American Youtuber Kisses: Johnny Somali, a 24-year-old American YouTuber, has expressed regret for his involvement in a contentious event in Korea.
During his visit to Changdong History and Culture Park in Seoul’s Dobong district, Mr. Somali caused a great deal of outrage by kissing a statue of a girl that represented Korean victims of sexual enslavement during the war, according to The Korea Times.
The YouTube channel Company posted the apology. In the video, Mr. Somali apologizes to the Korean audience while standing next to the girl’s statue.
“I wish to express my regret to Koreans. Mr. Somali remarked, “I didn’t understand the statue’s significance.”
Mr. Somali went on to say that his purpose was to amuse his American audience. His Korean words for bowing down were, “I’m truly sorry for being disrespectful.”
Additionally, Mr. Somali has indicated that he would like to study more about the history of wartime sex slavery in Japan and the victims, also referred to as “comfort women.” Mr. Somali stated in the video that he would be open to speaking with the survivors face-to-face and interviewing them to learn more about their past.
Many viewers have questioned Mr. Somali despite his apologies, pointing out that he has posted several contentious images and videos on social media.
A number of individuals have pointed out that Mr. Somali has not removed the pictures and videos of his contentious acts from social media.
This was not the first time Mr. Somali’s activities were criticized. A long time ago, he posted a picture of himself with a picture of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, captioning it, “I defeated Koreans for you, Shinzo Abe.”
With the message, “RIP Shinzo Abe, I defeated the Koreans for you!” the Instagram post remained available even after the YouTube video was removed.
On October 31, the Seoul Mapo Police informed that Mr. Somali was being investigated for obstruction of business over his behavior at a convenience store. In addition to this, police are also looking into allegations of alleged assault and drug use as Somali is currently on an “exit ban” that prevents him from leaving the country.
