'Descendant of a Pro-Japanese Collaborator' Ha Young Is Busy... Must Visit the Independence Hall and Sorokdo Too [Star Issue]

*This content was translated by AI.View Original

Actress Ha Young finds herself at the center of daily criticism over controversies surrounding her ancestors' pro-Japanese collaboration, with sharp rebukes directed at her.

Lawyer Lee In-cheol, known as a descendant of an independence activist, appeared on MBN's "The Punch" broadcast on the 13th regarding the controversy over Ha Young's great-grandfather's pro-Japanese activities. He stated, "I have no intention of personally criticizing Ha Young. She did not commit pro-Japanese acts herself. However, there is one thing I must emphasize." He then mentioned the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai.

Continuing, he said, "It is located in a very small building in Shanghai. When I went there, I was moved to tears. I realized how much our independence activists suffered in such places. If you are moved to tears there, you are a patriot. Please visit the Independence Hall at least once on Liberation Day." His voice rose as his eyes welled up with tears.

Lawyer Lee In-cheol is known as the great-grandson of independence activist Song Gi-ju. He pointed out, "Descendants of pro-Japanese collaborators are receiving special benefits. They live comfortably and well. They are living extraordinarily well. Seeing this, can we say justice still exists? To restore justice, this issue must be addressed without fail." He highlighted the problem of reclaiming assets from pro-Japanese families.

Recently, Ha Young proudly revealed on KBS 2TV's "Problem Children in the Attic" and other programs that she comes from a family of doctors spanning four generations. She stated, "My great-grandfather was among the first to introduce Western medicine in Hanyang at that time. After studying medicine in Japan, he opened Korea's first clinic in Hanyang and treated patients."

However, after it became known that Ha Young's great-grandfather was a doctor named Ahn Sang-ho who was active during the Japanese colonial period, suspicions of pro-Japanese collaboration arose. Following this, controversies regarding her grandfather An Bu-ho (Prof.)'s employment at Sorokdo Hospital and other family members' suspected pro-Japanese activities have continued to surface.

Writer So Jae-won, the source material for the film "Wish," had previously publicly criticized Ha Young via personal SNS, stating, "Regarding her unbearably light boasting about her family, I wish to share this story cautiously and very carefully. The history of Sorokdo during the Japanese colonial period and in the Republic of Korea is one that can never be proudly claimed."

According to the 2005 National Human Rights Commission's "Survey on the Human Rights Situation of Hansen's Disease Patients," Sorokdo Hospital performed vasectomies on 1,191 Hansen's disease patients from 1949 to 1958 during the tenure of Kim Sang-tae (Director) (1948–1954). At that time, a policy was also implemented allowing only couples who had undergone vasectomies to cohabit.

At Sorokdo Hospital at that time, experiments were conducted by inserting needles into patients' chests to detect leprosy bacilli from bone marrow. These experiments caused extreme pain to patients; some reportedly died after their health deteriorated rapidly following the procedures. Even worse, patient corpses were used for anatomical practice without the consent of their families. Autopsies continued until the 1960s, forced isolation until the 1970s, and abortions and sterilizations until the 1980s.

In response to this, writer So Jae-won stated, "For ordinary people, medicine was a benevolent art that saved lives, but at Sorokdo, it became an art of killing." He added, "If you have ancestors whom you can be so proud and confident about, please visit Sorokdo. Confront the tragic history committed during the Japanese colonial period and by the Republic of Korea there! Confirm with your own eyes and ears how trivially your three-inch tongue has diminished such precious sacrifices and such unjust, grievous history!" His voice rose in emphasis.

As the pro-Japanese collaboration controversies surrounding herself and her family have not subsided, Ha Young expressed on her personal SNS, "The fact that I was unaware of this does not justify ignoring or treating lightly this history. I deeply accept this fault and sincerely apologize as a descendant. It is especially regrettable that my shortcomings caused controversy just before Liberation Day."

Meanwhile, on the 14th, the Institute for Joint Research on Japanese Colonial Rule released a statement titled "Position on Controversies Related to Ahn Sang-ho," stating, "Ahn Sang-ho (1874–1927) was a professional doctor who graduated from the Korean Empire's Official Japanese Language School and Tokyo Jai Hospital Medical School. However, it is an undeniable fact that behind his impressive resume lay pro-Japanese and pro-collaboration activities as follows."

The Institute for Joint Research on Japanese Colonial Rule argued, "The essence of this controversy does not lie in the fact that actress Ha Young herself is a 'descendant of a pro-Japanese collaborator,' but rather in the problem of 'lack of historical reflection and awareness' where she made statements without even minimal historical reflection on her ancestors' colonial collaboration history in the public sphere, causing pain to the public. A humble self-reflection must precede any attempt to glorify or uncritically consume ancestral faults without reflection."

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*This content was translated by AI.View Original