Newsletter

 The Northeast Asian History Foundation (NAHF) has reached its tenth anniversary as of the year 2016.
To commemorate the occasion, the NAHF newsletter will be featuring a series of interviews with the past presidents of NAHF and the chairmen of its advisory committee to review the progress NAHF activities have made over the last decade and to receive candid advice for the foundation's development.
In this month's issue, chair professor Kim Yong-deok of the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, who served at the first president of NAHF, offers advice on where NAHF should be heading in the future based on the current situation and trends on issues regarding the history and territories of Northeast Asia. -Editor's Note-

Q After you finished serving as the president of the Northeast Asian History Foundation, you became appointed as a chair professor at the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology. It was rather unexpected news, so we would like to begin by asking how you've been doing and what research topics you have lately been interested in.

Kim Yong-deok The end of my term at the Northeast Asian History Foundation (hereinafter NAHF) was also when I reached the age of retirement as professor at Seoul National University, so I had been communicating with a couple of places a few months prior to that, but I preferred to work in Gwangju or in the Honam area. It was in part because I felt a certain degree of moral debt toward Gwangju as an intellectual living in Korea. The Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology was in need of assistance in creating their undergraduate program to educate talents in science, so I happily responded to their call for help. Now I'm guiding the acquisition of knowledge as well as the formation of historical perspectives on Korean culture and Asian wisdom through lectures and seminars such as "East Asian Traditions and Cultures," "Newly Understanding Korean History," and "Special Lectures on Historical Studies." In terms of research interests, I am still trying to wrap up my studies on "Meirokusha (明六社): An Intellectual Movement during the Meiji Restoration," the "History of Historical Studies in Japan," and "Japanese Perception of Nation and Historical Responsibility."

Q NAHF has already reached its 10th anniversary. This must bring back memories for you, especially since you were the foundation's first president. How would you describe what it meant back in 2006 to establish the foundation?

Kim Yong-deok At the time, South Korea was facing issues with China over history, such as the Northeast Project and the history of Mount Baekdu. South Korea also had issues with Japan on the sovereignty of the island Dokdo as well as differing perceptions about history regarding the Japanese military "comfort women" or Japanese history textbook descriptions. The foundation's goal at the beginning was to objectively and academically review such issues within the context of history. In order to do so, the foundation was meant to become a research institute recognized domestically as well as internationally for its excellence in research.

Q The foundation eventually determined its main tasks as conducting research, suggesting policy alternatives, and providing education and promotion. However, it has not been easy to maintain a balance between those three tasks. Did you experience any difficulties in that regard while you were serving as its president?

Kim Yong-deok During my term, the foundation aimed at enhancing its research capabilities and supporting research activities in Korea as well as overseas. We had decided that utilizing quality research outcomes would be the basis to appropriately and efficiently proposing policy alternatives, offering educational programs, and executing promotion. However, it is a shame that the foundation has not been able to reach out more extensively in responding to criticism by the national assembly and the mass media or against one-sided attacks from Jaeya historians when they all tend to be sentimentally sensitive to issues that NAHF mainly deals with.

Q What were the projects or areas NAHF focused on the most during your term as president? Was there anything that particularly left much to be desired?

Kim Yong-deok The foremost task was to properly establish the foundation as a research institute. It is basically very difficult to resolve issues concerning history or territory between the countries directly involved in them. That is why we expected academically viable and rational claims made by South Korea should be able to gain international support. This is also why NAHF made efforts to build academic networks with countries such as Russia, Mongolia, Vietnam, and others in central Asia that have been going through issues similar to those South Korea has been having with Japan and China.

Q Compared to 2006 when NAHF was being established, do you think any change or difference has occurred in the historical issues between South Korea, Japan, and China, in the aspects of conflict surrounding such issues, or in the efforts made by each country to resolve them?

Kim Yong-deok Improvements in the overall relations between South Korea and China has eased the pressure on NAHF to deal with relevant controversial issues, but certainly not enough to neglect them. South Korea's relations with Japan, on the other hand, seems to have grown more rigid. In particular, it is frustrating to find that cooperation between the two countries in academia or civic movements are not at all proceeding as well as they used to ten years ago. It is impossible to arrive at proper solutions by relying on political engineering or governmental justification. Korea does have the potential to function as a lever between the three Northeast Asian countries, but I wonder whether it is truly taking advantage of that potential.

Q The South Korean and Japanese government both claim to have resolved the Japanese military "comfort women" issue, but some do not consider that inter-governmental agreement as a true resolution. Some even say that, out of the past ten years, conflicts over historical issues have intensified more than ever now. Under these circumstances, what kind of role or area should NAHF focus on?

