By Jun Ji-hye
The Korean government will ask Japan’s Sankei Shimbun to delete a column that likened President Park Geun-hye to a Korean empress slain by Japanese assassins in the late 19th century, officials said Tuesday.
An official told reporters that the government will demand through the Korean Embassy in Tokyo at the earliest possible date that the newspaper retract the column with a promise to prevent publication of similar pieces.
“It’s not even worth commenting on certain figures in Japan who continue to make shameless claims about the past, with a DNA of historical distortion and revision, and an outrageous article by a newspaper linked to them,” the official said on condition of anonymity.
The criticism came after the conservative daily published a column on its homepage Monday, criticizing Park for deciding to attend the China’s massive military parade that will feature about 12,000 Chinese troops and soldiers from more than 10 nations, as well as 200 aircraft.
The parade is part of the Chinese celebrations that mark China’s part in the Allied victory over Japan during World War II.
The column claimed Korea’s ambivalent behavior between the United States and China is bad legacy in its history.
Calling Park’s planned participation a “toadyism” move, the column said Korea’s Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) had a woman of power just like Park, referring to Empress Myeongseong.
The column said Empress Myeongseong, supported by the Qing Dynasty of China, was assassinated after the Sino-Japanese War ended with Japan taking over Taiwan in 1895.
The column did not mention the killers were Japanese directed by Miura Goro, the then Japanese minister to Korea.
Myeongseong was considered a major obstacle to Japan’s overseas expansion at the time.
Political parties here also criticized the newspaper, saying the column is a typical example of the true nature of right wing extremism being laid bare to the entire world.
The ruling Saenuri Party spokesman Rep. Kim Young-woo argued, “Japan is unabashed although it invaded a number of countries, killed innocent people and sexually abused women. We are speechless with an impudence view of history of a Japanese newspaper that represents the country.”
He said the Sankei Shimbun and Japan’s extreme rightists will be abandoned by conscientious Japanese citizens and the international community.
For his part, the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy spokesman Rep. Kim Young-rok said Park decided to attend the Chinese event to contribute to solidifying peace and stability in the Northeast Asia.
“Calling this decision an example of toadyism is nothing but Japan’s endless provocation regarding history,” he said, adding that his party supports the government’s decision to request the newspaper to eliminate the column.
This was not the first time that the Sankei Shimbun was embroiled in controversy here.
Last year, the newspaper’s Seoul bureau chief Tatsuya Kato reported rumors that Park may have been with a man at the time of the April 16 ferry sinking that left more than 300 people dead or missing.
He is currently on trial here for libel.
Follow Jun Ji-hye on Twitter @TheKopJihye