Right-leaning groups, politicians raise issue against six-month ban on high school team that made insensitive comments during game Principal Lee Gyu-yeon of Gwangju Jeil High School submits a formal complaint to the Korea Baseball Softball Association in Seoul on Tuesday, concerning the Pai Chai High School players mocking the May 18, 1980, Gwangju Democratic Uprising during a recent match. (Yonhap) A right-leaning civic group on Friday filed a criminal complaint against the amateur baseball federation, saying its decision to ban Pai Chai High School's baseball team from national tournaments for six months was excessive.The high school team sparked controversy last month when some of its players shouted a chant at the opposing team from Gwangju Jeil High School. The chant appeared to mock the May 18, 1980, protests and massacre known today as the Gwangju Democratic Uprising, during which then-Gen. Chun Doo-hwan ordered a bloody crackdown on the civilian protests."(Pai Chai) Players are underage, and it is a stretch to say the chants were malicious in nature. ... The suspension is unilateral, unfair and irrational as it is applied to even the senior players and hinders their future careers," the People's Welfare Countermeasure Committee said in its complaint filed against the Korea Baseball Softball Association.Another right-leaning group, Freedom Korea National Defense Corps, said it will file similar complaints with the police later in the day. Former Seoul council member Kim Hye-ji of the main opposition People Power Party said that she would file a complaint as well.Excessive punishment?The People Power Party and many within the conservative bloc agree that the high schoolers' comments had crossed the line. At least hundreds of citizens were killed and thousands injured during the pro-democracy protests in 1980, which remains one of the worst tragedies in modern Korean history.But conservative lawmakers have said that the six-month ban is too much. "The essence of this incident is that children mimicked adults' insults. ... As much as we need to tell (students) off, we must also look back at ourselves," said Yang Hyang-ja, a member of the People Power Party's supreme council.She acknowledged that the players' comments were clearly wrong, but urged the federation to reconsider the punishment.Gwangju Jeil High School urged a thorough investigation and punishment regarding the incident, while stressing that its biggest goal was not to see the players punished.Pai Chai school officials, players and parents’ groups offered to visit the Gwangju school to offer an apology, but Gwangju Jeil said the students need to recover from shock and prepare for their exams for now.Several members of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea defended the amateur baseball federation's decision, saying mocking the Gwangju Uprising is a form of discrimination and violence."Many Gwangju citizens were sacrificed in the hands of the state authority during the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Uprising, and Gwangju Jeil High School was right in the middle (of the incident)," said Rep. Hwang Myong-sun, a member of the Democratic Party's supreme council."The People Power Party is defending mockery of such sad history, claiming freedom of expression. This is yet another form of mockery and violence, and is not something the main opposition should be doing."