Yoo Hong-jun, director of the National Museum of Korea, bowed his head in apology during a National Assembly hearing on 19 October over an exhibition error involving his own collection. The dispute concerned a piece of handwriting that had been incorrectly displayed as the work of an independence activist, when it was in fact the writing of a pro-Japanese figure. Yoo attributed the mistake to insufficient verification, saying it had caused great concern to the public and history.

Appearing before the Assembly's Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, Yoo said the deep trust the public had placed in the museum, and the values built by its staff, had been shattered in an instant by his significant oversight. He acknowledged that the verification error had inflicted deep wounds on the honour of the independence movement and on the families of the martyrs, and extended his apologies to them and to museum staff who faced national criticism over the affair.

Yoo also admitted a further lapse: when the museum withdrew the exhibit and announced the verification results, he had failed to disclose that the disputed artifact came from his personal collection. He said that not being able to openly acknowledge the mistake as an art historian was a significant error on his part.

The controversy touches a raw nerve in South Korean public life, where the legacy of Japanese colonial rule and the honoured status of independence activists remain matters of intense sensitivity. The museum's handling of objects tied to that history faces especially close scrutiny, and the hearing signalled that lawmakers expect tighter verification standards for items drawn from directors' own collections.