Ryu Hwa-young, formerly a member of K-pop group T-ara, spoke out on Thursday against netizens posting malicious comments about her and her twin sister concerning the bullying controversy in 2012.

The 23-year-old singer-turned-actress was rumored to have been bullied by her bandmates, which include being forced to perform despite an injury. She appeared in a local TV show last Wednesday with her twin sister to discuss the incident.

But a recent internet posting by a self-proclaimed former staff member of her then-agency assessed that she had faked the injury, and her sister Hyo-young -- also a singer-turned-actress -- sent threatening messages to members of T-ara.

In a posting titled “Dear malicious commenters,” Ryu urged the internet users to “settle down.” She said the incident had occurred because she and the other members were young and immature.

The message, however, sparked a negative response from some fans who pointed out that it was ironic for her to say such words when Ryu herself had dragged the skeleton out of the closet




By Yoon Min-sik
(minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)