H.K. citizens urge K-pop stars to boycott music fest

A large community of Hong Kong citizens has announced it will boycott the upcoming Hong Kong Dome Festival on July 1 and publicly requested that the acts scheduled to perform at the show ― including K-pop stars BoA, SHINee, f(x), Super Junior-M’s Henry and EXO ― withdraw from the event.

Pro-democracy protesters argue that the festival is a government ploy to discourage young people from participating in a rally protesting Chief Executive Leung Chun-yin that is taking place on the same day.

The city’s largest pro-democracy march is held every year on July 1 by the citizens of Hong Kong, a city that has seen demonstrations for democracy for more than 30 years.

An official Hong Kong Dome Festival boycott Facebook page has been created and protesters have taken it upon themselves to urge the K-pop stars not to attend the show, posting various pleas on the stars’ social media pages.

“The government wants to use your fame to sidetrack the democracy event,” one protester wrote on BoA’s Facebook page. “Please consider, you’re living in a country with democracy while we are not!”

Typical ticket prices for K-pop concerts in Hong Kong are around 1,000 HKD ($128). However, the tickets prices for the upcoming Hong Kong Dome Festival are just 99 HKD, adding to the suspicions that the government is using the festival as a means to discourage young people from joining the protest march.

Officials at S.M Entertainment, the local management agency of the K-pop stars scheduled to perform, declined to comment on the issue when contacted. As of Tuesday afternoon, the four-hour outdoor festival will be held as scheduled with the original K-pop star line-up at the Kai Tak Development Site.

By Julie Jackson (juliejackson@heraldcorp.com)