Ha Young reverses stance on birthday entry.. Great-grandfather's pro-Japanese activities confirmed: "Verified as member of the Daejeong Friendship Association"[Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.

Actor Ha Young ultimately acknowledged her great-grandfather, physician Ahn Sang-ho's, pro-Japanese activities during the Japanese colonial period on her birthday.

Ha Young's agency, Vistars Entertainment, issued an official statement on the 11th: "Further verification confirmed that records exist showing our great-grandfather, Mr. Ahn Sang-ho, was listed as a member of the Daejeong Friendship Association in 1916. We sincerely apologize for causing confusion by hastily responding 'baseless' without sufficient verification."

The agency added: "Ha Young recently mentioned her family's four-generation medical legacy while answering questions during a broadcast program appearance. The actor herself is deeply troubled by the unintended controversy that arose from this."

It further stated: "Through this incident, we have deeply realized how crucial careful verification must be when conveying historical facts and an individual's biography to the public."

Ha Young appeared on KBS 2TV's variety program 'Problem Children Are Here' broadcast on the 7th, emphasizing her family's four-generation medical lineage. She stated: "My great-grandfather was among the first to establish Western medicine in Hanyang. After studying medicine in Japan, he opened Korea's first Yang (Rep.) clinic in Hanyang and treated patients at Ko Jong (황제)."

Subsequently, online discussions emerged claiming that the great-grandfather mentioned by Ha Young was physician Ahn Sang-ho. Ahn graduated from Tokyo Zaisei Medical School in Japan in 1902 and became the first Korean to obtain a Japanese medical license. However, he has simultaneously faced suspicions of pro-Japanese activities during the colonial period.

On December 10, 1918, Ahn Sang-ho stated through Maeil Sinbo, an institutional investor-backed newspaper: "I am like a Japanese person; I wear Japanese clothing and my wife is Japanese. Our family's rules and dietary habits are entirely Japanese-style. Unlike Koreans, we do not even own a single traditional Korean robe."

As the controversy spread, Ha Young's agency stated on the 10th: "While confirming that Ha Young's great-grandfather is indeed Ahn Sang-ho, they drew a line by stating there are 'parts inconsistent with facts' regarding his pro-Japanese activities."

However, on the following day, the 11th, the agency reversed its previous position and apologized: "Further verification confirmed that records exist showing our great-grandfather, Mr. Ahn Sang-ho, was listed as a member of the Daejeong Friendship Association in 1916." This date coincided with Ha Young's birthday.

As a result, Ha Young appears unable to smile on either the eve or the day of her birthday due to suspicions surrounding her great-grandfather's pro-Japanese activities. Notably, on the 14th—the day before Liberation Day—Ha Young is scheduled to participate in a roundtable interview commemorating the release of Netflix's series 'Such Ridiculous Love,' which she has been actively promoting. Public attention is now focused on what Ha Young will say during the interview, given that her birthday week has been overshadowed by the 'ancestor pro-Japanese collaborator' controversy.

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*This content was translated by AI.