I am a 53 year old Italian woman. For a few years I have been following a boy band of amazing South Korean boys, BTS, even though I am not really a fan. Now I am following the media storm that is shaking up the South Korean music industry to its foundations. SUGA of BTS, who has spoken at the White House and the UN and has been awarded the South Korean Order of Cultural Merit, has been reported for drunk driving. He will soon have to report to the local police station for questioning. I am shocked that someone are demanding that he submits to the “photo line”. The “photo line” is a pillory they have in Korea, like it existed in Europe until about three hundred years ago. When a celebrity is investigated for some reason, upon leaving the police station he has to stand still before the door, facing a line of photographers taking pictures of him, like at the zoo. He also has to repeatedly bow and apologize (SUGA of BTS has already published a letter of apology). It is the same pillory that the co-star of the Oscar-winning film “Parasite”, Lee Sun-kyun, was subjected to, who then took his own life (the accusation was occasional use of soft drugs). Subsequently, the photos of the pillory are re-proposed in the media even years later.

The aim of this petition is to spare SUGA of BTS from the pillory. I do not want to comment on the habits and customs of another people, but the pillory is a public shame that belongs to the Middle Ages and should not be applied to anyone, in a Country that prides itself on respecting human rights.

Photo:

Author: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Ljatania

Title: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:SUGA_of_BTS_-_Agust_D_Tour_2023_-_UBS_Belmont_Arena_April_27,_2023_Photo_1.jpg#filelinks

License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode