Jeon Beom-seon, vocalist of the band Yangbandel, appears on the YouTube channel "Choi Wook's Maebulshow" on Aug. 13, where he revealed that he is a descendant of Yi In-jik (1862–1916), the author of Korea's first modern novel "Tears of Blood" and a designated pro-Japanese collaborator. [YouTube 'Choi Wook's Maebulshow']
Jeon Beom-seon, vocalist of the band Yangbandel, appears on the YouTube channel "Choi Wook's Maebulshow" on Aug. 13, where he revealed that he is a descendant of Yi In-jik (1862–1916), the author of Korea's first modern novel "Tears of Blood" and a designated pro-Japanese collaborator. [YouTube 'Choi Wook's Maebulshow']

Jeon Beom-seon, 35, vocalist of the band Yangbandel who has publicly acknowledged being descended from a prominent pro-Japanese collaborator, said he feels uncomfortable and sorry about being drawn into comparisons with actor Ha Young, 33, over her own controversy involving pro-Japanese ancestry. Jeon said Ha Young is not a "pro-Japanese collaborator" but rather a descendant of someone who was one-sixteenth Japanese, and that the criticism directed at her stems from the privileges her family received. He said he, by contrast, is descended from the Korean branch of the family that was abandoned and received no such benefits.

In a video published Wednesday on the YouTube channel SPNS TV, Jeon addressed the situation in which he has been cited alongside Ha Young amid the controversy surrounding her. "It's a bit uncomfortable, and I feel sorry," he said.

"It's not like I was trying to be morally upright in some grand way, but articles keep coming out saying 'Ha Young is like this, while Jeon Beom-seon is like that,'" he added.

Jeon also noted that Ha Young's great-grandfather, Ahn Sang-ho, had married a Japanese woman, saying, "One-sixteenth of her is Japanese," and adding, "It's also a bit absurd to call someone a pro-Japanese collaborator when they're a descendant of a Japanese person."

Ahn married a Japanese woman named Kawaguchi Isoko and started a family with her. In 1918, the Maeil Sinbo — a newspaper published by the Japanese Government-General of Korea — featured a family portrait of Ahn, his wife and their children, along with a profile of their lifestyle.

Jeon also compared the family histories of his own ancestor, Yi In-jik, and Ahn Sang-ho.

Yi In-jik, author of "Tears of Blood" — widely regarded as Korea's first modern novel — is considered one of the most prominent pro-Japanese collaborators of the colonial era. Jeon is a fifth-generation descendant on the maternal side of Yi and has spoken about his family history on multiple broadcasts.

"My grandfather reportedly abandoned a Korean woman and remarried a Japanese woman," Jeon said. "I am a descendant of that abandoned Korean branch of the family. I don't know what things would have been like if I had been descended from the Japanese woman instead."

Jeon has previously drawn a line against the idea that his family benefited economically from Yi In-jik's pro-Japanese activities, maintaining that he personally received no material advantages as a descendant of a collaborator.

When it came to why the criticism of Ha Young had been comparatively more intense, he pointed to her family background.

After it was noted that Ha Young had introduced herself on a broadcast as coming from "a family of doctors for four generations," Jeon said, "Because there are benefits like that, she gets criticized far more."

However, he also said Ha Young may not have been fully aware of her ancestor's past.

"She probably grew up hearing from her family that her grandfather was a remarkable person," Jeon said. "I was able to look at my own grandfather in an objective historical context because I studied history, but in Ha Young's case, since she didn't major in history, I think she made those remarks without a good understanding of the social context."

Meanwhile, Ha Young appeared on KBS2's "Okdapbang's Problem Children" on Aug. 7, where she revealed her family's four-generation medical legacy, saying, "My great-grandfather studied medicine in Japan, opened the first Western-style clinic in Hanyang, and treated Emperor Gojong."

After the broadcast, it emerged that her great-grandfather was the late Ahn Sang-ho, prompting renewed scrutiny of his pro-Japanese activities during the Japanese colonial period. Criticism mounted over Ha Young's repeated and proud references to her great-grandfather in various public settings. She ultimately posted a handwritten apology, saying she had been "ignorant."


yeonjoo7@heraldcorp.com