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Korea University Professor Kim Aun-jong (third from the left) announces a statement by professors opposing the government’s plans for a single history textbook

Around 380 Seoul National University professors signed a recent statement opposing state issuance of history textbooks.

The statement, which was released on Oct. 28, included signatures from 372 professors at 23 universities, representing not only the humanities, social sciences, and education but also engineering, medicine, and agriculture and life sciences. Also on the list were ten professors emeriti, including former National Institute of Korean History directors Lee Tae-jin and Jung Ok-ja and inaugural Northeast Asian History Foundation chairperson Kim Yong-duk.

The nearly 400 professors signing the statement represented the largest such number since 2008, when 381 took part in a statement opposing the Lee Myung-bak administration‘s plans for a Grand Korean Waterway.

The participants, who identified themselves as “Seoul National University professors concerned about state history textbook designation,” held a press conference at the Asia Center on SNU’s campus the same morning to demand the state issuance plan’s withdrawal and guarantees on autonomy in textbook development.

Explaining their reasons for participating, the 382 current and retired professors who signed the statement explained, “This is the least we can do to preserve our consciences as scholars and intellectuals who are concerned about democracy in the Republic of Korea and who must bear responsibility before the future.”

In the statement, the professors described the state issuance plan as being “essentially a rash decision motivated by the political concerns of some of the segment in power, rather than issues with textbook narratives as such.”

“If the state issuance system is implemented as is, then not only will history education lose its meaning, but scholarship and education will become political scapegoats and the autonomy, expertise, and neutrality guaranteed by the Constitution will be compromised,” they warned.

A banner behind the speakers at the press conference read, “A country that suppresses differing ideas has no future.”

The statement was drafted after the 59 professors who initiated it sent drafts to colleagues in their different colleges to confirm their participation and check the wording.

“We weren’t expecting the professors emeriti to take part, but apparently a few of them independently volunteered to participate, and then we got word from some of their colleagues as well,” explained Korean history professor Oh Soo-chang.

The list of professors emeriti included Kwon Tae-eok, Kim Jeong-wook, Na Jong-il, Lee Jeong-jeon, Lee Jun-gu, Jang Hoe-ik, and Han Yeong-woo.

Meanwhile, thirteen other academics released a statement the same day announcing plans to boycott the textbook writing process, including all four professors at Incheon National University‘s history and history education department and nine Incheon-area history researchers.

By Choi Woo-ri, staff reporter

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