The three-day “Forum on Recognition of History and East Asian Peace” concluded on Monday in Tokyo. Civic groups, including South Korea’s Asia Peace & History Education Network, have held the annual forum alternately in South Korea, China and Japan. This was the eighth forum. The first was held in Nanjing, China, prompted by the 2002 appearance of a distorted history textbook compiled in Japan by the far-right group Japanese Society for History Textbook Reform. In 2005, researchers and professors from all three nations formed a joint history compilation committee and released a book on modern and contemporary East Asian history entitled, “History for the Future.” This was a case of private citizens guiding along an effort to support the formation of an East Asian community of peace and reconciliation.

The topic of this year’s forum was “East Asia’s Possibilities and the Power to Create Peace.” The presenters at the forum, including researchers, professors and civic activists, emphasized that the creation of a peaceful and prosperous East Asian community first requires the countries to overcome recognition of history based on self-centered historical accounts and history education. In other words, a bright future for East Asia appears unlikely as long as the three countries continue adhering to an approach focused on the economy, materialism, prosperity and the military, and reflecting this in their historical awareness. Moreover, the presenters agreed that the three nations share an awareness of a history tainted by war and colonial rule, and that practical measures to overcome this would need to serve as the driving force opening up possibilities of a future of peace.

Most talked about at the forum was the arrival of a new Democratic Party of Japan administration that has shown an advanced approach to historical awareness. The situation in Japan has been seen as the greatest obstacle to reaching a shared historical awareness among the three countries, and participants’ expectations for a major change in the country’s stance was greatly reflected in the forum. Since the distorted textbooks were authorized during the Liberal Democratic Party administration in Japan, participants have had to spend their time campaigning against textbook adoption after they had already been produced. Many said that under Prime Minister Hatoyama Yukio, who has said that he “has the courage to look squarely at the past,” they now see the possibility of preventing the appearance of any more distorted history textbooks during the authorization stage.

Japan is scheduled to announce its authorizations for middle school textbooks in the spring of 2011. This will be the first set of authorizations based on the New Fundamental Law of Education, which emphasizes patriotism. If this issue is left alone, we can expect even more chaos than before. The South Korean government should not leave everything for civic groups to handle. From this moment forward, it needs to use the new ideas about historical understanding in the Hatoyama administration and take thorough measures to ensure that no more distorted history textbooks are produced. It is time for our government to take the initiative.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]