A 24-year-old American YouTuber named Johnny Somali has apologized after being involved in a highly controversial incident in Korea.
During his visit to Changdong History and Culture Park in Seoul’s Dobong district, Mr Somali kissed a statue of a girl symbolizing Korean victims of wartime sexual slavery, sparking widespread outrage, The Korea Times reported. .
The apology was shared on the company’s YouTube channel on Thursday. In the video, Mr. Somali can be seen standing near the girl’s statue and apologizing to the Korean public.
Mr. Somali said, “I want to apologize to the Korean people. I did not understand the significance of the statue.”
Furthermore, Mr. Somali explained that his job was to entertain his audience in America. “I’m really sorry for being disrespectful,” he said in Korean as he bowed.
Mr. Somali has expressed interest in learning more about the history of Japan’s wartime sexual slavery and its victims, also known as “comfort women.” In the video, Mr. Somali shared his desire to meet survivors in person and interview them to learn more about their history.
Despite the apology many viewers have expressed skepticism towards Mr Somali, given that he has shared a number of controversial photos and videos on his social media accounts.
Many have highlighted that Mr. Somali has not removed images and videos of his controversial actions from social media.
This is not the first time Mr. Somali has faced criticism for his actions. Some time ago, he had shared a photo of himself with the photo of former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and said, “I defeated the Korean people for you, Shinzo Abe.”
Although the post on YouTube was later removed, it continued to appear on Instagram with the caption, “RIP Shinzo Abe, I defeated the Koreans for you!”
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In another post on Instagram, Mr Somali can be seen lying and dancing in a local subway in Korea.
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On October 31, Seoul Mapo Police reported that Mr. Somali was being investigated for disrupting business over his behavior at a convenience store. Additionally, police are also investigating allegations of alleged assault and drug use as Somali is currently on an “exit ban” that prevents him from leaving the country.
