Soon-To-Debut Thai Idol Sitala Of H1-KEY Father Revealed To Have Supported Military Dictatorship In Thailand And Participated In Anti-Democracy Campaign, Agency Responds To Backlash
Soon-To-Debut Thai Idol Sitala Of H1-KEY has already found herself in massive controversy even before her official debut.
Recently, Grand Line Group announced their plans to debut a new girl group called H1-KEY, and they began to unveil each member, one of the members Sitala is Thai particularly caught the attention of netizens.
Soon some netizens began to look into the idol and found out her late father had participated in Thailand’s anti-democracy campaign, and some fans had claimed the idol’s father was an elite who supported Thailand’s rule under military dictatorship.
Sitala was also revealed to have named her father as her role model which many people found an issue considering his past actions.
This stirred a lot of negative responses specifically from Thai fans who demanded the idol to be removed from the group. While initially, the agency remained silent, on December 8, they came out with a response.
In their statement which was released in both English and Korean, the agency says they’ve been looking into the situation as it is a complex and sensitive issue. The agency argues the idol was a minor when her father had an influence on her and as a result, she cannot be held liable for his actions. Thus, Sitala will not be removed from the group.
You can read the full statement released in English below!
Hello, this is GLG(Grandline Group), the management company of H1-KEY.
We here at GLG would like to send our deepest apologies
to all those who have been hurt by this incident.
We sincerely hope for peace and wellness in Thailand.
We were very cautious about responding to the recent issues
raised against one of our members of H1-KEY, SITALA, and her deceased father,
as we had to consider the history, political, economical,
and social context and background of Thailand
in order to understand the issue and situation.
From the moment we recognized the worries and concerns of the Thai citizens,
we have thoroughly reviewed matters regarding SITALA
and her background of her father’s actions,
how she was brought up as a minor, and up until how she has become a young adult.
We have come to a conclusion that we cannot hold SITALA accountable
on the basis of her father’s past decisions and actions
that were beyond her responsibility.On this basis, we have made the decision to not change the members of the group.
We would also like to emphasize that SITALA’s decision in naming her father as her role model
was based upon the role of her father as a parental figure of the family, actor, and director,and not upon his political views and actions.
SITALA is currently reflecting as she feels remorse and pain
regarding the growing concerns voiced in her homeland.
This has allowed us to learn and understand the reality of Thailand better.
The SITALA that we know is a very polite and hardworking person.
She is proud of her home country, Thailand,
and genuinely values and loves her culture, heritage, and the people of Thailand.
She has always said that one of her goals and dreams
is to bring honor and give back the warmth she had received to the people of Thailand.
SITALA has been working hard in a foreign land alone to fulfill this dream.
We sincerely would like to ask everyone to cheer and support SITALA
and treat her with warmth and kindness,
so that she is given the chance at returning
all the love and support to Thailand to the best of her ability.
We, GLG, would like to take this time to promise to pay closer attention
to the love and concerns of our fans both in Korea and overseas.
Once again, we pray for the peace and wellness in Thailand.
Sincerely,
GLG(Grandline Group)
The response has not been well-received by fans who criticized the agency for the handling of the situation.
Upcoming girl group H1-KEY consists of four members and is set to debut in 2022.
What are your thoughts on this?
