As far as the academic circle of history can see, the essence of the history textbook that is desired by the New Right, government and ruling party is the ‘national foundation of Republic of Korea in 1948.’
This theory of ‘national foundation in 1948,’ which the New Right scholars have made an all-out fight for and the ruling party has gradually pushed ahead as the center of our history, will be the major standard to tell the biased nature of the proposed state designated history textbook.
Even though the Constitution of Korea considers the establishment of the Provisional Government in Shanghai in 1919 to mark the national foundation, the New Right have constantly tried to move and fix the time of the national foundation at August 15, 1948, when the Republic of Korea formally came into being. In fact, the Grand National (now-Saenuri) Party lawmakers have submitted ‘Bill on the Privileges for Persons of Merit in National Foundation’ three times, in 2003, 2006 and 2008. According to the provisions of the bill, “the state shall confer an adequate decoration and provide proper privileges on persons of merit and their surviving families, who have either opposed to trusteeship or acted to establish the Republic of Korea, between the period after the liberation in 1945 and the year 1948.”
This promotion of a new national foundation day reached its peak in 2008, as former President Lee Myung-bak declared the “60th year since national foundation” in his congratulatory speech for Korea’s independence on August 15, and as the GNP lawmakers submitted a motion to “celebrate August 15 as National Foundation Day, rather than National Liberation Day.” This talk about ‘national foundation,’ after receiving the worst public opinion and bad press, subsided for a while. Then it appeared again this year, as President Park Geun-hye mentioned the “67th year since national foundation.” Then Kim Jung-bae, the Chairman of the National Institute of Korean History as well as Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn criticized the phrase “establishment of government by the Republic of Korea” in current history textbooks while they pushed ahead with the idea of a state authorized version. All these seem to contribute to presenting the ‘national foundation theory’ as a fait accompli. The 2015 History Curriculum, which is the blueprint for the textbook to be used from the year 2017, has largely reduced the description of Korea’s independence movement already, saying that it is to mitigate the burden on students’ study. It also changed the phrase the “establishment of government by the Republic of Korea” under the present curriculum into the “establishment of the Republic of Korea.”
Yet in a Real Meter poll conducted immediately after President Park’s mention of the “67th year since our national foundation,” three times more respondents answered that Korea’s national foundation was in “the year 1919, at the time of March 1st Movement and establishment of Provisional Government (63.9%),” compared to those who have chosen “the year 1948, at the time of the establishment of South Korean government.” According to the Constitution, historical material and public opinion, the year of foundation for South Korea is the year 1919, and very solidly so.
They why are the New Right so focused on the foundation of the Republic Korea in 1948? The academic circle of history explains that if the year 1948 is accepted as the year of our national foundation, it is possible to separate or reduce the history of independence movement under Japan’s colonial rule as a thing of distant past. And then it is possible for those who had cooperated with Japan and still remained active after 1945 to delete their pro-Japanese past, to become persons of merit who worked for national foundation. The issues of national foundation, legitimacy of our provisional government, pro-Japanese past and Korea’s independence movement are all interlinked. The moment this theory of national foundation gains force, the history of our independence movement and the persons involved will be dwarfed--the history which we should never forget, as this year’s Korean box office hit, the ‘Assassination,’ has declared loud and clear.
Park Han-yong, Director of Education and Promotion at the Center for Historical Truth and Justice says, “Those who insist on the National Foundation Day regard the period until August 1945 as the period of independence movement and then three years after liberation as the period of national foundation movement. The argument for National Foundation Day has two purposes--first, to separate Korea’s provisional government as something related to our independence but not to the current Republic of Korea and second, to transform the pro-Japanese people into those of merit in national foundation, hence giving them immunity.” Professor Han Sang-kwon of Duksung Women’s University explains, “In a history that connects the provisional government, the independence movement and the Liberation Day, it is impossible to look away from the issue of the anti-Japanese and the pro-Japanese. But the current government changed that in the new textbook: by writing the establishment of the Republic of Korea instead of the establishment of government by the Republic of Korea, it naturally separates the National Foundation Day so that the pro-Japanese can be incorporated into the talk of merit for our national foundation. It is approaching that goal step by step.”
