Why Even BTS Can’t Save The 2023 World Scout Jamboree

Recently, the Korean government called on BTS to help them save face regarding the disastrous 25th World Scout Jamboree that has been taking place in Korea.

BTS | BIGHIT MUSIC

While it is understandable the lengths the government would go to save face, including finding ways for the group’s enlisted members J-Hope and Jin to participate in the concert that will be taking place on August 11, many believe too much has gone on with this event for that to happen.

The World Scout Jamboree is an event that takes place every four years, inviting thousands of teenagers to a location for a youth camp. The 2023 edition of the event started on August 1 in Korea and almost immediately attracted negative attention for the numerous reported issues.

| scouts.org

The attendees set up camp in the middle of a tideland with no natural shade. This and the high temperatures led to over 400 attendees needing heat treatment before the first day ended, though no hospitals were nearby.

| SBS Attendees of the World Scout Jamboree resting in the heat | JTBC

Other reported issues included shower tents that were easy to see through, a lack of lighting in restrooms, and an overall problem with cleanliness and hygiene.

There were also swarms of bugs caused by the lack of a drainage system, including mosquitos, and mold was found in eggs meant for the campers’ consumption.

| SBS | SBS

Netizens expressed their shock at these conditions and the cost of attending the event, wondering where the ₩200 billion KRW (about $153 million USD)  budget the Ministry Of Gender Equality and Family was given went.

Koreans Are Humiliated At How Disastrous The 2023 World Scout Jamboree Held In Korea Is — 400 Kids Suffering From Heatstrokes

The conditions led the United States and the United Kingdom’s participants to leave the area and retreat to Seoul. Just a day later, the rest of the event’s attendees were relocated to Seoul in advance of Typhoon Khanun‘s expected landfall.

Khanun had already reached Japan, causing evacuations, power blackouts, and even two deaths.

Buses transport the attendees and adult volunteers out of Saemangeum. | Yonhap

The event has also faced backlash over the canceled K-Pop Super Concert that was supposed to take place on August 6. The rescheduled concert directly conflicts with the 2023 Jeonju Ultimate Music Festival (JUMF) and is accused of trying to steal performers.

Today (6th), the organizers of the Jamboree event contacted me. They asked for understanding about their plan to have the headliners of Friday’s JUMF perform at Jamboree’s closing K-Pop concert on the same day—one hour before the festival. I was utterly dumbfounded by their request.

— Lee Tae Dong, organizer of JUMF

NewJeans was added to the concert’s line-up, and it seems the Korean government, much to K-Army’s annoyance, is attempting to get BTS to perform as well.

While a BTS group performance would typically be significantly anticipated, the 25th World Scout Jamboree has been too disastrous for even the most popular boy group in the world to save.