Mamamoo member Hwasa, who was accused of performing obscenity, was cleared of the charges.
It was an incident that brought to light the ongoing controversy over obscenity in the performing and arts world.
The parent group that filed the complaint expressed its objection.
Regardless of this decision to acquit the charges, the controversy over the boundaries between artists’ freedom of expression and obscenity is expected to continue.
This is reporter Choi Jin-kyung.
[Reporter]
Mamamoo member Hwasa was accused by a parent group of making provocative body movements on stage at a university festival.
After three months of investigation, the police decided not to forward the case as ‘no charges’.
“After summoning him as a defendant, investigating the content and development process of the performance, and comprehensively reviewing the statements of those involved, it is difficult to admit to criminal charges,” he explained the reason for the decision.
Hwasa’s performance complaint clearly showed a cross-section of the ongoing controversy over freedom of expression and obscenity in the performing arts world.
<Ha-neul Yoon / Pocheon-si, Gyeonggi-do> “I think it’s okay as long as you don’t take it off, but I know that in other countries, they often do it even worse…” <Yu-chan Park / Seocho-gu, Seoul> “There are times when the audience or people who see it feel burdened or uncomfortable, so
artists Even if it is freedom, the level must be controlled…”
There have been controversies over obscenity in the art world in the past.
Singer G-Dragon was accused of creating a scene reminiscent of sexual activity at a concert in 2009, but considering the fact that it was a performance, he received a ‘deferred prosecution’ decision.
<Ha Jae-geun / Pop Culture Critic> “It seems like an uncultural and immature attitude to conclude that this is a crime and say how you will punish it legally.”
In the legal world, the general consensus is that charges of indecency in public performance can only be applied if there is explicit exposure or the lewd act occurs in more than half of the performance.
<Jeong Gu-seung / Attorney> “In the case of Hwasa, considering메이저놀이터 that this was something she did on stage as an artist and that it was a university festival, I think it would have been difficult to classify this as performance obscenity.”
The group that reported Hwasa disobeyed the police decision and expressed their intention to request the National Police Agency to review the investigation.
The controversy over obscenity in the art world, which lies in a gray area, is expected to continue for the time being.
