Goguryo History Is Related to Survival of Korean Nation

The National Assembly Education Committee held an on-the-spot committee meeting at the Goguryo Research Foundation, located in Seoul Jung-gu Ssangrim-dong, on August 11, to discuss China’s distortion of Goguryo history and the problems of the Korean government’s response.

It is very rare for the National Assembly Education Committee to hold a meeting outside the National Assembly, and it means that the committee views the distortion of Goguryo history as very serious and is attempting to grab the attention of the public.

The participants in the meeting included Vice-minister and Minister of Education and Human Resources Development Anh Byung-young, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade Assistant Deputy Minister Lee Soo-hyuk, and the Goguryo Research Foundation’s Chairman Kim Jung-bae.

The government answered questions, saying, “The Chinese government says there is a limit to the role that the central government can play, so we assume that in the future, there will be the possibility of Chinese distortion of history to continue through regional governments and publications.” The government also emphasized the need for a systematic joint response by the government, politicians, and civilians.

On the same day, the National Assembly Unification Foreign Affairs and Trade Committee also held a meeting in the National Assembly and discussed full-scale governmental measures. Korea University Professor Choi Gwang-sik, who participated in the meeting as civilian expert--he is the executive director of the Goguryo Research Foundation--analyzed the reason behind the historical distortion, saying, “The distortion of Goguryo history by China is not just a simple history problem, but rather an early strategic arrangement to consolidate their position in case territorial disputes arise, including setting borderlines, after South and North Korea unify.”

Furthermore, Professor Choi urged an active response by the government, saying, “Considering that China is distorting history, not only Goguryo history but also Balhae and Gochosun history, with government institutions, it is a far more serious problem than Japan’s history textbook distortion incident.”

National Assembly members participating in the meetings, both from the ruling and opposition parties, defined China’s distortion of Goguryo history as a problem touching Korean national legitimacy, and insisted the government to take fundamental and active measures, and also insisted on joint South-North Korean efforts to solve the problem.

On the other hand, National Assembly members Lee Kyung-sook and Roh Woong-rae of the ruling Uri Party opened an emergency discussion forum on the distortion of Goguryo history in the National Assembly library, where government officials and scholars joined in.

Dankook University professor and Goguryo Research Foundation executive director Seo Young-soo defined the historical distortion problem, saying, “The distortion of Goguryo history by China is a problem directly linked to the survival of the Korean nation, being part of China’s hegemony plan and also related to Japan’s revival of militarism.”

He suggested systematic academic and diplomatic responses, a long-term plan to develop Korean studies, joint South-North Korean cooperation on the topic of national identity, and creating an international research environment to study Goguryo history.

National Assembly member Lee Kyung-sook argued, “It is necessary to create a pan-governmental institution that puts together the National History Compilation Committee, Cultural Properties Administration, and the Academy of Korean Studies,” and emphasized the importance of increasing the budgets of related institutions.

Jong-Koo Yoon jkmas@donga.com