Super Junior's Kim Heechul fires back at reporter for commenting about his friends Sulli and Hara

In the April 20 episode of JTBC's 7.7 Billion in Love, Super Junior's Kim Heechul expressed his frustrations against critics and malicious commenters while opening up about the loss of his two good friends, Sulli and Hara.

In the broadcast, Heechul argued that the malicious commenters are not reflecting their rash actions but fighting among one another on “opposite genders.”

He said as translated in English, “I was close with both of them [Sulli and Hara], so there is something that angered me the most after their deaths.

“These days, the two genders are at war. Similar to the hate comments you got, men tormented them with sexual comments while women said they were a disgrace to women. Then they passed away, right? Then both genders began blaming each other.

“'It's your fault,' 'No, it's your fault,' 'No, it's the program's fault.' They kept attacking each other and looked for other things to bash. Then, some hate commenters said that they mourn their deaths.

“I say I wanted to be a celebrity for the rest of my life. But I struggled so much that I had to talk to Dong Yeob.

“I closed down all my social media accounts back then. I was so angry. I couldn't contain my anger every time I read those comments.”

After the broadcast, columnist Wee Geun Woo posted a comment on his Instagram saying he is refuting the idol's opinions.

He wrote, “I don't agree with the concept of gender conflict and the issue of feminism may seem secondary.

“However, even if it is true that there were not only male but also female haters for the late Sulli, some of them had changed their attitude.

"It is a misjudgment to replace the issue as a 'gender conflict issue' and say that both genders were to blame.”

The reporter argued that conflicts between men and women are not relevant to the societal topics of “gender issues.”

He ended his post by claiming, “Kim Heechul's words shouldn't be interpreted as Sulli's thoughts. The more his words are seen as such, the more criticism he should receive.”

In the comments section, Heechul then left a furious response claiming that the perpetrators who posted such malicious comments are seen only as criminals regardless of gender.

He said, “Ahjussi. Is it really important to know whether the commenters are male or female? Regardless of their gender, if they commit crimes, they're criminals.

“Plus, my song 'Charm of Life' is directed towards those people who spread rumors and wrote derogatory comments about me.

“Why do you think it has to do with me calling out feminists? Much less, my many acquaintances and I are still grieving the loss over my two friends whose topic was brought up in the show very carefully.

“Who are you to write anything like this using the names of the deceased?

"I wanted to ignore this because I know this will be the topic of news and this is what you want… But really, you're just doing this s*** to be famous.

“One last thing, do not use the deceased as tools in your petty fights.”

Heechul's comments on Wee Geun Woo's post about his late friends Sulli and Hara. / Source: @plusratioquamvis99 (IG)

And Heechul didn't stop there.

After leaving his comments in Geun Woo's post, he also posted a selfie in 'DC Inside,' a South Korean internet forum, asking his fans to help him fight against cyberbullying.

He wrote, “After bidding farewell to two of my closest friends last year, I lost the interest of keeping my image as a celebrity.

“I told my company that I wanted to rest and receive therapy. But, if I didn't speak up, I thought my fans might pick fights with those trash reports again.

“So, I urge all of you, whoever comes across malicious comments or false accusations involving me, please leave them here in this gallery or wherever you feel comfortable.

“I will personally hire a lawyer and take strict legal actions against them.

Heechul's post on DC Inside. / Source: Kim Heechul

Sulli passed away on October 14 while Goo Hara passed away on November 24.

Following their deaths, many have called for new legislation in South Korea's government to fight against malicious comments on the internet.

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