The five members of NewJeans, whose 'NJZ' individual activities have been stalled, announced a suspension of activities.

On the 23rd, after performing their final stage at the 'ComplexCon Hong Kong' held at the RAY AsiaWorld-Expo in Hong Kong, the members of NewJeans read a prepared note to announce their suspension of activities.

The members said, "This stage holds great significance for us, and the presence of everyone here gives us great strength," adding, "It weighs heavily on our hearts to convey this. Today's stage may be our last performance for a while. We have decided to stop all activities out of respect for the court's decision."

They continued, "It's not an easy decision, but we hope to regain our strength and move forward. We want you to know that this is not the end. We will definitely return, and when we do, we want to meet you with bright smiles. Thank you so much, and we love you. The five of us will always think of the Bunnies, so please stay healthy, eat well, sleep well, and have a joyful life."

The members unilaterally declared the termination of their exclusive contract with ADOR after holding an emergency press conference on Nov. 28 last year. In response, ADOR sought legal confirmation from the Seoul Central District Court that the exclusive contract remains valid and filed a lawsuit to confirm the validity of the exclusive contract. On the 21st, the 50th Civil Division of the Seoul Central District Court, presided over by Chief Judge Kim Sang-hoon, accepted ADOR's request for a provisional injunction against the five members of NewJeans regarding 'the preservation of agency status and prohibition of entering into advertising contracts.'

According to the decision document, the court ruled on several issues, including the production vacancy caused by the dismissal of ADOR CEO Min Hee-jin, a statement from HYBE CEO Park Ji-won saying, "We will give a long vacation to Kim Min-ji and others," the dispute between director Shin Woo-seok and ADOR, a phrase stating 'New Jeans will be made anew if we throw away the old' found in HYBE's music industry report dated May 10, 2023, the infringement on the uniqueness of NewJeans by Ilyit's associated with Belift Lab, Hanni hearing dismissive comments from a manager associated with Belift Lab, the leak of photographs and videos from Kim Min-ji and others during their trainee days, remarks undermining NewJeans' achievements made by a PR official at HYBE, the devaluation of NewJeans' achievements due to HYBE's album push practices, and a statement by HYBE Chief Strategy Officer Lee Jae-sang saying, "I am considering ruining both Min Hee-jin and NewJeans by damaging the NewJeans brand value." The court concluded that it found it difficult to see sufficient evidence that ADOR had violated important obligations of the exclusive contract based solely on the claims and materials submitted by Kim Min-ji and others so far.

As the individual activities of 'NJZ' came to a halt, NewJeans was preparing for a concert in Hong Kong. In response, ADOR noted, "This weekend's ComplexCon performance will be sufficiently supported on site to proceed under the name of NewJeans, which is part of ADOR," and NewJeans departed on the 22nd for a performance on the 23rd.

The announcement of their suspension of activities drew more attention as it occurred just a day after the contents of an interview with TIME magazine were revealed. In a recent interview published by TIME, the members of NewJeans said, "We were disappointed by the court's ruling, but we didn't expect the issues in the K-pop industry to change overnight. Compared to everything we've experienced so far, this is just another stage in our journey. This is the reality in Korea. However, that is why we believe we need change and growth. It seems as though Korea wants to make us revolutionaries."

In particular, even before the announcement of their suspension of activities, the members of NewJeans demonstrated their communication with fans through their NJZ social media account. While respecting the court's decision, they did not hide their discomfort in interviews with foreign media, stating, "We were disappointed by the court's ruling," and, "It seems Korea wants to make us revolutionaries," leading to expectations of ongoing tension. However, just a day after the public release of the 'revolutionary' interview, they announced a temporary halt of their activities, drawing attention to their underlying motives.

Meanwhile, the main trial date to confirm the validity of NewJeans' exclusive contract is scheduled to take place on April 3.

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