'Attempted Assassination' Independence Activist Executed; Ha Young's Great-Grandfather Was the Doctor Who Saved 'Traitor of the World' Lee Wan-yong [Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.

It has been confirmed that actor Ha Young (33, real name Ahn Ha-young)'s great-grandfather, Ahn Sang-ho, was a member of the pro-Japanese organization where 'Traitor of the World' Lee Wan-yong was active.

Records show that Ahn Sang-ho participated as a councilor when the Daejeong Friendship Association was established in November 1916. This association was founded by Min Young-gi, a pro-Japanese collaborator and vice president of the Oriental Development Company, who served as its chairman. Many prominent pro-Japanese collaborators of the time, including Lee Wan-yong, Jo Jung-eung, Song Byung-jun, and Lee Yun-yong, were members.

Furthermore, records indicate that Ahn Sang-ho was one of the doctors who saved Lee Wan-yong. According to a paper published in Volume 32 of the National Institute of Korean History's Journal of Historical Studies, Lee Wan-yong was attacked with a dagger to his shoulder and abdomen by independence activist Lee Jae-myung at Seoul Myeong-dong Cathedral on December 22, 1909.

However, the assassination attempt failed. Lee Wan-yong survived despite being stabbed three times because he underwent Korea's first thoracic surgery. Ahn Sang-ho's name is included among this medical team. Records state that Ahn Sang-ho, along with doctors from Haseong Hospital, the president of Andong Hospital, the director and senior vice-director of Daehan Hospital, and former physician Park Jong-hwan, participated in the treatment that saved Lee Wan-yong's life.

At that time, Dr. Lee Jae-myung, arrested for the assassination attempt, was sentenced to death and died for his country on September 30 of the following year.

While treating Lee Wan-yong as a doctor does not necessarily signify pro-Japanese activities, it is bitterly ironic that Ahn Sang-ho, unlike saving Lee Wan-yong, is the figure accused of Ko Jong (황제) poisoning.

Earlier, in 2004, Busan University of Foreign Studies Japanese Department's Kim Mun-gil (Prof.) released a document claiming that Princess Deokhye, the only daughter of Emperor Gojong, asserted that the official cause of Emperor Gojong's death was not cerebral hemorrhage but 'poisoning by the emperor's personal physician.' According to this document, Emperor Gojong was poisoned on January 21, 1919, after drinking black tea laced with arsenic prepared by former physician Ahn Sang-ho, who was instigated by the Governor-General's Office. However, historians have evaluated that it is difficult to believe Princess Deokhye, who was only seven years old in 1919 when Emperor Gojong died, knew precisely about the poisoning and suggest she likely told her Japanese friend a rumor of poisoning that was widely circulating at the time.

Ahn Sang-ho was also featured in an article on December 10, 1918, in the daily newspaper Maeil Sinbo, which is a Jo Seon (총독) institutional investor publication. The article cited him as an example for 'The Home of Assimilation between Japan and Korea' (의 가정), meaning 'living like Japanese people and assimilating is exemplary.'

Ahn Sang-ho, who married a Japanese wife and established a family, proudly stated: "I have never worn Korean clothes once, nor can I eat even a little spicy food," and "My children only speak Japanese at home. They cannot speak Korean at all. We are raising them as a complete Japanese household. Only Japanese is used within the house, and there is no interaction with Koreans." The concept of 'Naisen Ittai' (Japan and Korea as one body) was the core pro-Japanese logic used by collaborators during the Japanese colonial period to justify their treasonous acts.

Meanwhile, Ha Young's agency, Vistars Entertainment, issued a statement on the 11th regarding the controversy over her great-grandfather Ahn Sang-ho: "We would like to clarify the part we previously stated was 'unfounded.' Upon further verification, we confirmed that records actually exist showing Ahn Sang-ho's name listed as a councilor of the Daejeong Friendship Association in 1916," thereby reversing their previous position.

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*This content was translated by AI.