Why is the question “Who’s land is Dokdo?” Wrong?

At the hearing of Park Bo-gyun, the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism candidate held on the 2nd, the question of whose land is Dokdo appeared unexpectedly. It was a question posed by Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi while candidate Park’s view of pro-Japanese history was highlighted as one of the main issues at the hearing.

Candidate Park answered, “Dokdo is our land” to the question of a former lawmaker. Perhaps because of the rather boring hearing, the articles related to the hearing of candidate Park were covered with the ‘Dokdo controversy’.

▲ Jeon Jeon-gi, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea. ⓒNocut News

In South Korean society, the controversy over pro-North Korea has always followed the progressive camp like a tag. The conservative camp always had a pro-Japanese frame.

The pro-North Korean and pro-Japanese frames have been used as tools of political conflict regardless of the reality. It was criticized as a color theory or a frame offensive, acting as an effect to verify or stigmatize an idea.

The former member’s question is also understood in the context of raising questions about candidate Park’s view of history. This is because it is being pointed out that one of the 262 columns that Park wrote during his tenure as a JoongAng Ilbo may contain a view of pro-Japanese history. It is also controversial that he attended the Emperor’s birthday party at the Japanese embassy in Seoul in 2013.

Nevertheless, the former lawmaker’s question was unnecessary, and it was unreasonable to reinforce the pro-Japanese frame. Rather, the question ‘Who is Dokdo’s land?’ acted as a stumbling block during the personnel hearing, which had to draw up various agendas. A representative example is the establishment of the Media Innovation Committee in charge of media policy in the next government, and how the relationship with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism led by former journalists will be established.

▲ Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Candidate Park Bo-kyun is having a verbal battle with Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi during the personnel hearing of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee of the National Assembly on the 2nd.  Photo = Captured from SBS video
▲ Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Candidate Park Bo-kyun is having a verbal battle with Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Yong-gi during the personnel hearing of the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee of the National Assembly on the 2nd. Photo = Captured from SBS video

There are many areas for Democrats to test. What kind of competency Park has in the fields of culture, sports, and tourism, who has lived only as a journalist all his life. Some lawmakers asked such questions, but looking at the articles exposed online, they were all pushed to the question of former lawmakers.

The former lawmaker did not answer questions such as “Isn’t this question a bit violent and ideological verification?” and “Did you ask such a question for the sake of media attention?”

Online, comments often come and go asking to curse the North Korean Kim family as part of an ideological verification with a kind of ‘meme’ (figurative cultural element) element. This is a criticism that can come back to this question of the former lawmaker.

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