Park Heong-joon's Proposal to the President: Recognize the Service of BTS as EXPO Ambassadors as Alternative Military Service

On July 19, Prime Minister Han Duck-soo; Chey Tae-won, co-chair of the World Expo 2030 Busan Bid Committee; and Park Heong-joon, mayor of Busan take a picture after appointing BTS as the official ambassadors for the World Expo 2030 Busan. Courtesy of the Busan metropolitan government

On August 18, Park Heong-joon, the mayor of Busan announced that he asked the president to recognize the activities of BTS as the official ambassadors of the World Expo 2030 Busan as alternative military service for people in arts and sports.

The city of Busan announced that Mayor Park decided that it would be impossible for BTS to actively engage in practical activities for Busan’s bid to host the World Expo unless the issue of their military service was resolved and personally made the suggestion to President Yoon Suk-yeol.

The Busan metropolitan government explained that the latest proposal was made because the city was desperate not to fall further behind in the race to host the World Expo. At present, the nation is mobilizing its full diplomatic capacity to host the World Expo, but the competition has grown fiercer after Saudi Arabia, another contender, has begun making an aggressive bid to host the international event. According to the city of Busan, the city made the proposal believing that in this situation, if BTS, one of the world’s top bands, actively promotes the city, it could be more effective than they think.

Mayor Park said, “We’re not suggesting that we exempt BTS from military service,” and explained, “If the state recognizes the work by BTS as alternative military service, the members will have responsibilities to the state on par with military service, and they will serve the country with the capacity that only they are capable of.”

In the proposal, Mayor Park wrote, “We are all too well aware of the symbolic meaning that the mandatory military service has in the Republic of Korea,” and asked the president “to consider the aspiration of the Busan citizens to successfully host the World Expo 2030 Busan sincerely for the future of Busan and with loyalty toward the Republic of Korea.”

The Registered Exhibition is an international event, and 40 million people visit the Expo for six months when it is held. The economic value of the Expo is 2-3 times higher than the Olympic Games and the World Cup, amounting to 61 trillion won, and participating countries pay for their exhibition halls with their own budget, so the event itself is structured for profit.

According to the current Military Service Act, anyone with a special talent in sports or the arts designated by the presidential decree and recommended by the minister of culture, sports and tourism can be recognized as an arts or sports agent. The presidential enforcement decree determines those who are subject to this recognition. The decree cites medalists in international and domestic music competitions and people who have received at least a bronze medal in the Olympic Games or a gold medal in the Asian Games as those eligible to be arts or sports agents. So far, in the case of classical music, 609 people were designated as agents, but no one in popular culture and arts has been recognized since there is no separate regulation.

Currently, the amendment of the Military Service Act, which would allow people in popular culture and art to be recognized as arts/sports agents, is pending in the National Assembly.

Previous governments have also made exceptions and recognized the alternative military service of people in sports and the arts who have contributed to national prestige: Lee Chang-ho and other major players of go in 1994, athletes in the national football team for advancing to the second round of the World Cup in 2002, and professional baseball players who placed third in the World Baseball Classic.

In a meeting of the parliamentary National Defense Committee on August 1, Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-sup was asked about any exceptions in military service for BTS. The defense minister answered, “I think there is a way to give them an opportunity to continue performing in terms of national interest.” Minister Lee explained, “I believe they can join the military, but be given opportunities to practice, and when there are performances overseas, they can also perform.” Lee Ki-sik, commissioner of the Military Manpower Administration also said they were considering the issue from various aspects and said, “For now, we are looking at it from the overall frame of alternative military service.”