Kim Dong-yeon "Basic Income Payment for Cultural Artists Within Term"

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon (fourth from the left in the front row) is taking a commemorative photo after holding a meeting with cultural artists such as film directors and webtoon writers at Bucheon City Hall on the 7th.

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Kim Dong-yeon, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, announced that he will provide a basic income for artists during his term.

On the 7th, before the red carpet event at the Bucheon Fantastic Film Festival opening ceremony, Governor Kim held a meeting at Bucheon City Hall with eight creators and producers from the webtoon, animation, and film sectors, including director Baek Jae-ho (film 'Citizen Roh Moo-hyun') and Kim Dong-hoon, chairman of the Webtoon Artists Labor Union. He stated, "The imagination and creativity of artists can bring unexpected big hits to our society and economy," and promised, "I will provide a basic income for artists during my term."

He especially emphasized, "To prepare for industries that will develop in the future and for things we cannot even imagine, there must be more people who choose to take completely different paths, who try to find what they want to do, and who have the potential to bring unexpected big hits to our society and economy through the safety net of basic income."

Governor Kim added, "I will definitely implement the basic income for artists during my term. It may not be large, and the scope and timing are uncertain, but crossing the threshold is important."

This has attracted attention recently as it overlaps with BTS's military enlistment. BTS members are scheduled to enlist sequentially starting at the end of this year. However, some argue that considering BTS has elevated South Korea's cultural status through over ten years of activity, they should be exempted from military service.

In response, President Yoon Suk-yeol stated that he will "follow the will of the people."

Earlier, when he was a governor-elect, Kim announced the introduction of the 'Gyeonggi Chance for Cultural Artists,' the first of its kind nationwide, which provides an annual creative support fund of 1 million KRW per cultural artist in the province.

In relation to this, the province is investing 3.2 billion KRW this year to conduct the '2022 Gyeonggi-do Artist Creative Support Fund Pilot Project,' providing 1 million KRW annually to cultural artists in five cities and counties: Seongnam, Uiwang, Yeoju, Dongducheon, and Yeoncheon.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.