SEOUL, Oct. 17 (Korea Bizwire) — All members of K-pop supergroup BTS will go to the military to fulfill mandatory service, starting with the oldest member Jin, the band’s agency said Monday. “Jin will revoke his request to delay his conscription at the end of this month and will follow conscription procedures required by the [...]
SEOUL, Sept. 19 (Korea Bizwire) — Close to 60 percent of South Koreans agree with replacing BTS’ mandatory military service with other alternatives, a poll showed Sunday. Innertech Systems, a local polling agency, conducted a nationwide survey of 3,004 men and women above 18 years of age, of which 59.8 percent agreed that the K-pop [...]
SEOUL, Aug. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup has said there could be a way to allow members of K-pop supergroup BTS to perform overseas while carrying out their mandatory military service. Lee made the remark during a parliamentary defense committee meeting Monday, saying the issue can be handled without breaching the principle [...]
SEOUL, April 26 (Korea Bizwire) — With social distancing measures being lifted, young adults in South Korea are increasingly concerned about when to join the military. When college students were de facto banned from enjoying life on campus as lectures were given online, they lined up to carry out their mandatory military service. Now, however, [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 21 (Korea Bizwire) — Actor Park Bo-gum began his final military vacation Monday, effectively ending his active-duty service as he is not required to return to his base under an antivirus guideline, Navy officials said. Earlier in the day, Petty Officer Second Class Park left his Navy unit in the Gyeryongdae military headquarters, [...]
SEOUL, Feb. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — Actor Park Bo-gum, currently serving in South Korea’s Navy, has passed a state exam to become a licensed barber, military officials said Wednesday. Park, who has been fulfilling his mandatory military service since 2020, took the exam in December, the officials said. He is currently stationed in the Gyeryongdae [...]
SEOUL, Jan. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — Ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung again voiced skepticism Thursday over whether to grant special favors to K-pop superstar BTS for its mandatory military service. Lee of the liberal Democratic Party was asked at a campaign event about his views on the long-running issue of whether the septet should [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s defense ministry stressed the need Thursday for “prudence” in considering whether to allow active-duty military service exemptions for K-pop superstar BTS and other top artists, citing the nation’s shrinking population and other factors. Boo Seung-chan, the ministry’s spokesperson, made the remarks as the National Assembly has been [...]
SEOUL, June 24 (Korea Bizwire) — The top court on Thursday confirmed a not-guilty verdict for a conscientious objector who avoided his mandatory military service due to personal beliefs, in the first case of its kind. The Supreme Court upheld the appellate court’s acquittal of the man, a self-identifying “queer feminist,” indicted on charges of [...]
SEOUL, June 11 (Korea Bizwire) — A recent study has revealed that roughly 4 percent of military service members have had suicidal thoughts. A research team led by Prof. Lee Seung-yup from the Catholic University of Korea Eunpyeong St. Mary’s Hospital and Dr. Yoon Chang-gyo from the World Health Organization analysed the 2014 survey conducted [...]