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| ▲ NewJeans' Hanni speaks at the 2024 Korea Tourism Organization's honorary ambassador appointment ceremony held at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in central Seoul on July 11, 2024. (Yonhap) |
SEOUL, Oct. 10 (Yonhap) -- Hanni, a member of the popular girl group NewJeans, has announced her intention to attend the National Assembly's Environment and Labor Committee audit on October 15 as a witness, specifically addressing issues related to "bullying among idols and workplace harassment."
According to sources in the music industry on the 10th, Hanni made this announcement through NewJeans' communication app, Phoning, stating, "I've made my decision. I will attend the National Assembly alone." She assured fans, saying, "There's no need to worry. I'm doing this for myself and my fellow members. I've also decided to do this for the 'Bunnies' (NewJeans' fandom)."
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| ▲ This photo, provided by Hybe, shows NewJeans' Hanni singing "Aoi Sangoshou." (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap) |
Hanni further noted that neither her manager nor her agency, ADOR, were aware of her decision, adding, "I've thought a lot about this, but I believe this is the right course of action."
The controversy began when Hanni claimed that a manager from BELIFT LAB (a HYBE subsidiary) had told others to "ignore her," which she interpreted as evidence of ostracization within her agency. BELIFT LAB, however, countered these claims, stating that their internal investigation, including a review of CCTV footage and personnel interviews, found the allegations to be untrue.
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| ▲ K-pop girl group ILLIT is seen in this file photo taken July 21, 2024. (Yonhap) |
Amid the growing controversy, Hanni has been designated as a reference witness for the National Assembly audit, while Kim Ju-young, CEO of ADOR, is set to testify as a witness on the same day.
In a related development, NewJeans' fans announced plans to file complaints against Kim as well as ADOR’s Vice President Lee, HYBE's Chief Communication Officer (CCO) Park Tae-hee, and HYBE's PR head surnamed Cho, at the Yongsan Police Station in Seoul.
The fans allege that Kim and Lee have committed "breach of duty and obstruction of business" at ADOR, while Park CCO and Cho are accused of violating the Personal Information Protection Act, the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection, and the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act.
Fans further claim that Kim and Lee failed to take active measures against actions that disrupted NewJeans' activities, disregarded requests from members aimed at improving ADOR, and subsequently hindered the group's future music projects, thereby causing harm to the company. They also accuse Park and Cho of engaging in malicious theft and illegal disclosure of personal information.
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