Lee’s reaction to list of pro-Japanese collaborators draws criticism

Posted on : 2008-05-01 13:08 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Reconciliation should be viewed broadly, in terms of national reconciliation, Lee says
 the director of the Institute for Research in Collaborationist Activities
the director of the Institute for Research in Collaborationist Activities

President Lee Myung-bak and the ruling Grand National Party’s critical stance toward a list of people alleged to be pro-Japanese collaborators has incited strong resistance from the related organizations. The groups worry that the new government’s attitude will deepen social conflicts.

The list of 4,776 people named as pro-Japanese collaborators during Japanese rule of the Korean Peninsula from 1910 to 1945 was released on April 29 by the Institute for Research in Collaborationist Activities and the Committee for Publication of a Directory of the Biographies of Pro-Japanese Collaborators. The directory will be published in full in August following additional research and confirmation.

Following the announcement, President Lee made critical comments, saying that the matter should be viewed in terms of national reconciliation. GNP Chairperson Kang Jae-seop agreed with Lee, saying that picking at the past excessively would be an obstacle to the future.

A few conservative media outlets whose owners were included on the list also criticized the announcement. The Chosun Ilbo reported on April 30 that the results of audits conducted by the Board of Audit and Inspection should be consolidated with a presidential committee on historical issues. The Dong-a Ilbo also took issue with the list, citing comments made by people whose ancestors are on the list and officials from a memorial foundation whose mission is to honor historical figures, like Park Chung-hee, who have been identified as pro-Japanese collaborators.

In response, Im Heon-young, the director of the Institute for Research in Collaborationist Activities, said, “There is a broad social agreement in relation to clarifying the truths of pro-Japanese cooperation. President Lee and the leaders of the GNP may have forgiven Japan and the collaborators, but they shouldn’t force the general population to do so.”

Yoon Gyeong-ro, the head of the Committee for the Publication of a Directory of the Biographies of Pro-Japanese Collaborators, remarked that the list was unveiled after the presidential and National Assembly election so as not to cause unnecessary misunderstandings, adding that they could push ahead with the project, despite outside pressure, thanks to the enthusiastic support of the public.

The project was initiated in 2002, but suspended temporarily because the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs, currently known as the Ministry of Public Administration and Security, stopped subsidizing the project in 2004. After the ministry’s actions were made public, various Internet sites launched fund-raising campaigns, according to Seo U-yeong, an official of the institute. The online campaigns raised about 750 million won, which became the seed money for the continuation of the work.

Many of Korea’s netizens have posted messages on the Internet denouncing President Lee’s remarks. Lee’s Internet site was temporarily shut down because of messages critical of his remarks about the list and his decision to open the beef market to U.S. beef. More than 5,000 messages criticizing Lee’s remarks have been posted next to a newspaper article on the subject.

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