Korean fans of K-pop girl group (G)I-DLE have issued a statement regarding member Soojin, 22, who has been accused by a former classmate of bullying and school violence. Earlier, the older sister of Soojin’s classmate in middle school (equivalent to junior high school in the Philippines) posted online to accuse the singer.
She said Soojin called her younger sister and her friend to the bathroom and made them slap each other and claimed Soojin slapped her younger sister, took her money and bullied her.
Soojin and her classmate, who were both born in 1998, attended the Waw Middle School in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi Province in South Korea.
Cube Entertainment, (G)I-DLE’s agency, denied the accusation of school violence but confirmed that the author of the post was, indeed, the older sister of Soojin’s classmate. The older sister heard Soojin and her young sister arguing over the phone that led to another argument between the older sister and Soojin on the phone.
“However, it has been confirmed that the school violence and others as claimed by the author are not true at all,” the agency said.
After this, Soojin took to the U CUBE app to explain her side, saying, “First, I have never assaulted my friend. Second, I have never ridden a motorcycle. Third, I have never sent a group text message to bully someone. Fourth, I did not steal any school uniform or other belongings. Fifth, I never had a conversation with actress Seo Shin-ae in school,” Soojin wrote.
Soojin said she wore clothes that did not suit her age and smoked a few cigarettes out of curiosity but she has never smoked since then.
She said her classmate broke her promise that led to the argument, adding, “It was not just once or twice and I remember being upset about it. I did not know she was trying to keep me away. That is why I'm so embarrassed but I remember cursing at her . The older sister answered her phone and she scolded me. I said sorry to her sister and hung up. After that, we became completely separated and had bad feelings for each other.”
(G)I-DLE’s Korean fan community on the DC Inside Gallery issued a statement on Feb. 23.
"School violence cannot be justified for any reason,” the fans stated, adding that Soojin should “clarify the controversy and take full responsibility for the situation."
The fan gallery declared, “Unless the controversy is resolved clearly, we cannot support Seo Soojin.”
“We want the normal activities of all the rest of the members who are not parties in the controversy and we hope that the reputation of group will no longer be damaged. In addition to protecting other members, we ask Cube Entertainment to quickly identify facts, post a statement and follow up appropriately,” they said.
In addition, (G)I-DLE fan gallery is asking fans who curse and use abusive behavior toward the person who accused Soojin to stop their actions.