'Scary-no' Controversy: Cho Kuk "No Knowledge of Idols.. Long Live Le Senné"? [Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.

Former Rebuilding Korea Party Chairman Cho Kuk denied any connection with the girl group Le Senné in response to the use of "no" as a mocking expression by the far-right community Ilbe (Ilgan Best Storage).

Cho Jeon (CEO) stated on the 12th via a lengthy post, "I have never mentioned or targeted Le Senné in any post," adding, "I have learned that my criticism is being interpreted as an attack on Le Senné."

Cho Jeon (CEO) said, "Although it may sound similar to Gyeongsang dialect, I was deeply troubled by the fallout from my criticism of Ilbe-style 'no' usage, which is clearly different. My intention was to point out how deeply Ilbe culture, which has continuously mocked shared values such as democracy and human rights while inciting hatred, has permeated our society's language life, and to raise awareness of its dangers. In particular, what I lamented was the phenomenon where Ilbe-style 'no' usage, originating from mocking former President Roh Moo-hyun, spread throughout society without criticism and was tacitly accepted. I have never said that Le Senné is Ilbe," he emphasized.

He continued, "I have almost no knowledge of idol groups, including Le Senné. I am very sorry and regretful that my post has been used as an opportunity to hurt Le Senné and its fans. Furthermore, listening to the stories of my daughter and young party officials made me reflect on the need to examine more carefully the language and culture of the younger generation and the contexts in which they are used." He added, "Moving forward, I will continue to fight against Ilbe culture that is anti-human rights and anti-ethics. This is because it is a poison that kills human rights and democracy regardless of whether one is progressive or conservative. At the same time, with humility, I will strive even harder to understand the language and culture of future generations."

Cho Jeon (CEO) also said, "I give a big round of applause for Le Senné's struggles and achievements, and I sincerely wish them to receive more love on even bigger stages in the future," adding, "I will shout out a slogan I learned from this incident: 'Le Senné, Yaho.'"

Previously, on the 5th, Cho Jeon (CEO) stated, "Some people in Busan and Yeongnam defend Ilbe's practice of appending 'no' at the end of sentences as a way to mock former President Roh Moo-hyun," and added, "In response to this, please refer to the following method for distinguishing Busan residents."

He further claimed, "From my observation, Ilbe mechanically appends 'no' after standard Korean. In Yeongnam dialect interrogative sentences, 'na' and 'no' are used distinctly: 'na' is used when confirming yes or no, while 'no' is used when requesting a specific situational explanation."

Cho accompanied the post with an image comparing Busan regional dialect and Ilbe-style expressions. The image, titled "Difference Between Seoul People, Ilbe, and Busan People," included examples such as "Is it your house? - Is it your house-no? - Is it your house-ga," "Where are you going? - Where are you going-no? - Where are you going-go," "What are you doing? - What are you doing-no? - What are you doing-no?" and "Have you eaten rice? - Have you eaten rice-no? - Have you eaten rice-na." It also included the explanation: "These four interrogative sentence-ending particles cannot be used interchangeably under any circumstances."

The controversy erupted after documentary filmmaker Kim Hyun-ji, who directed the film 'Adult Kim Jang-ha,' pointed out on social media on the 1st that Lee Won-i and her production team used the expression "scary-no" in their YouTube content, labeling it an "Ilbe-style hate speech."

Lee Won-i is from Geoje, Gyeongsangnam-do, and has long presented content utilizing local dialects. However, following the remarks, some claimed the expression was used by Ilbe, while others countered that it is a natural dialect commonly used in the Gyeongnam region, sparking ongoing online debate.

In this regard, language expert Ahn Tae-hyung, professor at Dong-A University's Basic Liberal Arts College, previously explained in a broadcast interview that "in southeastern dialects, 'no' is used not only for interrogative forms but also for monologues and exclamations," noting that "using it with an exclamatory meaning, such as 'Wow, I'm so sleepy-no,' is a natural Gyeongnam dialect."

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*This content was translated by AI.