Yoo Hong-june, director general of the National Museum of Korea, said he will step down over a controversy involving the display of items from his personal collection and the failed vetting of a work by a pro-Japanese collaborator. The departure comes 15 months after he took the vice-ministerial post under the Lee Jae-myung administration.
In a statement released on the 21st, Yoo said he had "reached the conclusion that stepping down from the post is the right way to restore the museum's damaged honor." He added: "The deep trust the public has placed in the National Museum of Korea and the values built up by our museum staff collapsed in an instant because of my personal mistake. All the criticism that has followed is entirely my responsibility."
"I deeply apologize to the members of the public who have been disappointed and hurt by this, to the bereaved families of patriotic activists, and to the museum staff," Yoo said. "It was only 15 months, but being able to do the honorable work of protecting the value of our cultural heritage was the greatest blessing and honor of my life."
Referring to the exhibition "Our Table," which drew accusations that he had staged a "self-exhibition" of his own holdings, Yoo said he hoped "the significance of an exhibition that museum researchers prepared with sincerity over a long period will not be diminished." He said he would "not forget the efforts of the staff who have worked day and night for the museum's growth," and asked for continued interest so the museum can advance further.
Yoo is an art historian who became widely known for his bestselling series "My Exploration of Cultural Heritage," and he headed the Cultural Heritage Administration, now the Korea Heritage Service, from 2004 to 2008. He took the helm of the National Museum of Korea in July last year, but came under fire after it emerged belatedly that an artifact presented as the writing of a patriotic activist, later found to be the work of a pro-Japanese collaborator, came from his own collection.
Yoo bowed in apology at a parliamentary audit of the National Museum of Korea held by the National Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee on the 19th, but criticism continued from within and outside the cultural community that he should take responsibility for his handling of the matter.