South Korean Buddhists protest against Die Another Day

19-Dec-2002 • Die Another Day

First North Korea, then South Korea, then North Korea again, and now South Korean Buddhists are adding to the protest about "Die Another Day":

South Korea`s largest Buddhist order protested the latest James Bond movie as profaning the ancient religion and inciting inter-Korean conflict.

The Jogye order issued a statement on Tuesday, criticizing "Die Another Day" which includes a scene of Bond making love to Jinx in a Buddhist temple.

"This is a slight to Buddhism, which has purified the culture and mind of mankind for 2,700 years," the statement said.

The order said the film was "distorting warming ties between South and North Korea and inciting conflict."

Buddhism is the biggest religion in South Korea, with about 12 million followers among the 46 million people.

North Korea has also criticized the movie as slandering the communist state and said it proves that the United States is an "empire of evil."

Citing similar reasons, some ordinary South Koreans have called for a boycott of the movie.

The Koreas were divided in 1945. The United States keeps 37,000 troops in South Korea in a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.