This theory of ‘national foundation in 1948,’ which the New Right scholars have made an all-out fight for and the ruling party has gradually pushed ahead as the center of our history, will be the major standard to tell the biased nature of the proposed state designated history textbook.
A member of Korean Veterans Association is making a speech at the National Support for State Authorized History Text Book, held on November 5th at Seoul Station Plaza. The sight is reflected in another member’s sunglasses. /Yonhap News
Even though the Constitution of Korea considers the establishment of the Provisional Government in Shanghai in 1919 to mark the national foundation, the New Right have constantly tried to move and fix the time of the national foundation at August 15, 1948, when the Republic of Korea formally came into being. In fact, the Grand National (now-Saenuri) Party lawmakers have submitted ‘Bill on the Privileges for Persons of Merit in National Foundation’ three times, in 2003, 2006 and 2008. According to the provisions of the bill, “the state shall confer an adequate decoration and provide proper privileges on persons of merit and their surviving families, who have either opposed to trusteeship or acted to establish the Republic of Korea, between the period after the liberation in 1945 and the year 1948.”
This promotion of a new national foundation day reached its peak in 2008, as former President Lee Myung-bak declared the “60th year since national foundation” in his congratulatory speech for Korea’s independence on August 15, and as the GNP lawmakers submitted a motion to “celebrate August 15 as National Foundation Day, rather than National Liberation Day.” This talk about ‘national foundation,’ after receiving the worst public opinion and bad press, subsided for a while. Then it appeared again this year, as President Park Geun-hye mentioned the “67th year since national foundation.” Then Kim Jung-bae, the Chairman of the National Institute of Korean History as well as Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn criticized the phrase “establishment of government by the Republic of Korea” in current history textbooks while they pushed ahead with the idea of a state authorized version. All these seem to contribute to presenting the ‘national foundation theory’ as a fait accompli. The 2015 History Curriculum, which is the blueprint for the textbook to be used from the year 2017, has largely reduced the description of Korea’s independence movement already, saying that it is to mitigate the burden on students’ study. It also changed the phrase the “establishment of government by the Republic of Korea” under the present curriculum into the “establishment of the Republic of Korea.”
Yet in a Real Meter poll conducted immediately after President Park’s mention of the “67th year since our national foundation,” three times more respondents answered that Korea’s national foundation was in “the year 1919, at the time of March 1st Movement and establishment of Provisional Government (63.9%),” compared to those who have chosen “the year 1948, at the time of the establishment of South Korean government.” According to the Constitution, historical material and public opinion, the year of foundation for South Korea is the year 1919, and very solidly so.
They why are the New Right so focused on the foundation of the Republic Korea in 1948? The academic circle of history explains that if the year 1948 is accepted as the year of our national foundation, it is possible to separate or reduce the history of independence movement under Japan’s colonial rule as a thing of distant past. And then it is possible for those who had cooperated with Japan and still remained active after 1945 to delete their pro-Japanese past, to become persons of merit who worked for national foundation. The issues of national foundation, legitimacy of our provisional government, pro-Japanese past and Korea’s independence movement are all interlinked. The moment this theory of national foundation gains force, the history of our independence movement and the persons involved will be dwarfed--the history which we should never forget, as this year’s Korean box office hit, the ‘Assassination,’ has declared loud and clear.
Park Han-yong, Director of Education and Promotion at the Center for Historical Truth and Justice says, “Those who insist on the National Foundation Day regard the period until August 1945 as the period of independence movement and then three years after liberation as the period of national foundation movement. The argument for National Foundation Day has two purposes--first, to separate Korea’s provisional government as something related to our independence but not to the current Republic of Korea and second, to transform the pro-Japanese people into those of merit in national foundation, hence giving them immunity.” Professor Han Sang-kwon of Duksung Women’s University explains, “In a history that connects the provisional government, the independence movement and the Liberation Day, it is impossible to look away from the issue of the anti-Japanese and the pro-Japanese. But the current government changed that in the new textbook: by writing the establishment of the Republic of Korea instead of the establishment of government by the Republic of Korea, it naturally separates the National Foundation Day so that the pro-Japanese can be incorporated into the talk of merit for our national foundation. It is approaching that goal step by step.”
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