A South Korean government minister has called for exempting K-pop group BTS from mandatory military service, as the nation remains divided over preferential treatment for the megastars.
"It would be a national loss," Culture Minister Hwang Hee said in a statement on Wednesday on making the boy band serve time in the military. It would also be a "cultural loss for mankind" if the singers have to "suspend their activities due to the fulfilment of their military service obligations when their achievements in promoting national prestige and their skills are at their peak".
