The mother of former Madein member Gaeun has come forward with heartbreaking accusations against 143 Entertainment's CEO, Lee Yong Hak.
On April 29, a press conference was held at the Press Center’s Media Union meeting room in Seoul to talk about the lawsuit against Lee Yong Hak, who is being accused of sexually harassing an idol group member, referred to as "A."
The Hanbit Center, which is helping the victim, said, "Some people may wonder why this is only coming out now, but it took the victim a long time to find the courage. Staying silent was painful for her, and we worked as fast as we could to support her." They added, "It also took incredible courage for her mother to stand here today."
At the press conference, the mother revealed, "I am the mother of Gaeun, who used to be a member of Madein. Gaeun loved getting attention ever since she was little. She was always a bright and pure child. Becoming an idol was her dream, and she was so happy when it came true. But little by little, I saw her spirit fading."
She said, "CEO Lee Yong Hak would call the girls for 'counseling' sessions and secretly turn them against each other. They were told to spy on one another. As her mother, I told her to endure it because I thought that's how society worked. I didn’t know it would get this bad."
The mother went on, "Even when she was struggling, Gaeun kept chasing her dream. CEO Lee Yong Hak would say he treated the girls like his own daughters, but the company locked them in their dorms, cut them off from friends, and even checked Gaeun’s phone if he found out she contacted her dance teacher."
She shared that at first, what seemed like small touches started feeling very wrong after Gaeun graduated high school. "Gaeun clearly told him to stop touching her," she said, but things only got worse. "He ignored her and started treating her badly at work."
Breaking down in tears, she said, "When I found out what happened, I felt like a criminal. My daughter cried out for help so many times, but I didn’t listen. I closed my eyes and ears, and she had to suffer something horrible."
Even after everything, Gaeun still wanted to stay with MaydIn for the sake of her fans. The mother said, "She loved her fans so much and didn’t want to leave them. We didn’t report it right away. Instead, we tried to settle it quietly, asking the CEO to step down. But he didn’t. He kept interfering in her schedules, and whenever Gaeun avoided him, he would whistle like nothing happened. Gaeun said she kept hearing the whistling and it drove her crazy."
Things got worse when Gaeun’s voice recording was broadcasted on a TV show without their permission. "We were trying to quietly end her activities for her future, but the broadcast made her even more scared," the mother said. "After that, we realized we couldn’t wait anymore."
The mother also revealed, "The CEO wanted to post a statement and asked Gaeun to like it on Instagram. She agreed, even though it hurt. Then they asked her to post another statement full of lies. I cried when I read it. Why should my daughter lie when she was the victim? When we refused, the CEO completely changed his attitude."
Earlier, the Hanbit Center revealed that last October, CEO Lee Yong Hak verbally abused and sexually harassed a 143 Entertainment idol member for hours. At that time, the victim was still under 19, protected under Korea’s child and youth protection laws. They said the CEO first admitted it, promised to stay away, but later broke his promise, lied, and hurt the victim even more.
They added, "143 Entertainment later denied everything and kicked the victim out of the group without warning. We are working to reveal the truth and restore the victim’s honor."
Meanwhile, JTBC’s show Case Chief previously aired a recording that exposed sexual harassment at 143 Entertainment, shocking many viewers. After the broadcast, 143 Entertainment denied all the claims, saying, "There was no sexual harassment or inappropriate contact, and the reports are not true."
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