Yeosu Island Expo threatened defamation suits — then got reported to prosecutors

Yeosu city, which had threatened to file defamation charges over criticism of the troubled Yeosu World Island Expo, has itself been reported to prosecutors over allegations of mismanagement.

The Liberty Unification Party said Monday it had filed a complaint with the Gwangju District Prosecutors' Office against all officials responsible for what it described as systemic failures in the expo's budget planning, execution and oversight. The complaint includes charges of breach of trust, violations of the Local Finance Act, and the preparation and use of false official documents.

Those named in the complaint include Park Su-gwan, chairman of the 2026 Yeosu World Island Expo organizing committee; Kim Jong-gi, the committee's secretary-general; Yeosu Mayor Seo Yeong-hak, who serves as co-chairman of the organizing committee; former Yeosu Mayor Jeong Gi-myeong; South Jeolla-Gwangju Special Metropolitan City Mayor Min Hyeong-bae; former South Jeolla Province Governor Kim Yeong-rok; and all relevant civil servants involved in the expo's operations.

The party said it had confirmed that while the expo's official project budget was listed at 70.3 billion won ($50.8 million), the total related budget — including linked projects — had at one point been tallied at around 183.9 billion won.

The party added that an additional 16.9 billion won in fiscal support had been requested even as the opening approached, and that further supplementary funds were allocated after the opening under the pretext of improving content. Despite all this, attendance during the expo's first weekend reached only about 35,000 — far short of the 3 million target.

The party also said it had found evidence suggesting that official directives were issued under the name of a superior agency, instructing that ordinary civil servants' visits to the expo — unrelated to their duties — be logged as formal business trips. It said this may have been a deliberate attempt to artificially inflate attendance figures.

Controversy surrounding the Yeosu World Island Expo continues to mount. Online criticism has also targeted the contents and price of a soy sauce-marinated crab set meal sold at the venue.

One YouTuber who ordered the 14,900-won meal received a tray with soy sauce-marinated crab, a bowl of rice, kimchi, corn salad and dried seaweed. Viewers reacted sharply, with comments including "the portions are way too small" and "did they scoop the banchan with a teaspoon?"

A performance staged at the main venue on Tuesday also drew similar mockery. For a rendition of "Geomundo Baetnnorae" — a traditional work song of Geomundo island fishermen — organizers fashioned a stage by draping cloth around the bed of a one-ton truck and attaching a sail to make it resemble a boat. Performers climbed onto the truck and mimed rowing as they sang.

Allegations have also emerged that civil servants used the expo as cover for leisure-oriented overseas trips. Reports circulating online claim that 107 overseas business trips were taken over the past several years in connection with the expo, with many described as poorly substantiated.

Trip reports that have spread online contain spelling errors and remarks such as "the ramyun was the best" and "the forest bathing was wonderful," prompting commenters to deride them as "elementary school level." Itineraries including elephant trekking and fishing excursions — activities with no apparent connection to the expo — have also drawn criticism.

A search of the government's overseas training information system using the expo as a keyword returns 107 trip reports.

Yeosu city acknowledged that some reports contained copy-pasted content and lacked rigor, but maintained that the connection to the expo had been overstated. The city said trips directly aimed at benchmarking for the expo numbered 21 over three years from 2023, focused mainly on the United States, Japan and China.

The expo's direct project budget stands at 71.3 billion won, with an additional 113.6 billion won invested separately across 77 linked projects — among them the "Yeosu Island Trail" project at 30 billion won and the "K-Media Island Theme Park" project at 12 billion won. The combined total for direct and linked projects is estimated at around 184.9 billion won.

Yeosu city said it has been monitoring online posts and comments related to the expo and collecting evidence, and that it is considering civil and criminal action including charges of defamation and insult.