'There Are No Reasons For Rain To Re-Enlist Himself' Ministry Of Defense Rep Says: Congressman Kim Backs Down

A South Korean congressman that was calling for Rain to re-enlist in the army, because of the preferential treatment the K-pop singer was given, has backed down on his demand, his representative told the Korea Daily Star on Thursday.

In the wake of last month's scandal that led to the elimination of the Ministry of Defense's Promotional Support Brigade and the incarceration of seven soldiers serving as PR agents, Congressman Kim Kwang Jin raised the issue in South Korea's Parliament on Wednesday of whether there should be additional punishments handed down to Rain and nine other soldiers.

"During the selection for PR agents, about 10 of them were recruited with incomplete or no paperwork at all," Kim said.

"That is a fact, so the 10 of them should re-enlist."

The following day, Kim's representative denied that the congressman was calling on Rain, and the nine other soldiers who received preferential treatment in their enlistment, to re-enlist.

"An audit was recently done on the recruitment details of PR agents, and Congressman Kim had seen the results of the report," the representative said.

"He did not insist that the PR agents in question should re-enlist. He only raised the question, and hopes that the Ministry of Defense will get to the bottom of it and do something."

Yet a Ministry of Defense spokesperson brushed off the idea of Rain needing to serve additional time in the military.

"There's no need and there are no reasons for Rain to re-enlist himself in the army," the spokesperson said.

"Rain enlisted for the army and was assigned to an active unit. He was then transferred to the PR unit [promotional support brigade] unit before completing his mandatory service as scheduled. Although he did flout the rules during his service, he has already received his punishment and has already been discharged. There's no need for him to re-enlist himself."

Another anonymous Ministry of Defense representative said it was illegal to force Rain to re-enlist, according to the website allkpop.

"Rain's re-enlistment is impossible," the rep said.

"Rain, as well as other celebrity soldiers who have been discharged, has all lawfully completed their service...unless a violation has occurred within military service law, we cannot force re-enlistment."

Congressman Kim's spokesperson also clarified that Rain was not being singled out.

"One of the PR agents in question was Rain, but [Congressman Kim] is not just blaming Rain," the spokesperson said.

Trouble began for the now defunct Promotional Support Brigade, a longtime bastion for pampered celebrities serving their mandatory enlistment, when a film crew from the news program "Scene 21" captured famous soldiers serving as PR agents wandering the streets after curfew out of uniform, chatting on their cellphones and purchasing alcohol at 2 a.m.

K-pop singers Sangchu of the group Mighty Mouth and Se7en were filmed visiting a massage known for providing erotic services.

The pair was sentenced to 10-days in military jail last month, following a probe of the incident conducted by the Ministry of Defense.

Five other active recruits previously serving as PR agents were sentenced to a four-day incarceration at the military prison or "guardhouse" for using cellphones in the "Scene 21" footage.

All eligible males between the ages of 18 and 35 currently must enroll for between 21 and 24 months of army service in South Korea (the length of mandatory enrollment changes by several months depending on which branch of the military that they serve in) in a practice known as conscription.

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