By Kim Se-jeong
Lawyers for a Democratic Society, a civic group consisting of progressive lawyers, said Friday that it will file a lawsuit against the government, demanding the release of identities of 47 authors recruited to write the state-authored history textbooks for middle and high schools.
“The writers and compilation editors are involved in the making of the textbooks for middle and high schools,” the group said. “The necessity of releasing the list is big for the public interest to secure transparency and justification.”
The move came after one of the 47 writers recently resigned from authorship amid a controversy over his qualifications, as he has taught history for only nine months. He had been a commerce teacher for nine years.
Also, Choi Mong-ryong, professor emeritus of Seoul National University, quit from the writing team over a sexual harassment allegation in November. Choi was one of the two leading authors.
The group also pointed out that even in 1973 the Park Chung-hee regime made public the identities of history textbook writers.
Previously, the Center for Freedom of Information and Transparent Society requested the Ministry of Education to release the names of the authors but the ministry refused to do so, citing the necessity of protecting their privacy.
Civic groups, students and history teachers have opposed the state-authored history textbook plan, arguing that they might distort history.
The government, however, disputed the opposition’s argument, arguing that the existing textbooks praise North Korea and liberal values, which needs to be “corrected.”
Despite strong public opposition, the government went ahead with the project and recruited 47 authors and 16 editors in November, declining to disclose their identities.