Starbucks sales tumble in South Korea over 'Tank Day' backlash

Before there was a Tiananmen Square in China, there was Gwangju in South Korea.

The CEO for Starbucks Korea was immediately fired after this debacle, and two very public apologies have been made, but sales continue to plummet. It could well turn out that Starbucks is finished in South Korea.

ource: Associated Press

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.

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.” 

Foreigner attempts to fend off six Japanese police officers at Tokyo Starbucks 【Video】

中目黒のツタヤにて
俺のドリンクが溢れるじゃねぇか
超汗臭いし pic.twitter.com/Gw11l0ne2h

— 杏樹@UberEATS配達員(東京) (@anju_tokyo) October 10, 2018

The violent scuffle and eventual arrest was captured on camera by an eyewitness.


Whether you’re the CEO of Nissan or a senior citizen stealing a single roll of toilet paper from a public toilet, you don’t want to get on the wrong side of the law in Japan.

Not only does an arrest usually result in a lengthy stay in a police detention centre, but the arrest itself can cause a scene that has the potential to go viral online, as police officers employ taiho-jutsu “arresting martial art” techniques, using brute force to restrain non-compliant individuals.

Case in point is this video which is currently doing the rounds online. Filmed by Twitter user and Uber Eats delivery driver @anju_tokyo, the video shows one man attempting to fend off six officers who, instead of using guns, tasers, o

Indonesia tobacco plantations using child labour

Who could imagine a large multinational corroboration exploiting it's workforce? It's not like every major clothing manufacturer does this, or companies like Nike or Apple. Common people these are your favorite socially responsible brands.  That coffee you buy from Starbucks, do you truly believe those employed to pick coffee beans aren't exploited through low wages and dangerous working conditions of course they are.  For you the consumer of these and other products it doesn't matter as long as you're able to purchase them  at the lowest possible price.   So, don't act all surprised and indignant when you discover that major corporations also exploit child labour for higher higher profit margins.  

Big cigarette companies accused of feigning ignorance while young children work in plantations in hazardous conditions.

Some of the world's best known tobacco companies have been accused of turning a blind eye to the exploitation of child labour in Indonesian plantations that serve as their suppliers.

The tobacco industry employs about six million Indonesians. The figure includes many children that face hazardous conditions while working on the fields.

Researchers say tobacco companies insist their cigarettes are legal products without appearing to check whether their suppliers are complying with the law.

Human-rights groups have long noted the dangers of working in tobacco farms, especially for vulnerable youth children.