The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won suffered criticisms after a horse used on set died a week after a fall incident. The network of the series, KBS, issued an apology to animal lovers and those people who were affected by the loss.
The company initially uploaded the episode's behind-the-scene footage but immediately took it down following the emergence of criticisms. Still, organizations dedicated to animal's welfare broke their silence and called out the series amid the controversy.
"It is a shame and a backwards step for a public broadcaster to treat an animal as a prop," KARA said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the Korean Animal Welfare Association (KAWA) had a meeting with KBS, and it revealed what they came up with after the discussion.
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KAWA, KBS Talked About The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won's Issue
The KAWA released a statement about its meeting with KBS over the incident involving a horse on the set of The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won that eventually died.
It requested an interview with KBS to find the truth about the incident and prevent it from occurring again. The head of the KBS Drama Center, the series' executive producer, and the head of the Drama Center's planning and operation team reportedly attended the meeting.
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KAWA reportedly told them they called for "new established guidelines on animal welfare." The group also demanded an animal filming ethics committee which would include experts, animal organizations, and more staff who are experienced in animal welfare and safety.
KAWA also demanded KBS to have animal welfare experts in their viewer committee.
KBS agreed to the association's call and pledged to plan measures to ensure animals' safety on set.
KBS Released Another Statement After Meeting
After having thorough talks with KAWA, the network said it would work to "respect the value of life." It acknowledged in the statement that the company feels deeply responsible for failing to protect the life of the horse on The King of Tears, Lee Bang Won set.
With that, it issued its sincere apologies to the viewers and the public again.
"In order to ensure this type of accident does not occur again, we will prepare production regulations regarding animal safety and welfare as soon as possible. We will take the advice and reprimands from viewers and related organizations seriously. KBS will not only independently identify the exact details of the incident, but will also faithfully participate in investigations with external organizations."
In the end, KBS said it would do its best to improve the overall production set to prevent the "disgraceful" event from happening again.
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