 |
Rain(Yonhap News) |
2여년간의 연예병사 군 복무를 마치고 지난달 10일 전역한 가수 비(본명 정지훈)가 재입대 논란에 휩싸였다.
비의 재입대 논란은 “필요 서류 누락으로 연예병사 선발 과정에 문제가 있었던 사람은 재입대를 하는 것이 맞다” 는 민주당 김광진 의원의 발언으로 불거졌다.
비는 올해 초 복무기간에 국내유명 여배우 김태희와 데이트를 하던 중 복무규율을 위반한 바 있다.
또한 그가 일반사병보다 많은 휴가 일수를 사용한 사실이 드러나면서 비난을 샀다.
비의 재입대 발언으로 김광진 의원실에는 전화가 폭주하고, 공식 사이트가 다운됐다.
이에 김 의원은 자신은 연예병사 선발 과정의 문제점을 지적한 것이지 비의 재입대를 주장한 것이 아니라고 해명했다.
국방부는 “비는 적법한 절차에 따라 전역을 했다. 따라서 재입대를 논의할 법적 근거가 없다”며 비의 재입대 추진설을 일축했다.
한편 국방부는 지난달 18일, 연예인 특혜로 많은 논란이 되어왔던 연예병사제도를 폐지했다.
(임우정 인턴기자 / 코리아헤럴드)
<관련영문기사>
Disputes continue over Rain’s military service
Despite recently being discharged from military service, K-pop star Rain (Jung Ji-hoon) is continuing to attract controversy over his service.
Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Kwang-jin argued that there was a problem with the documentation supporting the qualifications of “entertainment soldiers” such as Rain.
Kim claimed there were two major problems with Rain’s military service: a distorted process of entertainment soldier recruitment and Rain’s attitude toward military service.
“Rain had not submitted all of the required documents but he got accepted. The process of drafting entertainment soldiers had problems,” said Kim.
Kim also claimed that Rain had attitude problems during his service in the military, referring to the high-profile scandal involving his violation of rules.
The media and fans took his comments to mean Rain should re-enlist in the army and serve out the two-year mandatory service again.
The lawmaker, however, denied such speculation. His office, meanwhile, was bombarded with angry calls and emails from Rain’s fans on Wednesday.
In January, a local entertainment media outlet caught Rain secretly meeting with popular South Korean actress Kim Tae-hee outside the barracks even though he was on active duty.
Rain also faced criticism for enjoying more vacation days than regular conscripts, which sparked public uproar.
In response to Kim’s argument, the Defense Ministry said it found no serious problems.
“There’s no legal basis to call for Rain’s reenlistment, since his discharge was legitimate.”
Rain entered the military in October 2011 as an entertainment soldier and was discharged on July 10.
The Defense Ministry abolished the scandal-laden “entertainment soldier” system on July 18.
By Im Woo-jung, Intern reporter
(
iwj@heraldcorp.com)
![[Today’s K-pop] Blackpink’s Jennie, Lisa invited to Coachella as solo acts](http://res.heraldm.com/phpwas/restmb_idxmake.php?idx=644&simg=/content/image/2024/11/21/20241121050099_0.jpg)
