On the November 12th episode of MBC’s “Golden Fishery,” JYP opened up about Jaebum:

“When the news about his anti-Korean statements was first released, I believed that the level of criticism against him was too extreme. People even petitioned for his suicide. But after he left for America, the public opinion changed, saying ‘the translation was misleading and he did not do anything wrong.” It was like he actually did not do any wrong. His thoughts and mine on this matter are the same. It is somewhere inbetween. What he did was not especially horrible, but it was wrong enough that we couldn’t just ignore it and pretend it didn’t happen. It was a huge mistake. Especially for a performer, who sings, dances and performs art. We are the ones who connect different cultures, and he cannot disrespect people of a different culture like that. I believe that what he said was very wrong.

“Is Jaebum a bad kid? No, he is very kind. However, in the past, his attitude was pretty disrespectful, telling me to my face that he can succeed only if he doesn’t do a song written by me. Still, I liked Jaebum despite his bad attitude, because he never lied; he couldn’t lie. And then, he continued to change. Now, he is a different person from who he was back then. I do agree that Jaebum of the past hurt many Koreans with harsh words, and Jaebum thinks the same way. Because of that shame, he couldn’t get back on stage. But the other members still had to perform, and Jaebum did not want to drag 2PM down. That is why he said, ‘Hyung, I want to go back to America.’ If I were him, I think I would have made the same decision.

“If both Jaebum and I thought that accusations against him were wrong, then we would have fought until the end. But even Jaebum thinks that it was a great wrongdoing. If the media and the fans feel any love or understanding for Jaebum, then the best they could do is let him rest. He is taking time to think over what he did wrong, so letting him do so would help.

“To help him, what I can do is help him continue taking dancing and singing lessons, to continue training as an artist. When he wants to be return to the stage, then I will help him do so. When he comes back, Jaebum will come back as a part of 2PM, as all the members want it this way. Neither Jaebum nor the other members want him to return as a solo artist.”

Finally, JYP said, if Jaebum returns, he will return to 2PM. This is what both Jaebum and the other 2PM members want.

Wondergirls’ Ye-eun also expressed her understanding of Jaebum’s past experience. From performing America, she could see how living in a foreign country could be difficult. “Jaebum came to Korea at a really young age, I thought about how difficult that could be.”

In the end, Jaebum’s exact return has not been confirmed, but he willreturn. Perhaps the earlier news reports were just to stir interest in the episode.

Late last month, JYP visited Jaebum in America to give greetings and support to him during this difficult time. It is possible that at that time, JYP talked with the exiled member about the possibility of re-joining 2PM?

So what do you think will happen? Re-join 2PM or go solo?

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