Opposition grows against textbook

Members of an anti-Japan, pro-independence activists’ association demonstrate against the introduction of government-issued history textbooks in schools from 2017 in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, Tuesday. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

By Kim Se-jeong

Historians, teachers and civic groups are ramping up their opposition to the proposed state-authored history textbooks for middle and high schools.

Liberal civic groups said Tuesday they will stage public campaigns to show that the government is only presenting one point of view in the textbook.

Bang Eun-hee, a leader of a coalition of more than 450 civic groups, said, “We will not keep quiet. We will launch campaigns and use other means to show that state-authoring is wrong.”

A group of retired history teachers staged a protest outside the Government Complex where Prime Minister Hwang Kyo-ahn and Education Minister Hwang Woo-yea announced that they had approved of the textbooks.

The protestors wore shirts emblazoned with the slogan: “We want democracy in history education,” and carried banners that proclaimed, “Stop the coup!” and “Military coup by father, history coup by daughter.”

Cho Hee-joon, a retired teacher, said that when he was teaching, he was pressured to idolize and praise then-President Park Chung-hee, father of incumbent President Park Geun-hye. “No return to dictatorship,” he said. “Let’s fight. We should stop this.”

Members of the Korean Teachers and Education Workers’ Union (KTU) joined the protest.

“Students need to hear different versions of history,” Jin Young-hyo, one of the KTU members, said. “There’s no one fixed version of history. It differs according to people’s points of view. Students should be allowed to hear all of them. The government’s decision infringes on their freedom.”

Many Internet users also expressed their disapproval of the textbook.

“Democracy has disappeared in Korea,” a blogger wrote. “Decisions about history should be made by the people and historians, not by politicians and the government.”

Liberal civic groups plan a large-scale demonstration on Nov. 14 at Gwanghwamun Square and Seoul Plaza to protest the introduction of the history textbook and other government policies. Organizers expect some 100,000 people to be there.

Some conservative civic groups, however, welcomed the plan, saying the state-authored textbooks are the only way to right the current system which they claim lacks objectivity. Korea Freedom Federation President Huh Joon-young said. “The government should invite many scholars to write and edit the textbooks.”