Actress Kim Gyuri has been cleared of the “upside-down Taegeukgi” controversy after Yeongam County admitted the inverted national flag outside her cafe was one of its own street flags. On October 12, she shared the local news report on social media, thanking the regional press for setting the record straight.
The flap began when photos spread across online communities showing a Taegeukgi hung upside-down on a utility pole in front of the bakery cafe she opened with her family in Yeongam this past April. Some netizens accused the cafe of hoisting it incorrectly, and the actress was hit with a wave of malicious comments.
According to regional outlet Yeongam Gunmin Ilbo, the flag was one of 1,250 street flags the county had commissioned a civic group to install across 11 towns for Armed Forces Day, National Foundation Day and Hangeul Day. The county acted on a complaint on October 7, straightened the flag and finished inspecting its flags by October 8.
A county official apologized for the poor flag management, saying the installation was outsourced by the county and had nothing to do with the nearby cafe. Days earlier, Kim had warned online that spreading unverified falsehoods could be punished as defamation.
The actress has long battled false rumors — in June, a man who posted 500-plus malicious messages about her was jailed for a year. With the county’s apology, the rumor has collapsed — and Kim signaled she will keep pursuing legal action against repeat spreaders.
