Korean Actors Labor Union demands ‘Five Fingers’ PD & SBS issue a public apology to T-ara’s Eunjung

The Korean Actors Labor Union has requested SBS ‘Five Fingers‘ issue a public apology in regards to T-ara member Eunjung departing from the series.

The Labor Union stated through a press release on August 28th, “Even after a week following member Eunjung’s departure, SBS has failed to issue any kind of explanation, offer, or self-reflectance.”

“We are demanding that SBS and Yein E&M issue a sincere apology to member Ham Eunjung,” the Union continued. “The only way to restore her tarnished reputation is to essentially reveal the truth, and receive a genuine apology from all of you. PD Choi Young Hoon, you have no right to be a drama PD. Step down.”

The union accused that the PD tried to spin the reason for Eunjung’s departure on the T-ara controversy instead of the real reason, which was disagreement to PPL (product placement). “SBS and Yein E&M had requested member Eunjung to film the drama wearing sponsored goods (product placement) such as bags, accessories, and outfits, however, Eunjung had refused.”

“This was SBS and Yein E&M’s way of attempting to sign another contract in addition to the contract they already signed for her appearance,” the Union added. “This is the so-called additional ‘altered agreement’, and they presented irrelevant reasons and stated that [Eunjung's agency] would be responsible for compensation via support funds in the event the T-ara controversy (or Eunjung herself) would cause harm to the drama’s investors or sponsors. Her drama appearance contract was signed on July 17th, and the altered additional agreement was proposed to Eunjung’s agency on August 21st.”

“Even after all of this, how is it that SBS and the production company have not become conscience-stricken,” the Union criticized. They then demanded that “the contract conditions be carried out, and PD Choi Young Hoon take responsibility for tarnishing Eunjung’s reputation by removing her from the drama by stepping down and return Eunjung to the series.”

Source & Image : Herald via Naver

‘Five Fingers’ producers break silence on Eunjung’s exit and refute CCM’s claims

The production company of SBS‘ weekend drama ‘Five Fingers‘ has broken their silence on the controversy surrounding Ham Eunjung‘s exit from the series.

Production company Yein E&M released a press release on August 28th that read, “This was not an unilateral decision made by the staff members, and the PPL issue was not a reason for her exit. We hope that Eunjung’s agency will stop forcing their assertions, and if they continue, we will have no choice but to respond with appropriate legal action.”

They continued, “The reason why we did not respond even when news articles made inaccurate presumptions which Eunjung’s agency was asserting, was because we thought remaining silent and not arguing would be the last considerable act we could offer to Eunjung.”

They explained the situation behind Eunjung’s exit saying, “We were waiting for the agency to resolve the T-ara issue and even concluded our difficult press conference, however, the external noise did not seem to die down and therefore we held an emergency meeting with the production company and the staff members.”

They also talked about the PPL issue that was pinpointed by T-ara‘s agency and the media as the reason why Eunjung was thrown out of the drama. “Though the production company had already seen a loss of 1,000,000,000 KRW (~$880,000 USD), because the broadcast has already began, it was not a situation where throwing Eunjung out would have restored or resolved anything.”

In regards to the assertions that said they issued an official document which consisted of conditions that were worse than the original contract, they said, “It is not true that we sent official documents of any kind. The ‘agreement’ that Eunjung’s agency is talking about, is just a proposal first made by Eunjung’s agency, knowing her exit was becoming a controversy. They proposed that they would lower the conditions and be responsible for compensation. Throwing [Eunjung] out of the drama is not a decision the staff members can make on their own.”

Yein E&M also needed to explain the claims that said they did not properly deliver the decision to replace Eunjung to her agency. “SBS and the production company officially delivered the message. Being considerate towards Eunjung, we proposed she voluntarily step down from the drama, but the agency forced their assertions in the media and to various associations. Because we had no trust for the agency, we had no choice but to hold an emergency meeting with the staff members and production company, and we decided that it would be best for Eunjung to be removed.”

The company assured that this was the best decision by adding, “The reason why we did not remove her in the beginning was because we thought the bullying controversy was just a rumor, and that time would resolve everything. We trusted that the agency would take measures to try and resolve this, however, the controversy did not die down even after the broadcast began, and we decided to remove [Eunjung] for the sake of the other actors, actresses, and staff members.”

“We hope that Eunjung will be able to overcome her pain and stand on her own two feet again,” they said in conclusion. “We truly hope she will be able brightly stand before the viewers one day soon.”

In related news, T-ara’s Ham Eunjung was cast for the role of pianist Hong Dami in ‘Five Fingers’, but was removed from the drama a day before filming began.

Source & Image: Kuki News via Nate