'Who does he think he is, the president?' Byeon Woo-seok's security team reported to human rights commission for disrupting civilians at airport

Byeon Woo-seok has experienced a meteoric rise to fame since starring in the K-drama Lovely Runner, charming fans and the press alike.

However, recent actions by his security team at Incheon Airport have cast a shadow on the 32-year-old's popularity, and have even reached the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK).

It all started on July 12, when X user 0oXxO_OxXo0 shared their excitement at seeing the South Korean actor at the airport lounge, posting a photo of him.

He was headed to Hong Kong for his July 14 fanmeet.

In the photo, a member of his security team can be seen shining a torch directly at the X user, seemingly to prevent Woo-seok from being photographed.

"Are celebrities so f***ing special? Now they are flashing torches at ordinary people in the Prestige Lounge," an X user quote-replied.

A netizen posted on anonymous forum Theqoo: "He's not even a top star. Who does he think he is, the president?"

"If this was at the airport lounge, wouldn't everyone there be regular people? Why are they doing that to regular people?" another wrote.

Though the CEO of the security company initially apologised for the "over-protection", more footage emerged of the security team disrupting others at the airport beyond just the lounge.

South Korean publication Dispatch showed Woo-seok's security team trying to close an entrance to the terminal after he entered the building, blocking regular airport-goers.

They reportedly also checked the boarding passes and tickets of people nearby Woo-seok to see if they were actual travellers.

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mlp30Xdgo-g&t=5586s&ab_channel=%EB%94%94%EC%8A%A4%ED%8C%A8%EC%B9%98%2FDispatch[/embed]

In another statement to the press, the security company clarified it had not taken the actions based on requests from Woo-seok or his agency and that the airport "is not a place [they] can arbitrarily control".

"If a star has a large fan base, like Byeon Woo-seok, the airport security personnel typically provide support. Of course, they gave us the same support this time, we carried out all actions with mutual agreement," they added.

Despite the security team's insistence that they had worked in conjunction with the airport, a netizen reportedly filed a report to the NHRCK for potential human rights violations against other travellers according to The JoongAng.

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The petition read: "We request the National Human Rights Commission of Korea to thoroughly investigate the case of human rights violations caused by the controversy over Byeon Woo-seok's excessive security in accordance with Article 30 (Subject of Investigation by the Commission) of the National Human Rights Commission Act."

Article 30 allows "a person who has suffered from a violation of human rights or been discriminated against, or any other person or organisation that is aware of such violation or discrimination" to file such a petition with the NHRCK.

The netizen also "strongly urged the Prosecutor General or the head of the competent investigative agency to initiate an investigation and take necessary measures in accordance with Article 34 (Cooperation between the investigative agency and the Commission) of the same Act", which authorises the NHRCK to request for an investigation.

Agency apologises

Woo-seok's agency, Varo Entertainment, also issued a statement of apology today.

"We sincerely apologise for the damage caused to the passengers at Incheon International Airport on July 12 as our artist was making his departure," the statement read.

They wrote that they had asked the security official to stop once they came to know of him using his torch on the public, but were "not aware of the situation at the gate, with airline tickets and the details of the security at the scene".

Nevertheless, they added: "We feel moral responsibility for the unpleasant incidents during the security process and bow our heads in apology to the passengers for any inconvenience caused.

"In the future, we will check more closely to avoid causing any inconveniences to so many people, including airport passengers."

Woo-seok has not commented on the incident himself.

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drimac@asiaone.com