Kim Yong-deok The purpose of the foundation's activities is to discern the essence of each issue and respond to them with convincing scholarly achievements. That means that it is necessary to build a historical and academic basis in order to resolve related issues. Rather than hastily trying to view each issue as particular to South Korea and China or to South Korea and Japan, those issues should be considered as common situations within the wider context of world history. By linking issues concerning Dokdo to the process of past imperialist invasions or by linking those concerning the Japanese military "comfort women" to other ongoing women's rights issues, we should be able to treat those issues more objectively at a domestic level and draw compassion and support for them from the international society.

Q You once suggested the organization of a "South Korea-Japan Committee for Historical Truth and Reconciliation" in February 2014 at a symposium co-hosted by Donga Ilbo and Asahi Shimbun to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Japan's forced annexation of Korea. Is that suggestion still valid?

Kim Yong-deok There was the "South Korea-Japan Joint History Research Committee" before that, but it seems to have failed to produce longstanding results because the committee worked under time-limited government support. The committee I suggested, on the other hand, was intended as a group purely consisting of scholars uninhibited by time and free from governmental influence. I thought it would be good to first hold discussions to agree on what issues to cover, then exchange ideas on how to resolve the issues, and after that go through a process of sequentially arriving at a consensus on substantive truths, and finally reach a decision on which path to take for future reconciliation.

Q At a conference held by the Korea-Japan Historical Society in September 2015, you pointed out that "there is a serious, fundamental problem with how post-war generations in Japan perceive their own country." What did you mean by that "serious, fundamental problem"?

Kim Yong-deok That problem has to do with whether post-war generations, who take up a huge proportion of the Japanese population today, should take responsibility for its country's past wrong-doings committed prior to the war. Japan's Prime Minister Abe seems to think they shouldn't have to do so, which could be why he claimed that Japan no longer needs to apologize. Yet, today's Japan exists upon the continuity of history. If the people of Japan are indeed constituents of Japan as a nation, that means they are altogether responsible for carrying the weight of the properties, be they positive or negative, that history has imposed upon Japan as a "historical substance."

Why does Germany persist in taking responsibility for pre-war crimes and educate their post-war generations to be aware of them? It is because Germans recognize themselves as constituents of a country that is also a "historical substance." My take is that the problem with the Japanese perception of history comes from an insufficient awareness of their own nation. Of course, what is more important than apologizing is to act upon apologies. Wouldn't we then be able to gauge the sincerity of those apologies?

Q Diplomatic conflicts over any issue between governments tend to be considered a constant in international politics. The real concern is that they might cause the sentiment between the people of two different countries to grow cold against one another.

Kim Yong-deok The people's dissatisfaction is something the Korean government is burdened with as much as its Japanese counterpart. The South Korean government must realize that the remaining victims of the comfort women system are seeking a sincere apology from Japan, not monetary reparation before they pass away. Very few have survived to this day out of all the victims of the Japanese military comfort women system, but thinking that coming up with resolutions only for those remaining few is an oversight on the issue's essence. A resolution must be sought from deeply considering how to treat all those other countless victims who have already vanished. The phrase "final and irrevocable" is none other than a consent to Japan's intention to restrain Korea within the confines of that phrase. That is a testament to how insincere Japan's attempts to apologize have been so far. And that is why the actions following an apology are more important than the apology itself.

Q As conflicts continue to grow in Northeast Asia, many say the Abe administration deserves the greatest blame. However, Prime Minister Abe as well as the members of his cabinet do not seem to think they have done anything wrong. What do you think they stand to gain by doing so, or do you think they have some sort of ulterior motive?

Kim Yong-deok They are trying to elevate Japan's status as a nation in the international society. By aiming to "normalize" itself according to the rationale that a nation should possess military power tantamount to its power as a nation, it seems as if they are planning to secure a major post in building a framework for international order. Perhaps they intend to act upon their political ambition to play alongside the United States the role of a power in Asia keeping China in check.

Q As an expert on Korea-Japan relations, how would you diagnose the relations' present state and predict its future?

Kim Yong-deok Although the recently reached agreement between the two countries is said to be "final and irrevocable," no one believes it possible to remain faithful to those words in carrying out the agreement and that is how things are actually turning out to be in reality. Wouldn't it be safe to say that the agreement was more of a "stopgap measure" introduced by the two governments? There seems to be a need to put more effort into changing the perceptions the Japanese have. Koreans should refrain from reacting emotionally and let conscientious Japanese people with correct perceptions of history share their thoughts and opinions more widely with their fellow citizens. This takes patience and composure on the part of Koreans as they observe changes occurring in Japan. Hopes for the Abe administration may not be high, but politics in Japan may present changes at some point.

Q As a seasoned scholar in historical research, what do think NAHF should aim for over the next ten years?

Kim Yong-deok The foundation should continue to establish itself as a research institute highly regarded domestically as well as overseas. In order to do so, the foundation should remain faithful to its original goal and not be swayed by instant criticism. It should be able to keep up with local and international developments in historical, territorial research and strive to improve its own research capabilities. It will also be necessary for the foundation to remain committed to long-term projects that no other institution is capable of carrying out.