Today in Korean history

Aug. 13

1935 -- "The Evergreen," a novel by Shim Hun depicting the lives of an educated
couple trying to "enlighten" farmers, wins a literary prize presented by the
Dong-Ah Ilbo newspaper. The novel, based on real-life experience, portrays the
impoverished Korean countryside under Japanese colonial rule in the early part of
the 20th century, a time when Japanese occupiers expropriated land and rice from
farmers.

The young couple dedicate themselves to the "enlightenment movement," which
sought to educate ordinary Korean citizens and encourage them to demand their
rights by speaking out against Japanese colonial rule.

1959 -- Japan signs an agreement with North Korea to repatriate Koreans living in
its territory to the communist country. The North, needing to increase its
diminished labor force after the Korean War, sought to present itself as a
hospitable home to its nationals overseas.
The first group of some 975 people leaves Japan for North Korea in December. The
voluntary repatriation continues until November 1962, when the agreement expired.
Ultimately, a total of 77,288 Koreans in Japan voluntarily went to the North.
The agreement was later renewed, but the deteriorating economic situation in
North Korea stopped people from moving there after the 1970s.

1994 -- Samsung Electronics Co. announces development of the world's first
256-megabit DRAM computer chips. Now the world's No.1 computer memory chipmaker,
Samsung is also credited with the development of 1-gigabit DRAM chips and
4-gigabit DRAM process technology.

2007 -- Two female South Koreans from a 23-member aid group abducted by the
Taliban in Afghanistan are freed. Two male members of the group, including its
42-year-old leader Bae Hyung-kyu, are executed.
On July 19, a bus carrying 23 South Korean volunteers, mostly women in their 20's
and 30's, is hijacked by Taliban militants en route from Kabul to the southern
city of Kandahar. The remaining 19 hostages are freed in late August after Seoul
announces it will pull out troops from the country by the end of the year and ban
all missionary work there.
(END)