NewJeans fan sends human rights report, Min Hee Jin reveals controversial message

The NewJeans fan community launched a campaign to send a human rights report to Amnesty International, while Min Hee Jin – ADOR's creative director – was exposed to a series of controversial internal messages, sparking many mixed opinions about the incident.

While the tension between ADOR and HYBE has not shown any signs of cooling down, the fan community of the girl group NewJeans has launched a large-scale campaign to call for intervention from international organizations. According to the statement that was widely circulated on social media, fans argued that what was happening to NewJeans went far beyond a mere business dispute, and should be seen as a human rights issue.

The statement stated: "When a group of young female artists and their creative directors are publicly vilified, key evidence is concealed or ignored, and the mainstream media repeats a one-sided narrative without questioning or being held accountable – this is no longer a 'management controversy.' This is a human rights issue."

Fans said they were preparing to submit a report to Amnesty International and other human rights organizations, with the goal of clarifying how South Korea's judicial and media systems have condoned harassment and institutional violence against artists. This is considered a rare move in the K-pop fandom community, when fans actively approach international organizations to protect idols.

At the same time, a public first-instance judgment on October 30 related to the lawsuit "confirming the validity of the exclusive contract" between ADOR and the five NewJeans members revealed a series of controversial internal messages of Min Hee Jin – the CEO of ADOR.

According to the content of the judgment, Ms. Min asked her subordinates to review internal conversations on the Slack platform to find weaknesses of HYBE's groups. Some of the messages were quoted as: "Scour Slack, find the weaknesses of group XX", "See if there is a way to sue them for obstructing their work", and "Well done, but find more decisive evidence. The more the better."

The court found that these text messages were evidence that Min Hee Jin had taken preparatory steps to manipulate public opinion against HYBE and ADOR, thereby making NewJeans' allegations of ADOR's failure to fulfill its obligations unconvincing. The judgment also states that the reasons given by the defendant to accuse the plaintiff of breach of duty appear to be the result of Ms. Min's proactive review of all internal data to serve the lawsuit and create negative public opinion.

According to Korean precepts, Min Hee Jin's actions could make her face the opposite charges — the same crimes she has tried to find in others. Crimes that can be considered include breach of work obligations, unauthorized use of personal data, infringement of trade secrets, abuse of power, and defamation, defamation.

A legal expert said: "This behavior alone is enough for HYBE and ADOR to sue Ms. Min."

The new development has caused public opinion to divide into two distinct streams. One side supports Min Hee Jin and NewJeans, arguing that they are being squeezed by the power system in the entertainment industry. The other side thinks that searching for internal data to find the weaknesses of other artists is unacceptable behavior, especially when it comes from an executive.

Currently, neither NewJeans nor Min Hee Jin have had an official response to the fan campaign or the contents revealed in the verdict. Meanwhile, the group NewJeans is still continuing to operate internationally with a busy schedule in Japan and the United States.

The incident is still attracting attention from the public and the media, while international organizations have not yet given an official response to the campaign from the NewJeans fan community.

NewJeans could be fined 4,000 billion VND if they choose to side with Min Hee Jin and leave HYPE. Khánh Huyền16:34:45 25/04/2024Facing family turmoil, NewJeans are showing their support for Min Hee Jin's mother. This is worrying because the 5 girls' contract with HYPE still has 5 years left to end, and the fine if the contract is terminated will be up to 210 billion won (4,000 billion VND).