Fans of BTS have made a donation to victims of the atomic bombs that were dropped on Japan.

On Thursday, Hapcheon Welfare Center for Atomic Bomb Victims in South Gyeongsang Province, a shelter for Korean victims of the atomic bombs, shared that a fan club of the K-pop act, called Run Army, had donated around 5.44 million won ($4,860) to the organization after 10 days of fundraising from Nov. 9 to 18.

“After looking into the matter of the recent ruling on the forced labor of Koreans by the Japanese during Japan’s 1910-1945 colonization of Korea, which has been a contentious issue, and the issue of the atomic bomb, we came to realize that victims of the tragedy have been living arduous lives for decades ever since,” said the fans in a written statement.

“So we decided to run this 10-day fundraising with hopes for those victims, who have suffered from inhumane acts, to have more comfortable lives. It’s a small offering, but we hope the money can be used in curing their wounds.”

The shelter responded with a statement, “These meaningful donations will be of great help to the victims.”




In November, BTS was embroiled in a controversy surrounding a member’s wardrobe choices. Japan’s Asahi Music Station canceled the group’s performance on TV, citing a shirt Jimin had worn in the past, which depicted the United States’ dropping of atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, alongside text celebrating Korea’s liberation from Japan in 1945. Some Japanese media outlets even
accused the group of being “anti-Japanese.”

Following the controversy, Big Hit Entertainment issued a statement to address the issue. It apologized to the victims, saying, “We don’t condone any activities of war or the use of atomic weapons. We had no intention to hurt victims of the dropping of atomic bombs.”

The company also said it contacted associations representing those affected by the atomic bombings for further explanation and sent a letter to the Simon Wiesenthal Center to apologize.




Meanwhile, this is not the first time BTS fans have supported the group by doing good.

After the Sewol ferry tragedy in 2014, BTS and its fans were quick to help by donating supplies to the affected families. Fans also ran a blood donation drive in celebration of Jimin’s birthday in October.

Most recently, they made donations to an animal protection group, Korean Animal Welfare Association, on Jin’s birthday on Dec. 4.

(lotus@heraldcorp.com)