Busan mayor proposes BTS military exemption to promote World Expo 2030 bid

Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon, right, poses with BTS' V during the appointment ceremony of the K-pop group as a public relations ambassador for Korea's bid to host the Busan World Expo 2030 at HYBE's headquarters in Seoul's Yongsan District, July 19. Korea Times file

By Lee Hae-rin

Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon has asked President Yoon Suk-yeol to grant an exception to exclude the members of BTS from mandatory military service to allow them to help support the city's bid to host the World Expo 2030.

Park made public the three-page proposal letter he had delivered to the president earlier this month on social media, Thursday.

He said, "Without solving the military service issue, BTS substantially and actively promoting Busan's bid for the Expo might be impossible," and proposed the exemption.

K-pop sensation BTS was officially appointed as a public relations ambassador for Busan's bid for World Expo 2030 in July. The group will hold a global concert in Busan in October to promote the city's bid to host the prestigious event.

Park said that the international expo is a "dire necessity" for the southern port city and the country. The mayor explained that he was not asking for a privileged exemption but for an alternative "national responsibility as heavy as the mandatory military service," which only the group is capable of fulfilling and thereby contributing to the country.

The mayor also called for a revision of the presidential decree to include pop culture celebrities in substituting their compulsory military service with alternative activities.

Under the Military Service Act, all able-bodied men of Korean nationality must carry out active-duty service in the military for 18 to 22 months. However, international award-winning classical musicians and athletes, such as Olympic medalists, may be exempt from the duty for elevating the country's reputation overseas under the presidential decree.

In response, BTS' management company, HYBE, said that it sees Park's proposal as a reminder of the group's role in the country's bid to host the global event. HYBE will cooperate in managing the issue in a way that can mutually benefit the artists and the country, the company said.

The BTS members themselves have said they are willing to comply with the nation's calling. At a press conference in November 2020, they said "military duty is a righteous obligation for all Korean men" and confirmed that all members will comply with the nation's calling anytime.

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