Chinese ambassador to S. Korea calls for resisting false information, promoting ties

SEOUL, May 23 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Dai Bing on Friday called on people from all sectors in South Korea to resist false information, discrimination and inflammatory rhetoric, and to promote mutual understanding and friendship between the Chinese and South Korean people.

In a social media post, Dai expressed appreciation for South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's criticism of certain local media outlets for fabricating China-related stories and stirring up anti-China sentiment.

His remarks came after Seoul Economic TV issued a public apology over a report claiming that Chinese nationals had massively purchased apartments in Seoul's Gangnam district.

Lee described the report as "deliberately fabricated fake news" after official verification.

Dai said some South Korean media outlets, driven by the pursuit of attention, online visibility or political motives, had repeatedly fabricated and spread false information about China, deliberately smearing the image of China and Chinese nationals in South Korea and undermining the improvement of bilateral relations.

"Freedom of speech is not freedom to spread rumors," Dai wrote, calling on relevant media outlets to uphold journalistic ethics, conduct China-related reporting based on facts, and do more to enhance mutual understanding, trust and friendship between the Chinese and South Korean people.

According to local media reports, Seoul Economic TV has removed the original report and released revised content based on official government statistics.