Published : Aug. 16, 2011 - 18:49
K-pop idol group JYJ has been appointed PR ambassador for an international forum on AIDS in the Asia Pacific region to be held in Busan next week, the organizer said Tuesday.
The 10th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific, or ICAAP10, will take place from Aug. 26 to Aug. 30 in Bexco in Busan, gathering more than 4,000 AIDS experts from 70 countries in Asia Pacific. It will be the largest AIDS conference in the region and the first international AIDS-related conference in Korea.
Kim Jun-su (left) and Park Yu-chun of the K-pop idol group JYJ pose for a photo at a hotel in Seoul, after being appointed PR ambassadors of the 10th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific, which will kick off on Aug. 26 in Busan. (Park Hae-mook/The Korea Herald)
The three member group, consisting of former TVXQ members Junsu, Yuchun and Jejung, received the letter of appointment at the Imperial Palace Hotel in southern Seoul.
“As the PR ambassador, I have learned that AIDS patients can lead a healthy life with proper medical care. We will try our best to raise awareness in Asia,” said Park Yu-chun.
“The appointment of JYJ to PR ambassador for the conference will help share common regional goals in Asia Pacific to prevent and fight against AIDS,” said Cho Myung-hwan, chairman of the local organizing committee of ICAAP10.
Cho added that the appointment of the youth pop culture icon as the PR ambassador for the AIDS conference symbolizes that Korea serves the international community not only with economic growth but with cultural power and social responsibility.
Coming into the 30th year since the discovery of AIDS, the upcoming forum will be attended by Fiji President Ratu Epeli Nailatikau, UNAIDS executive director Michel Sidibe, WHO Western Pacific regional director Shin Young-soo and officials from World Bank, ADB and the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
By Kim Yoon-mi (yoonmi@heraldcorp.com)