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K-pop band Blackpink’s Vietnam concert in hot water over South China Sea map
- Chinese organiser iME Entertainment’s website is under scrutiny over criticism from fans that it shows a map of the waterway with disputed boundaries
- The girl group is due to perform in Hanoi for the first time ever on July 29-30
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Vietnam has launched an inspection into K-pop group Blackpink’s tour organiser’s website, ahead of its concert in Hanoi, over criticism from fans that it shows a map of the South China Sea with disputed boundaries.
The controversy follows Vietnam’s decision to ban Warner Bros’ highly-anticipated film Barbie over a scene allegedly featuring the “nine-dash line” used in Chinese maps to illustrate Beijing’s claims over vast areas of the South China Sea, including swathes of what Vietnam considers its continental shelf.
Vietnam’s culture ministry said late on Wednesday it had ordered an inspection of the website “to verify the suspicion that the company organising the Blackpink music night promoted the cow-tongue line”, using the Vietnamese phrase to describe the U-shaped line.
The ministry did not immediately respond to questions about the possible outcome of the inspection. It was unclear when it would announce its findings.
Chinese organiser iME Entertainment and South Korean agency YG Entertainment, which manages Blackpink, had no immediate comment.
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