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South Korea: The current status of a Korean celebrity, Hong Suk-chon

Hong Suk-chon is a South Korean actor who had a regular late-night talk show on the radio and appeared on a popular children's program until 2000, when his talk show contract was cancelled and he was removed from the children's program after publicly revealing that he is a homosexual (AP 3 Nov. 2000; ibid. 3 Oct. 2003; International Herald Tribune 3 Oct. 2003; see also New Jersey Record 16 Feb. 2003). According to one news report, Hong's "[f]ellow actors shunned him, and teenage boys hurled abuse at him in the street" (ibid.). For the following three years, small acting offers were made to Hong, but were always withdrawn (ibid.; International Herald Tribune 3 Oct. 2003). New Jersey Record quoted Hong as saying:

"I lost my whole career-TV, musicals, commercials, everything-just like that, overnight. ... I thought, 'OK, I'm 30, it's the new century, it's a good time to come out as gay. ... That was my mistake" (16 Feb. 2003).

After his career came to a virtual stop in 2000, Hong re-focused his energy on selling his home (International Herald Tribune 3 Oct. 2003) and on opening a "trendy eatery" called Our Place in Seoul's Itaewon district (New Jersey Record 16 Feb. 2003; see also International Herald Tribune 3 Oct. 2003).

In April 2003, the International Herald Tribune reported that Hong addressed the war in Iraq on "his radio talk show" (2 Apr. 2003). Additional information on Hong's reported radio talk show could not be found by the Research Directorate.

In October 2003, several news articles reported that Hong was expected to make a comeback in his acting career by playing a supporting role as a homosexual designer in a soap opera called "Perfect Love" (AP 3 Oct. 2003; International Herald Tribune 3 Oct. 2003; The Advocate 11 Nov. 2003; MX 3 Oct. 2003). The show, which was to air twice a week, had cast "three top South Korean actors" and was written by "one of South Korea's most famous scriptwriters known for her family dramas" (AP 3 Oct. 2003). The show was expected to run from early October 2003 through the end of December (International Herald Tribune 3 Oct. 2003). Information on the status of the show and of Hong Suk-chon since December 2003, could not be found by the Research Directorate.

This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Information Request.

References

The Advocate [Louisiana]. 11 November 2003. "Comeback for Gay TV Star." (Dialog)

Associated Press (AP). 3 October 2003. "South Korean Actor Makes Comeback After Coming Out." <http://www.taipeitimes.come/News/archives/2003/10/03/2003070214/> [Accessed 2 Mar. 2004]

_____. 3 November 2000. Sang-Hun Choe. "For a Gay Celebrity in Conservative Korea, Coming Out Proves Painful and Costly." (NEXIS)

International Herald Tribune. 3 October 2003. Norimitsu Onishi. "Out of the Closet and Back on State." (Dialog)

_____. 2 April 2003. James Brooke. "South Koreans Wonder if North's Leader is in Hiding." (Dialog)

MX [Melbourne]. 3 October 2003. "What in the Weird." (Dialog)

New Jersey Record. 16 February 2003. "South Korea Not Ready for Gays Who Come Out." (Dialog)

Additional Sources Consulted

Internet sources, including: BBC, The Chosun Ilbo [Seoul], Human Rights Watch (HRW), The International Lesbian and Gay Association (ILGA), Joong Ang Daily [Seoul], The Korea Times [Seoul], Google.