South Korean school baseball team suspended over 'Tank Day' chants

South Korea's baseball authority suspended a school team from Thursday for chanting about a Starbucks Korea marketing fiasco that evoked a deadly 1980 crackdown on pro-democracy protests.

Players in the Paichai High School team were barred from tournament competition for six months after their taunts, which prompted a stoppage in play and a public apology by the school.

Starbucks Korea, with more than 2,000 stores nationwide, sparked uproar when it ran a "Tank Day" reusable cup promotion on May 18 -- the 46th anniversary of the Gwangju uprising in which 165 civilians were killed, according to the official toll.

It led to the resignation of Starbucks Korea's chief executive and the early closure of the chain's more than 2,000 stores last week for staff education sessions on the historical significance of the uprising.

Paichai High School players allegedly directed chants about the scandal towards their Gwangju Jeil High School opponents during a match on Monday.

"Let's go, let's go to Starbucks!" the Paichai players chanted, before one player shouted "Tank Day", online video footage of the incident showed.

A coach from Gwangju Jeil protested, prompting a brief stoppage in play. The game resumed, however, and Paichai went on to win 7-2.

Criticism mounted as images of the game spread online, prompting Paichai High School to issue a public apology. 

The Korea Baseball Softball Association (KBSA) subsequently handed the team a six-month suspension.

"We have decided to impose a six-month suspension on the Paichai baseball team, effective tomorrow," KBSA official Lee Jun-sung told reporters on Wednesday, citing violations including engaging in conduct that disrupts the order and spirit of the game.

With the penalty, Paichai forfeited its remaining games in the tournament and will be unable to compete in other national competitions during the suspension.

Official figures say 165 civilians were killed during the 1980 Gwangju crackdown, with 65 listed as missing and a further 376 later dying from injuries. 

Historians and activists have long argued that the true death toll was higher.

The uprising and its aftermath provided the backdrop to Nobel literature laureate Han Kang's novel "Human Acts".

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© Agence France-Presse