'Descendants of the Sun' brings back bad memories in Vietnam
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“Descendants of the Sun" / Courtesy of KBS
By Bahk Eun-ji
Popular drama “Descendants of the Sun,” starring Song Joong-ki and Song Hye-kyo, has been a sensation at home and abroad, especially in East Asia.
It has also won the hearts of Vietnamese fans, but some Vietnamese refuse to watch the romantic drama due to their painful memories of Korean troops during the Vietnam War.
Debate broke out after the drama’s Vietnamese fan page on Facebook attracted more than 350,000 users earlier this week.
On Sunday, Tran Quang Thi, a reporter of Vietnamese media outlet Tuoi Tre, posted a text on his Facebook page that has been shared more than 87,000 times.
“During the Vietnam War, Korean troops spread terror in a number of regions in the country, not among the army, but among innocent civilians,” he said. “Some villages were completely wiped out by Korean troops. I believe if the victims’ souls were still around and watched the Korean drama it would break their hearts.”
“Descendants of the Sun" / Courtesy of KBS
He also said “No one even thinks about Korean or Chinese TV airing a film that praises Japanese soldiers out of respect for them as victims of World War II.”
Vietnamese fans showed mixed feelings about his posting. Some users said his opinion had to be considered among young people in Vietnam, but other users argued that watching the drama was a matter of personal choice.
“Descendants of the Sun” will air on HTV2 in Vietnam, after the series has ended in Korea.