Where is Kim Garam? Former K-pop idol makes a lengthy statement maintaining her innocence
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA: The K-pop genre had recently been grappled with school bullying allegations where one after the other more and more alleged victims came out to accuse well-established idols as bullies that virtually ended some careers. Back in April of 2022, Le Sserafim, the new girl group from HYBE Label's subsidiary was embroiled in a huge controversy involving former member Kim Garam. For the uninitiated, Garam a 17-year-old former idol was accused of school bullying by an alleged victim while in middle school.
After months of back and forth, HYBE who adamantly stood beside Kim Garam decided to terminate their contracts with her as she made her exit from the girl group as well as the K-pop industry. Now, Garam it has been reported that Garam has taken to Instagram to explain her side of the story as she tries to explain her side of the story for the first time. Kim Garam took to her friend's Instagram account as maintains her innocence despite receiving a Level 5 disciplinary action. Not only that but, Garam also shares related documents to corroborate her explanation.
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Kim Garam makes a statement to the public
According to reports from Korean media, on August 10, Kim Garam took to her friend's Instagram account under the username, @y__urm as she explains the injustice done to her due to "false accusations." In the Instagram post, Garam allegedly posted a printed statement undersigned with her full name. The post as well as its caption said, "Hello, this is Kim Garam. I want to say sorry first. It's too late, but I haven't had a chance to tell you my opinion."
She explained how working in the K-pop industry had always been her dream for years as she explains how her aspirations were tarnished due to false allegations. Garam continued, "I worked hard for my dream and I was scared that my past actions would break my dreams." She states how as the accusations grew against her, she became further scared and always wished to express her position but was never given the opportunity to.
Garam breaks down the allegations against her
Garam explained the accusations against her in five points as she said, "1. I have never once beaten or abused anyone. 2. I have never been forced to transfer schools. 3. I have never consumed alcohol or smoked. 4. I have never bullied or been bullied by anyone. 5. I was just a regular student." She explained how the "incident" in question that blew up occurred when she was in middle school when the alleged victim - Yoo Eun-seo took indecent photos of her friend.
Garam explains how she picked a fight with Eun-seo because she wanted to defend her friend. Garam explains, "I started cursing at her. At that time, I couldn't recognize the difference between the majority and the minority, so I couldn't make it clear that Yoo Eun-seo's actions were wrong." She continued, "I thought it was loyalty to help a friend who was victimized, and I didn't know the seriousness of our actions because I felt only righteous."
Kim Garam apologizes to fans
Garam eventually states that she realizes her mistakes as she says, "Now that I look back to my actions, I was very immature and unseasoned back them. At the time, friendship was the most important thing for me and my time with my friends was the most enjoyable for me." She explains how her parents encouraged her to help her friends in time of need and she reveals that she still believes in the same ideology.
She finally explains how making a debut as an idol was her dream as she wanted to get away from her past and make her future bright. Garam says that her K-pop debut was the time she fought for her dreams. She ended her statement by saying, "I will try and work hard to be a better person and I thank my precious fans for loving and supporting me. I was able to hang on because of your constant support. I'll do my best. Thank you for reading the long message."
Garam then shared additional documents as evidence unlike the cropped pieces of documents released in the past in a second post however there is no confirmation that the post is authentically made by Kim Garam herself. Meanwhile, upon inquiry from Korean media reporters, HYBE has denied making a statement about Kim Garam. HYBE's representative stated that Garam is no longer a part of their label as their contract with her has been terminated therefore they are in no position to comment on her situation.