A Seoul-based civil rights group announced plans to file a lawsuit against the Korean entertainment agency JYP for allegedly violating the human rights of one girl group member.
On Monday, The Center for Multicultural Korea (CMCK) announced it was investigating a record label for "coercing a Taiwanese starlet to apologize" and "infringing [on the] human rights of its artists." The CMCK's actions came after a week of criticism aimed at JYP Entertainment after anti-Taiwanese-independent activists declared that Tzuyu's act of waving a Taiwanese flag on a Korean television shower made her out to be an anti-China, pro-independence supporter.
The CMCK said that there "is nothing wrong with [her] behavior of waving two flags: The Korean flag, respecting the country of her agency, and a flag of Taiwan [the Republic of China], her place of birth."
According to the CMCK, JYP's declaration that Tzuyu and the company itself support a single Chinese government policy, along with a video released by the agency showing Tzuyu apologizing for her actions, were signs of coercion by JYP Entertainment towards Tzuyu, a 16-year-old employee.
Tzuyu's actions garnered international attention following a ripple affect that resulted in the TWICE member becoming a highly discussed topic in Taiwan and China ahead of the former's recent presidential election. According to the President-elect of Taiwan, it appears that Tzuyu was forced to film the video apology.
The CMCK says it plans to file a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK), reports The K-Pop Herald. Following the investigation by the NHRCK, the CMCK will consider filing a lawsuit against JYP Entertainment.
The civil rights group also will take the opportunity as a chance to look into the overall treatment of underage entertainers and trainees by entertainment agencies.
"We would like to take a more comprehensive approach, by looking further into the cases of entertainment agencies exploiting underage trainees."
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Tamar Herman is a multi-media journalist and the co-founder of KultScene. She is a freelance writer and copy editor, and has written for MTV Iggy, Noisey, and Paste Magazine.
