Ha Young Responds to Allegations Her Great-Grandfather Was Pro-Japanese Collaborator

A representative from Ha Young’s agency, BISTUS Entertainment, confirmed to Sports Today on August 10th that her great-grandfather was Ahn Sang Ho, while denying the allegations surrounding him as “baseless.”

Ha Youngpreviously spoke about her great-grandfather on the KBS2 variety show Problem Child in House. She said he had studied medicine in Japan, opened the first Western-style clinic in Hanyang (present-day Seoul), and treated Emperor Gojong.

Although Ha Young did not reveal his full name on the show, some viewers later speculated online that her great-grandfather was Ahn Sang Ho.

The allegations resurfaced after people looked into Ahn Sang Ho’s past. In a series of articles published in the Chosun Ilbo’s official publication Maeil Sinbo in December 1918, Ahn was quoted as saying, “I am just like a Japanese person. I never wear Korean clothes now, and I can’t eat spicy food at all.”

A family photo showing Ahn wearing Western-style clothing with his Japanese wife and five children also circulated online, fueling speculation about his ties to Japan and allegations that he collaborated with the Japanese colonial government.

Ha Young currently stars in the Netflix series Our Sticky Love, which premiered on August 7th.

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