Will singer Steve Yoo [Yoo Seung-jun] be able to visit Korea for the first time in 17 years?
At 11:00 am on Wednesday the Supreme Court will provide a ruling on the Consulate General's refusal of Steve Yoo's prior visa request. Yoo applied for a visa to re-enter Korea in August 2015 but the Los Angeles Consulate General denied the request because Yoo was banned from entering the country in 2002 on charges of evading military and thus determined it inappropriate to issue a visa.
Yoo had left for the U.S in January 2002 and obtained U.S citizenship before being drafted for military duty raising suspicions that he was trying to evade military duty and as a result was banned from entering the country.
Yoo lost his first and second appeal trials and is waiting for the final judgment by the Supreme Court to determine whether the Court will uphold or cancel the Consulate General's Visa refusal. During the trial, a court official argued, "if Yoo enters the country and is back on TV, the morale of South Korean soldiers who willingly serve will be reduced. And as a result, the will be a widespread trend of draft-dodging among youths."
In January, Yoo released his new album 'The Day' in a surprise move to express his commitment to military activities as well as express his regret and reflection on prior choices but it looks like the public's reaction is still cold.
Many are paying attention whether the Supreme Court will overrule the Consulate general's mandate and allow Yoo entry back into the country.
This article is republished from blog Daily Naver.
