어제 국제 결혼으로 혼혈아인 흑인 오사카 나오미가 전호주 테니스전에서 승리하는 장면을 오래동안 시청했다. 감동적이었다. 한국인들은 일본을 응원한다고 싫어할 것이다. 그래도 일본인들은 한국드라마는 좋아한다. 드라마는 거의 언성을 높혀 싸우는 장면이 거의 대부분이다. 불화하던 사람이 교통사고나 병으로 인해 갑자기 화해하는 해피엔딩이 일반적이다.
지금 일본과는 사사건건 싸우고 있다. 교통사고나 까무러치는 정치현상이 일어나면 갑자기 좋아질 것이다.
지금 한국인들이 미국인 학자의 연구를 비난하고 있다. 한국 일반인들은 대학교수 등을 연구자로 보기보다는 상류계급 감투 쓴 사람으로 보는 경향이 있다. 학문의 자유란 의미를 교수들도 잘 모른다. 교수들은 그저 신분을 향유하려 든다. 그래서 민족주의에 선다. 민중들이 그들을 판단하고 처단한다. 자유스런 학문을 할 수 없다. 어제 어떤 일본인 페친은 나에게 <한국은 나치스와 같다>고 투고하였다. 페친을 지웠다. By Joseph Yi and Joe PhillipsFebruary 18, 2021 We, scholars based in South Korea, call for debating not censuring Harvard Professor Mark Ramseyer’s recent article, “Contracting for Sex in the Pacific War” (published by the International Review of Law and Economics), which researches claims that Imperial Japan forced Korean women into sex work during Japanese colonization. Attacking Ramseyer’s academic integrity because of personal connections to Japan is unproductive and sounds xenophobic. Demanding that he apologize for, rather than defend, his conclusions, undermines a deliberative process that has advanced science since the Enlightenment. Accusations that his article lacks Korean perspective assumes a homogeneous, victim-centered, “Korean” perspective, which labels opponents as anti-Korean or pro-Japan collaborators.In South Korea, the restriction of research and debate on “comfort women” has fostered a groupthink in a society and polity that otherwise values vigorous public discussions. The few academics that openly dispute the “comfort women” abduction narrative are too often harassed by activists, investigated by their universities, and prosecuted by the government.
In a 2013 book, Sejong University professor Park Yu-ha reported the diversity in “comfort women” experiences and challenged the veracity of some testimonials. Rather than triggering a scholarly debate, a Seoul civil court partially censored Park’s book and fined her 90 million won ($74,000) for defaming former “comfort women.” National prosecutors also seek a three-year jail term for her words. On April 26, 2017, a Sunchon National University professor (“Song”) told his class in a lecture that some Koreans “probably” volunteered to be comfort women. The university terminated his employment, and a court sentenced him to six months in prison.
The suppression of critical discourse too often means that Koreans, including students, lack awareness of arguments and data challenging the dominant narrative.
Joseph Yi is an associate professor of political science at Hanyang University, Seoul, South Korea.
Joe Phillips is an associate professor at Yonsei University, Seoul, South Korea.