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〔Social〕
The ‘BURNING SUN’ GATE(scandal)
by Jeon Seung-jeong, Social Editor, tmdwjd4984@mju.ac.kr
①What is ‘Burning Sun Gate’?
On November 24th year of 2018, one man brought the light of his assault from the club burning sun through the media and alleged that he was beaten and abused by one of club burning sun`s director also by the policeman. That man is now known as Mr. Kim who opened the Gate of club ‘Burning Sun’ which Seungri was known as an executive director of. And Mr. Kim is still striving to reveal the truth of club burning sun and it`s corruptions. This outbreak of events was the beginning of ‘huge revealing’ of hidden corruptions and back scratching of South Korean society.
At first when Mr. Kim wrote his injustice though his SNS and media, people didn`t 100% believed his words. and at that time Mr. Lee who was CEO of the club explained there was some misunderstanding between the whistleblower Mr. Kim and the club and that club didn`t make any kinds of mistakes and the police didn`t assaulted Mr. Kim. And director Seungri apologized for Kim`s incident and there aren`t exist any fixation between the club and the police and he denied about the assault from the club. And soon there appeared 3 women who asserted that they were sexually abused by Mr. Kim who reported the club`s controversy.
After club denied all of their suspicions on Kim`s assault case, Kim released the CCTV footage of the Yeoksam constabulary and also asserted that there were many cases of hidden drug taking and sexual abusing happened inside the club burning sun. Club burning sun`s director including Seungri keep denied Mr. Kim`s words again but soon, new whistleblowers came out with their proof of evidence and burning sun started to face new criminal controversies which were free drug-taking, sexual assault, hidden cameras. and the most incredible point was top celebrities such as Seungri and Jung joon-young..etc were involved in club`s hidden happenings.
CCTV footage from Kim deeply affected society. Lots of victims started to summon up their courage and started to reveal their cases. The first controversy mired in was about police and club member`s fixation problem. Seungri, who was known as famous Korean idol group Big bang`s member gave an outright denial to all of his suspicions. He continuously asserted that he was not related to club burning sun and he just permitted that club use his name for public relations. However, as these controversies played out through media, people found out numerous illegal circumstances of the club burning sun.
Among lots of reports, one informant tipped off celebrity Jung joon-young phone`s kakaotalk messages through the state Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission and one lawyer publicized those messages on behalf of original whistleblower. The lawyer publicized how Seungri and Jung jun-young and many other Korean celebrities related to club burning sun`s hidden criminals. This became the second biggest issue of Korean society and more celebrities involved in that club started to reveal to the public.
When those messages became hot potatoes, YG and Yuri Holdings both commented that the reports are not true and that the messages are fabricated, and the police launch an investigation regarding the reports. And soon, Seungri completed his first round of police questioning from February 27 through 28. and YG Entertainment announced that Seungri will cancel all upcoming schedules. However, on March 4th, 4 days after both YG and Yuri Holdings denied Joon-young`s message contents, SBS revealed that the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission procured the original copy of the messages and they reported the person who reported the messages did not send them to the police as there are suspicions of connections with the police.
In short, whistle blower Kim`s first report made a butterfly effect and now this became one of South Korea`s biggest social-political issue and now this case is dubbed as the ‘Burning Sun Gate.’
②Celebrities with club Burning sun
The used-to-be happy place for partygoers in the Gangnam is now facing controversies, from prostitution to drug use, hidden camera, and more, involving top celebrities like Seungri, powerful figures, and police, among others etc. A bulk of the evidence stems from leaked chatrooms from Korean app KakaoTalk has overturned the case. The scandal revolves around a core chat that involved eight members: Seungri, Jung jun young, Choi Jonghoon, Yoo In Suk, Burning Sun employee named Mr. Kim, a relative of a girl group member, a former YG Entertainment employee and a friend of Jung. As these scandals became national news of Korean society, South Korean President Moon Jae-even commented on them, stating that "If the truth is not revealed, we cannot say it's a just society."
It’s shocking to see how much has been happening behind closed doors. Some arrests have been made already and for anyone following the case, it should be interesting to see what happens next.
Just like Seungri, Jung Joon Young is also involved in the Burning Sun Gate. He is now charged for filming and spreading hidden camera videos. The star quit from the entertainment industry following his removal from 2 Days & 1 Night, Salty Tour ..etc . Although Yong Junhyung is not part of the chatroom, he saw the illegally hidden camera footages sent to him by Jung Joon Young. He also has participated in inappropriate conversations. After that, he reportedly left Highlight.
Singer Choi Jong Hoon is also investigated for his involvement in the Burning Sun Gate for sharing the hidden, unlawful videos. He is also suspected of using his connections to cover a drunk driving case in 2016. He already announced his retirement from the industry and left his group F.T. Island.
Just like Yong Junhyung, CNBLUE's Lee Jong Hyun is not part of the chatroom after leaving it a few years ago. However, he still saw the footages sent by Jung Joon Young and participated in inappropriate conversations.