regarding a congratulatory message, but they were told that she did not wish to receive any congratulatory messages from anyone.

There was also the option of issuing a congratulatory message directly, without formalities. **Regarding this, the fact that Yoon Suk-yeol’s appointed first vice minister of the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism, Yong Hosung, was involved in executing the “Cultural Blacklist” during the Park Geun-hye administration has been raised again. Yong was named in the 2017–2018 White Paper on the Cultural Blacklist Investigation and System Reform Commission as being responsible for the practical work of creating the blacklist. Writer Han Kang was included on that list.** During 2014, Yong was dispatched to the Blue House’s Education and Culture Office, where he worked as an administrator, reportedly delivering lists of individuals to be excluded from the cultural and artistic sectors to the Ministry of Culture.

When President Yoon promoted Yong in July, cultural and artistic organizations, including the Korean Writers’ Association, issued statements opposing the appointment, saying, “Appointing a symbolic figure who actively led the blacklist is an overt insult and mockery of the cultural and artistic community.”

Han Kang’s Nobel Prize win may lead to renewed scrutiny in the National Assembly’s audit of the appropriateness of Yong’s appointment. The Ministry of Culture audit began on the 7th, and audits of its affiliated institutions, the Korean Publishing Culture Industry Promotion Agency on the 15th and the Literature Translation Institute of Korea on the 18th, are scheduled. A comprehensive audit of the Ministry of Culture is planned for the 24th.

In a press release accompanying Minister Yoo’s congratulatory message, the Ministry of Culture announced that 76 books in 28 languages have been published through the Literature Translation Institute of Korea. It also included information on translation support for works like “The Vegetarian” and “Human Acts,” including support given during the Park Geun-hye administration.

LOL of course. How much culture was lost under her dad’s oppression too?