ENHYPEN’s Ni-ki is currently under fire for his comments about the March 1st Liberation Day in South Korea. Also known as the Independence Movement Day, it is a historically important day in South Korea.
On January 29, 2024, Ni-ki originally uploaded an encouraging message for fans. As it was a Friday the next day, he told fans to hang in there a little longer. He accompanied a photo of the night sky with the caption “as long as you hang in there for tomorrow, it’ll be the weekend…hwaiting Engene. Heh.”
The next day in question was March 1, a public holiday in South Korea. The day is meant to commemorate the March 1 Independence Movement which took place in 1919. It is an important part of South Korean history, as it was a movement that called for liberation from Imperial Japan and to stop the forced assimilation into Japanese culture. A fan had told Ni-ki that it was a holiday, to which he replied that he was jealous.
Fan: Yeah, tomorrow is independence Movement Day, so we’re resting. Ni-ki: I’m jealous heh.
Things were exacerbated as Ni-ki is of Japanese descent. Many in South Korea believe that the Japanese should be reflective and hold regret towards the Japanese occupation of South Korea, even though it happened generations ago. While fans are more forgiving, the public has not taken to it kindly.
