SEVENTEEN’s Wonwoo’s Military Enlistment Sparks Controversy Among Netizens As He Will Be Serving As A Public Servant, One Says “It’s Surprising…”
SEVENTEEN’s Wonwoo recently announced his military enlistment. While many congratulated him, others strongly opposed his service as a public servant. Read on.
Wonwoo Military Enlistment News ( Photo Credit – Instagram )
Advertisement
Jeon Won-Woo, or Wonwoo as he is known publicly, is a South Korean singer and rapper. He debuted in the musical industry with SEVENTEEN in 2015 and later joined its subunit JxW in 2024. After a long wait, Wonwoo’s agency, Pledis Entertainment, has officially shared the news of his military enlistment. As soon as the announcement date was declared, it sparked heated controversy online regarding his service as a public servant.
Among the thirteen band members, including S.Coups, Jeonghan, Joshua, Jun, Hoshi, Woozi, DK, Mingyu, The8, Seungkwan, Vernon, and Dino, Jeon Won-Woo is the second one to enlist in the military after Jeonghan, who enrolled last year in September. Scroll more to find out how netizens have been reacting to Wonwoo’s military enlistment announcement.
As per Pledis Entertainment’s official statement, “We would like to share the news that Wonwoo of SEVENTEEN will be starting his mandatory military service from April 3 this year. As such, he will not be able to attend any of SEVENTEEN’s engagements after his enlistment, including the upcoming Tecate Pa’l Norte 2025 festival and Japan fan meeting in April. As announced before, Wonwoo will be participating in the “SEVENTEEN in CARAT LAND” concert as scheduled from March 20 to 21 and will be appearing in various pre-recorded content.”
The notice continued, “There will be no official event on the day of his enlistment, and we kindly request that you refrain from visiting the site of his alternative military service. Please send your heartfelt messages of support for Wonwoo through Weverse.” They further asked for love and support from his fans until his safe return.
Even though many of his fans congratulated him and wished for his healthy return, it sparked a debate over his choice of being a public servant rather than an active-duty officer. Korean netizens argued that the artists often get an alternative service assignment, whereas ordinary men have to go through active-duty services, despite any issues. A lot of people argued that if there are no legitimate health issues, then public service projects should not be distributed so easily.
As per TheQoo, one of them commented, “Does this group even have any members serving as active-duty soldiers?” Another stated, “If he doesn’t seem to have any major health issues, then of course people are going to wonder why he’s assigned to public service.” One of the K-netizens pointed out, “I’m sure there’s a reason he’s assigned to public service, but it’s still surprising… They even send cancer patients to active duty.”
It is known to everyone that in South Korea, every man needs to undergo a military service period. Before every enlistment, they go through a thorough health checkup, and if anyone suffers from any health issues, they are given public service assignments instead of active duty. As the reasons behind why Wonwoo would be serving public service is yet to be disclosed, it left the Korean netizens confused.
What do you think about this?
For more of the latest Korean updates, stay tuned to Koimoi!
