If there’s a topic that continues to linger in between BTS‘ music and schedules, it’s the conversation on the super group’s mandatory military enlistment. Questions whether the septet are exempted from serving the South Korean military or will be enlisting have been a hot topic since last year.
As BTS’ eldest member Jin (29) approaches his 30s (the age to which compulsory military service can be extended, according to the 2020 amendment of the Military Service Act), The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) announced they would be making a decision on the group’s military service by December, according to a report from Naver and Soompi today (October 5).
“Member Jin’s enlistment is set to be sorted out by December, but the MCST will finalize our stance as soon as possible before then,” Minister Park Bo Kyun of the MCST said at the National Assembly’s parliamentary inspection of the administration in Soompi’s report. “We are comprehensively reviewing the issue by looking at various aspects including the points that national defense is a sacred duty, military service is a symbol of fairness, BTS has made Korea known as the vanguard of K-culture and created a huge economic ripple effect, there are equity issues between popular artists including BTS and those who practice fine arts, this will affect the group when one of the BTS members joins the army, there are [results of] public opinion analysis and opinions of men in their 20s, and so on.”
With that being said, the possibility of BTS being exempted from military service is still present. It’s just a matter if the new pending amendment to the Military Service Act will be passed. If passed, the group is freed from military obligation. If their exemption does not apply then members must enlist starting early 2023.