Actress Ha Young Apologizes After Boasting 'Four-Generation Doctor Family' Sparks Pro-Japanese Controversy

South Korean actress Ha Young (하영) debuted in 2019 in the KBS 2TV drama Doctor Prisoner. She has since appeared in works such as Extraordinary Attorney Woo, The Good Detective 2, and Doona!. Last year, she gained recognition for her standout performance as Cheon Jang-mi, Baek Kang-hyuk's capable assistant nicknamed "Gangster," in the Netflix series Critical X. She then played Choi Ga-yoon, the fiancée of lead actor Kim Mu-yeol, in Punch Education. Recently, she took on her first leading role in the new drama My Sweet Mobster.

To promote her new drama, Ha Young has been making frequent appearances on various variety shows, openly sharing her family background. She revealed that she comes from a "four-generation doctor family," which unexpectedly embroiled her in a pro-Japanese controversy surrounding her great-grandfather, Ahn Sang-ho. Her agency initially denied the claims yesterday (the 10th), stating that the online rumors were "groundless." However, just one day later, they made an abrupt U-turn, admitting that her great-grandfather's name did appear on the list of councilors for the "Taisho Chinmokhoe," a pro-Japanese organization during the Japanese colonial period. This revelation quickly ignited heated discussion across Korean online communities.

The controversy began when Ha Young appeared on KBS 2TV's variety show Problem Child in House. During the episode broadcast on the 7th, she first disclosed her family's four-generation medical history. She mentioned that her great-grandfather "opened the first Western hospital in Hanyang and also treated Emperor Gojong," which piqued the curiosity of netizens.

Following the broadcast, some online users speculated that Ha Young's great-grandfather was the modern physician Ahn Sang-ho. Ahn Sang-ho had studied Western medicine in Japan, returned to Korea to establish a Western-style hospital, and participated in royal medical care, making him a significant figure in Korea's modern medical history. It is said that when Emperor Gojong fell ill in 1919, Ahn Sang-ho treated him alongside Japanese physicians.

However, as Ahn Sang-ho's identity was uncovered, past controversies surrounding his alleged pro-Japanese activities resurfaced. Reports from the Maeil Sinbo in 1918 mentioned Ahn Sang-ho marrying a Japanese woman and adopting a Japanese lifestyle. After these details came to light, questions about his pro-Japanese leanings began to circulate online.

Furthermore, Ahn Sang-ho was also accused of being a member of the "Taisho Chinmokhoe," an economic organization during the Japanese colonial period. This group was believed to consist of economic figures, with prominent collaborators like Lee Wan-yong and Song Byeong-jun also participating. Additional records indicate that Ahn Sang-ho, in an interview with a newspaper affiliated with the Joseon Governor-General's Office, discussed his lifestyle and parenting methods, advocating for practices that were reportedly almost indistinguishable from those of the Japanese, further fueling the controversy.

In response to public scrutiny, Ha Young's agency, BISTUS Entertainment, initially denied the claims yesterday (the 10th), emphasizing that the "pro-Japanese collaborator" rumors circulating online were untrue. However, as more historical documents were unearthed and the situation escalated, the agency issued another statement this morning, making a complete reversal in their stance.

The company stated that after verification, they found "Mr. Ahn Sang-ho's name indeed appeared on the 1916 list of Taisho Chinmokhoe councilors." They then offered a sincere apology to the public for their previous hasty response, which claimed the allegations were "groundless" without sufficient investigation, causing confusion.

The agency also explained that Ha Young had mentioned her family's four-generation medical background during a recent program, which unexpectedly sparked the controversy. The company revealed that Ha Young herself was "deeply distressed" by the situation. They added that through this incident, she profoundly realized the necessity for more rigorous and thorough verification when conveying historical facts and personal biographies to the public, and vowed to approach such matters with greater caution and humility in the future.

However, the agency's apology did not quell the controversy; instead, it drew more criticism. Korean netizens flooded comment sections with remarks such as, "Don't show up anymore, just immigrate to Japan," "If you're going to boast about a prestigious family, at least it should be one with independence activists, national heroes, or even Nobel laureates. Don't think just because your family made some money back then, you can spout nonsense about being a prestigious family," "Then retire from acting," "It seems she really has nothing to boast about herself," "This isn't just boasting about family background; it's because they lived well since the Japanese colonial period = pro-Japanese traitors, that's why this is happening," "The most chilling part is that for that family, this is still a proud past," "She boasted about it because she thought it was a 'truly proud, completely unproblematic ancestor,' which makes it even more detestable," "I really don't want to see her again," "She was proudly showing off everywhere, but then when the truth was dug up, she acts all innocent, it's truly baffling," "Honestly, if you find your past shameful, shouldn't you try to make amends? A doctor family that loves to boast about their background, yet we've never heard of any medical public service from them," "Could it be that she's trying to cover up her lack of talent by hyping up her family background?" and "She doesn't even know shame, yet she packages her family as an elite lineage and proudly talked about it multiple times on TV."

South Korean writer Seo Jae-won (서재원) also posted on social media on the 10th, expressing anger over the allegations of Ha Young's great-grandfather's pro-Japanese actions. He stated bluntly, "It has now become an era where even ancestors with pro-Japanese actions can be boasted about. I've lived this long, and I'm still seeing people boast about pro-Japanese ancestors... This must be because our history failed to thoroughly settle accounts with pro-Japanese collaborators." Seo Jae-won further questioned whether, if history had truly settled accounts with pro-Japanese actions, "would future generations still be able to speak so proudly about these matters?"

He even used strong sarcasm, saying, "Perhaps we will have to teach our children that the law of success and honor is to betray one's country in a dirty way." He then continued with a sarcastic "words to my son": "Son, if one day we lose our country, you must become a traitor! Block and persecute those who want to reclaim the country with guns and knives, and accumulate wealth that way!"

Seo Jae-won then shifted his tone, asking, "Son, do you really want to see this kind of history that I've described repeat itself? Do you want to see the descendants of pro-Japanese collaborators boast about their pro-Japanese family for generations?" He emphasized that if history is not to repeat itself, "we must change now." He called for creating a society where the descendants of pro-Japanese collaborators feel ashamed, while the descendants of independence activists can hold their heads high.

Finally, Seo Jae-won urged that only by doing so can they stand clear before history, the great independence activists, and their descendants. He stressed the importance of setting a historical precedent for "settling accounts with acts of treason," so that future generations understand that taking pride in betraying one's country is not something to boast about, but rather something to be ashamed of.