Kim Sung-yong Jiudan (pictured right) is suspected of being Mr. K
The recent #MeToo (me too) anti-sexual harassment campaign from the United States is sweeping South Korea. Many South Korean celebrities have been knocked down by their own sexual assault scandals, including heavyweights such as well-known director Kim Ki-duk and "Moon Jae-in's successor" Ahn Hee-jong. Now, the Korean Go community is also involved.
On April 16, the "Suggestion Message Board" of the Korean Chess Academy Professional Chess Association published an article titled "#Me too ᅲᅲ", written by a visiting female chess player of the Korean Chess Academy. In the article, she wrote about her being sexually harassed by a famous K player surnamed Kudan nine years ago, and said that now hearing the voice of the player who serves as a Go commentator from Baduk TV will immediately switch channels. The female chess player mentioned that the publication of this article is to let everyone know the true face of this K player, hoping that no one will be hurt like her.
On April 17, the Korea Chess Academy formed an ethics committee composed of male and female professional chess players, chaired by Yoo Young Ren, a member of the Board of Governors of the Korean Chess Academy and prosecutor of the Daejeon High Prosecutor's Office in South Korea. The Ethics Committee will thoroughly investigate the parties involved in the "#Me Too" incident and take serious measures. At the same time, Sun Genji Wuduan, president of the Korean Professional Chess Association, said that he would strengthen education related to sexual harassment and hold a "Go people's reflection conference".
The South Korean side released some information about the player surnamed K: the famous professional nine dan, The Go commentary, the Korean League coach, and the publicity director of the Korean Chess Academy. According to this information, the suspect is suspected of pointing directly at Kim Sung-lung's nine paragraphs. Kim Sung-yong Jiudan is a very famous commentator in the Korean Go community, who has published Go-related articles in the media many times, and also served as the on-site explanation of the 2016 Lee Sedol and AlphaGo Five Chess Battles, and is also a senior member of the Korean Chess Academy. After this "#Me too" incident was exposed, the Korean Chess Academy had intended to suppress the matter, but it was publicly reported by South Korea's Sunday News. At present, neither the whistleblower nor the reported person can be contacted.
This may become the first case of sexual assault in the Go world, and under the sweep of the MeToo storm, I don't know how many famous people will fall.
（Elisa）