By Park Moo-jong
A news item out of Seoul became an interesting topic in a foreign media outlet.
The Economist based in London introduced Jeju as "an island off South Korea's southern coast, known for its hiking trails, temperate climate and the tough old women who dive off its cliffs for abalone, a delicacy popular with the glitterati in Seoul, the faraway capital
The English weekly's introduction of the nation's most popular tourist destination, however, is absolutely insufficient to show what Jeju Island is all about.
Yet, the news story from London was not to introduce the island, but to offer a "quip" on the latest unprecedented reshuffle of senior prosecutors conducted by new Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae apparently in consultation with the presidential office.
The Economist reported that Jeju is "also popular with political leaders in search of a spot to sideline troublemakers. The rulers of the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910), for instance, used to send insubordinate aristocrats there to stop them from meddling in politics."
Then the weekly said, "This week Park Chan-ho found himself reassigned to Jeju. Mr. Park's previous job was at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seoul, where he had been investigating allegations that the government had interfered in mayoral elections in the southern city of Ulsan in 2018.
"His colleague Han Dong-hoon, who had been leading an investigation into alleged nepotism and financial irregularities in the affairs of Cho Kuk, (disgraced predecessor of Choo), a former justice minister who resigned in the autumn, was moved to Busan, another traditional place of banishment."
The Economist's article reminded us of the notorious four "massacres or political oppression of opposing politicians and scholars by ruling forces that took place in the middle of the dynasty," not to speak of the frequent ostracism of political opponents to remote places."
Many people, especially those who oppose the Moon Jae-in government, must think anxiously that history is repeating itself.
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist, said, "If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must Man be of learning from experience."
History shows that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. We repeat what certain ancestors had already done without our knowing and develop their achievements a little more. We learn many from things of the past.
The reason why we learn history is to take lessons from its mirror and to cultivate our insight into the flow of the times, to contribute to individual and national development. Most great men of history like Winston Churchill (1874-1965), for instance, made constant efforts to study history.
We can be humbled when we study history and are afraid of history, and thus we can get wisdom and courage to overcome hardship.
The stubborn discord between Korea and Japan basically stems from the result of Japan's selfish motive not to learn from history by distorting solemn historical facts about what it did during its forced occupation of Korea (1910-45), including the brutal act of forcing Korean women into sexual slavery for Japanese soldiers under the name of "comfort woman" during World War II.
Our leaders, irrespective of their political affiliation or ideology, have to keep in mind why the Joseon Kingdom collapsed and became a colony of Japan. Any political forces that cling to their invested rights, seeking to gain their own partisan interests, not the national interest, will lost public support.
"There is no future for people who have forgotten their history." This is a numerously quoted remark of Shin Chae-ho (1880-1936), who fought for national independence from Japanese colonial rule as a historian, journalist and writer. He met his fate in a Japanese prison in Rushun, China, Feb. 21, 1936.
Winston Churchill (1874-1965) also said, "A nation that forgets its past has no future."
Those who do not learn from history are unhappy. Couples who do not learn from their fights break up. Those who don't learn from their mistakes don't succeed.
The Economist story stung us to the quick.
Park Moo-jong (emjei29@gmail.com) is a standing adviser of The Korea Times. He served as the president-publisher of the nation's first English daily newspaper from 2004 to 2014 after working as a reporter since 1974.
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The Economist based in London introduced Jeju as "an island off South Korea's southern coast, known for its hiking trails, temperate climate and the tough old women who dive off its cliffs for abalone, a delicacy popular with the glitterati in Seoul, the faraway capital
The English weekly's introduction of the nation's most popular tourist destination, however, is absolutely insufficient to show what Jeju Island is all about.
Yet, the news story from London was not to introduce the island, but to offer a "quip" on the latest unprecedented reshuffle of senior prosecutors conducted by new Justice Minister Choo Mi-ae apparently in consultation with the presidential office.
The Economist reported that Jeju is "also popular with political leaders in search of a spot to sideline troublemakers. The rulers of the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910), for instance, used to send insubordinate aristocrats there to stop them from meddling in politics."
Then the weekly said, "This week Park Chan-ho found himself reassigned to Jeju. Mr. Park's previous job was at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office in Seoul, where he had been investigating allegations that the government had interfered in mayoral elections in the southern city of Ulsan in 2018.
"His colleague Han Dong-hoon, who had been leading an investigation into alleged nepotism and financial irregularities in the affairs of Cho Kuk, (disgraced predecessor of Choo), a former justice minister who resigned in the autumn, was moved to Busan, another traditional place of banishment."
The Economist's article reminded us of the notorious four "massacres or political oppression of opposing politicians and scholars by ruling forces that took place in the middle of the dynasty," not to speak of the frequent ostracism of political opponents to remote places."
Many people, especially those who oppose the Moon Jae-in government, must think anxiously that history is repeating itself.
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950), an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist, said, "If history repeats itself, and the unexpected always happens, how incapable must Man be of learning from experience."
History shows that those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it. We repeat what certain ancestors had already done without our knowing and develop their achievements a little more. We learn many from things of the past.
The reason why we learn history is to take lessons from its mirror and to cultivate our insight into the flow of the times, to contribute to individual and national development. Most great men of history like Winston Churchill (1874-1965), for instance, made constant efforts to study history.
We can be humbled when we study history and are afraid of history, and thus we can get wisdom and courage to overcome hardship.
The stubborn discord between Korea and Japan basically stems from the result of Japan's selfish motive not to learn from history by distorting solemn historical facts about what it did during its forced occupation of Korea (1910-45), including the brutal act of forcing Korean women into sexual slavery for Japanese soldiers under the name of "comfort woman" during World War II.
Our leaders, irrespective of their political affiliation or ideology, have to keep in mind why the Joseon Kingdom collapsed and became a colony of Japan. Any political forces that cling to their invested rights, seeking to gain their own partisan interests, not the national interest, will lost public support.
"There is no future for people who have forgotten their history." This is a numerously quoted remark of Shin Chae-ho (1880-1936), who fought for national independence from Japanese colonial rule as a historian, journalist and writer. He met his fate in a Japanese prison in Rushun, China, Feb. 21, 1936.
Winston Churchill (1874-1965) also said, "A nation that forgets its past has no future."
Those who do not learn from history are unhappy. Couples who do not learn from their fights break up. Those who don't learn from their mistakes don't succeed.
The Economist story stung us to the quick.
Park Moo-jong (emjei29@gmail.com) is a standing adviser of The Korea Times. He served as the president-publisher of the nation's first English daily newspaper from 2004 to 2014 after working as a reporter since 1974.
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