The Japanese government marked Dokdo island as its territory on the map on Tokyo 2020 Summer Olympics website. Upon taking this opportunity of hosting the Olympics, Japan is trying to announce the world of the claim that Dokdo belongs to Japan.
Above all, when the Olympics are over, the Japanese government will publicize Dokdo as ‘Takeshima’ on textbooks and world maps around the world, based on the Tokyo Olympics homepage which marked Dokdo as Japanese territory.
This is not the first time Japan has acted like this.
Through the archives of Tokyo Metropolitan Library, Japan has already marked Dokdo as its territory on the 1964 Tokyo Olympic torch relay map.
The problem here is that the Japanese government has demanded a ban to the IOC, arguing that Korea marking Dokdo on 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics homepage and that Dokdo being marked on the Korean Peninsula Flag, as political acts against the spirit of the Olympics.
Back then, the Korean government accepted the IOC’s recommendation and erased Dokdo from Pyeonchang Winter Olympics homepage and the Korean Peninsula Flag.
As of 2021, the problem with the Japanese government’s marking Dokdo as its own territory on the Tokyo Olympic website is that the IOC is against equity since the IOC had already intervened to remove Dokdo from the Korean Peninsula flag in response to Japan’s protests during the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.
Also, even though the IOC strictly prohibits drawing sports into politics, it is turning a blind eye to the Japanese government’s provocative actions that directly violate the spirit of the Olympics.
The IOC that recommended erasing Dokdo from the Korean Peninsula Flag during the Pyeongchang Olympics is showing no concern regarding labeling Dokdo by Japan on the Tokyo Olympics.
This is not the first time that the IOC became a puppet of the Japanese government.
When the Tokyo Organising Committee of the Olympic Games announced that it will allow carrying the Rising Sun Flag on the Olympic arenas, the IOC didn’t stop this.
The IOC itself is not following its own Olympic Charter Rule 50(2) which prescribes that ‘No kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas’.
Accordingly, VANK is trying to gather international critical public opinion, telling the world that the IOC is being used as a spokesperson and a puppet of the Japanese government.
In order for this to happen, VANK has created Digital Posters in various languages and started a campaign to tell the world of this phenomenon through social media channels.
The poster shows the Rising Sun Flag, symbolizing Japan’s imperial ambitions, using the IOC as a puppet.
We condemn the conduct of Japanese government which is politicizing sports through the IOC.
The poster also introduces a Global Petition link that criticizes IOC’s conduct acting as a spokesperson of the Japanese government.
VANK has sent a letter of protest to Thomas Bach, the President of the IOC, calling on that the IOC should officially request the Japanese government to erase Dokdo from its maps as the IOC did in Pyeongchang.
If the IOC does not wish to spread the stigma of being a puppet of Japan in the international community, VANK demands that the IOC strongly oppress the Japanese government to remove the Dokdo mark from the Tokyo Olympic homepage in line with the Olympic spirit of pursuing peace and goodwill.
The IOC should prevent the Japanese government from politicizing sports, a symbol of world peace, and using the IOC as a leverage to inform the world of the claim that Dokdo belongs to Japan.
VANK believes that in order to stop IOC from being a puppet of Japanese government, people who are interested in this issue should actively tell the world of this issue.
VANK expects you to join the Global Petition and the Global Poster campaign.