Actor Ha Young. [Newsis]
Actor Ha Young. [Newsis]

Actor Ha Young has issued a handwritten apology over controversy surrounding the pro-Japanese colonial record of her late great-grandfather, Ahn Sang-ho.

On Wednesday, Ha posted a handwritten letter on her social media, saying she had known only fragments of her great-grandfather's life through stories passed down by family. "Shamefully, in that state of ignorance, I had brought up my great-grandfather in various settings as though I were boasting about my family," she wrote.

She said the controversy prompted her to research the matter herself, through which she learned of her great-grandfather's pro-Japanese activities. "I reflect on how lightly I spoke of my family history without properly understanding our country's painful history under Japanese colonial rule," she said.

Ha also addressed her agency's initial denial of the allegations. "When the controversy first arose, my agency put out a statement calling it groundless — at a time when I myself did not have an accurate grasp of the facts," she said. "I consider it my own shortcoming that an incorrect position was conveyed without sufficient verification. I sincerely apologize for the greater confusion and hurt this caused."

"I do not believe that my ignorance can serve as any excuse to dismiss or take lightly that history," she added. "I accept those wrongs with gravity and sincerely apologize as a descendant." She also expressed particular remorse over the timing, noting that the incident occurred just ahead of Liberation Day on Saturday.

She went on to say she would take the matter deeply to heart. "I will look carefully into my family's history and that era, and I will approach history with a far more careful attitude going forward. I will also study our history in depth and do my utmost to honor, with genuine respect, the independence patriots and all those who devoted themselves to Korea's liberation and well-being. I will put this into practice through actions, not just words," she wrote.

Earlier, Ha had drawn public attention by saying on broadcasts that her great-grandfather Ahn Sang-ho was the first Western-trained physician to open a clinic in Hanyang and that her family had produced doctors across four generations.

Online speculation then emerged that the great-grandfather in question was the same Ahn Sang-ho who faces pro-Japanese collaboration allegations. Ha's agency initially denied the claims as groundless, but after records surfaced showing Ahn's name on a 1916 membership list of the Daejeong Chinmokoe, a pro-Japanese social organization, the agency issued its own apology, saying it had "answered hastily with 'groundless' without sufficient verification, causing confusion."


choigo@heraldcorp.com