Kim Heechul recently opened up about how malicious commenters played a role in the death of is good friends Sulli and Goo Hara last year and lashed out at a reporter who picked on his opinions on the matter.
In a recent episode of his show 7.7 Billion in Love, the hosts and the panel talked about celebrities dealing with malicious commenters where Heechul praised IU's zero tolerance response to be the best method. The Super Junior member said IU's agency sued internet trolls who defamed her character and went after them legally.
Online bullying and malicious commenters has been a hot topic in the Korean entertainment industry after many celebrities, reportedly, suffered from mental health issues such as depression, with some leading to suicide because of the mean things people say online.
Heechul, whose good friends Sulli and Goo Hara committed suicide and passed away a month apart from each other last year, said that malicious commenters harassed his friends incessantly and tried to avoid blame about their passing. He said male commenters who sexually harassed them and female anti-fans who shamed them found ways to point fingers at each other when his friends died.
Heechul has remained quiet on the issue for months and this was the first time he directly addressed the deaths of his two friends. However, a journalist found issue with Heechul's statement and said that the Universal Star should not make a gender issue by blaming specific genders for the deaths of Sulli and Goo Hara.
Heechul was quick to respond to journalist Wi Geun Woo and responded directly to his post, Soompi reported
"Hey mister, is it important whether the malicious commenter or criminal was male or female? Gender aside, if you commit a crime, you're a criminal. I and other colleagues who were close with them still can't say their name out loud out of sadness and mention them with caution, but who are you to write something like this using the deceased?"
Heechul did not stop there. He also posted a lengthy statement on community post of DC Inside to further discuss the issue. he also posted a photo of himself with his comment to prove his identity.
According to Heechul, he was not going to keep silent because he did not want Sulli and Goo Hara used as tools to prove a point. He said that he is also speaking up because he also did not want his fans to fight his own battles against malicious commenters.
He opened up about almost giving up being a celebrity last year after Sulli and Goo Hara committed suicide in October and November last year. He said that he had to go to counselling because he felt mentally exhausted. However, he is still enduring until now.
"In some way, you can think that nothing will happen if I don't do anything. If I don't do anything, fans won't have to fight with trash or respond.It'd be comfortable to just endure and ignore, but I really don't think it's right that people create stories about the deceased according to their preferences," Heechul said.
