Miss A’s Suzy Bae attended the opening ceremony for the Sinchon Water Gun Festival and the way her appearance was handled started a controversy.
The festival was sponsored by a Sinchon beverage company. Suzy was there to serve as the company’s model and formally declare the start of the festival. Because she would be showered and it was a warm day, she wore a cut-off top and jean shorts. Her legs were bare.
The controversy concerns what happened when one of the ceremony officials escorted Suzy on to the stage. Fans filmed the event and when the video footage was uploaded online, fans noted that one of the event moderators seemed to be inappropriately touching Suzy. The man standing next to her touched her bare thigh and her hip, not once but two times.
After seeing the footage, fans began to comment that the touch seemed intentional and asked for an explanation plus an apology from those who planned the event.
Event officials said that it was an accident and doing so intentionally would not have been possible in public. They said the moderator merely brushed her thigh and hip in the process of guiding her forward.
At this point Suzy’s agency, JYP Entertainment felt the need to issue a statement. JYP officials told X Sport News, that the touch was just a mistake and should not be taken seriously. They do not consider it sexual harassment. However, they will do some more research.
“The agency is understanding that this situation was not a big deal,” said the JYP representative. A”fter we assess more carefully, we will inform you of anything more that needs to be shared.”
The statements did not convince fans. They noted that Suzy’s expression darkened when she was touched. Whether the actions were intentional or an accident, she instinctively responded negatively to being touched by a stranger.
Netizens commenting on the incident in online forums says that she looked frozen every time he brushes against her.
On netizenblogspot, one fan noted that the moderator bent down to guide her, pushing her legs, which is something normal people don’t do.
“Don’t most normal people guide ppl by touching their shoulder? Or their arms,” said pinky2.
Netizens also respected the way Suzy handled it, saying they would have responded physically.
“She is just amazing, so much tolerance, props,” said Candy Pires.
You can check out the video below and see what you think. Accident or harassment? Let us know.
