Anti-Chinese sentiment in South Korea reignited by violent incidents, stereotypes

Just hours later, a photo of the suspect, an ethnic Korean Chinese man named Cha Cheol-nam, dominated the front pages of major Korean news websites, as police issued a nationwide search for his capture.

That afternoon, Cha allegedly stabbed a woman in her 60s – the owner of a convenience store he often visited – and fled. When officers traced him back to his one-room flat, they discovered a severely decomposed body believed to have been dead for several days.

Cha had also stabbed a man in his 70s about two kilometres from the store, and police later discovered another body near his residence. Police arrested him just an hour after starting the open search. Between Sunday and Monday, three knife-related incidents involving Chinese nationals occurred across southern Gyeonggi Province.

Two triggered a “Code Zero” alert – the police’s highest-level emergency response. The incidents quickly reignited a wave of anti-Chinese sentiment online and reinforced long-standing stereotypes about ethnic Korean Chinese, known as Joseonjok.