Lee Hye-seong says video on ancestors' guilt did not defend pro-Japanese acts

Broadcaster Lee Hye-seong (이혜성) said on social media on 21 October that she had never defended pro-Japanese acts, after remarks in a YouTube book-review video were read as a comment on actress Ha Young (하영). Chosun Ilbo, citing OSEN, reported that she wrote she had not made a statement of conviction. Newsis reported that she said the video's point was that all people are not free from historical responsibility and that one cannot turn away from ancestors' wrongs even if one did not commit them. [ 4 , 8 ]

The video was released on 20 October on the channel "Lee Hye-seong's 1% Book Club" and introduced Michael Sandel's book on justice (정의란 무엇인가). Lee said that a public figure's great-grandfather's pro-Japanese acts during the colonial period had recently come to light, and that some people reacted with anger while others urged caution. She said there is no room for disagreement over the clear wrongs of historical perpetrators, then asked whether people must atone for their ancestors' sins and whether a state should apologise for past wrongs. She said one cannot selectively inherit only the proud parts of history. Newsis and Seoul Economic Daily also quoted her as saying that belonging comes with responsibility. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 7 ]

Newsis and Seoul Economic Daily noted that Lee did not name anyone in the video. Maeil Business said the remark appeared to refer to the controversy over Ha Young's great-grandfather, while OSEN, in Chosun Ilbo, said she cited the case directly. Newsis reported that the question about atoning for ancestors' sins was the book's counterposition, and that the sentence was separated from its context and spread as if it were her personal view. It said she explained that she had shared the view of philosopher Alasdair MacIntyre, who called turning away from past wrongs moral shallowness. OSEN reported that she explained quickly after her quotation was read as a statement of conviction. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 6 , 7 , 8 ]

Ha Young said on the KBS2 programme Oktapbang-ui Munjaedeul (옥탑방의 문제아들) that her great-grandfather opened a Western-style clinic in Hanyang and treated Gojong. Seoul Shinmun gave the broadcast date as 7 August. Her great-grandfather was then identified as Ahn Sang-ho, and records such as his name on a 1916 Daejeong Chinmokhoe council list drew attention, Maeil Business reported. It said Ha Young's side first denied the allegations, then changed its position after checking materials and apologised in a handwritten letter. [ 1 , 5 ]

Chosun Ilbo, citing OSEN, quoted the letter as promising a more careful attitude toward history. It reported that promotion and interviews for the Netflix series Ireon Yeotgateun Sarang (이런 엿같은 사랑) were cancelled and that the SBS drama Seungsan Itseumnida (승산 있습니다), which she led, was left out of next year's first-half lineup, with its release postponed indefinitely. Maeil Business reported that she left seasons 2 and 3 of the Netflix series Jungjeung Oesang Center (중증외상센터). [ 1 , 2 ]

Seoul Shinmun separately reported that Ono Yasuteru, an associate professor at Kyushu University, said in an Asahi Shimbun interview that in Korea the term pro-Japanese does not mean someone who likes Japan but refers to a traitor to the country. It said some Japanese media called the criticism of descendants modern-day guilt by association. It also reported that the Minjok Munje Yeonguso (민족문제연구소) confirmed Ahn's pro-Japanese acts but opposed guilt-by-association blame on Ha Young. [ 5 ]