Japanese claims to Dokdo being spread through fake Instagram accounts of Korean professor

A local professor known for his years-long promotion of Dokdo said Monday that social media accounts attempting to impersonate him have been spreading false claims related to the South Korean islets.

Seo Kyung-duk, a professor of liberal arts at Sungshin Women's University, shared a screenshot of a fake Instagram account that says, "I love Japan (heart). Takeshima is Japanese territory and rising-sun flag is beautiful flag." Takeshima is what Japan calls Dokdo.

"Some users on the internet have mistaken the fake accounts as mine and sent me direct messages like, 'I didn't know you would turn like this,' 'I'm very disappointed in you,' which confused me," he said.

Seo is an academic and activist who has spoken out on issues that he believes are against the nation's interests. One of these issues is Japan's repeated claim to the South Korean Dokdo islets, and its use of the controversial "Rising Sun" flag, formerly the flag of the Japanese Empire's military.

Seo added that the past 20 years of promoting Dokdo have subjected him consistently to threats, even against his family. He suspected Japan's far right to be behind the fake accounts, and said "such foolish actions do not make Dokdo Japanese territory."

Dokdo, located on the East Sea, is some 87.4 kilometers southeast of the South Korean island county of Ulleung and 157 kilometers northwest of Japan’s Okinoshima. It is under the control of South Korea, with the Dokdo Security Police under Gyeongguk Provincial Police Agency dispatched there, but Japan's continued stance is it belongs to the town of Okinoshima, Shimane prefecture.

The South Korean government's basic stance is that Dokdo is indisputably its territory.