Many S. Koreans unaware of basic Korean War facts: survey

By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Sept. 29 (Yonhap) -- About a third of South Koreans over the age of 19
cannot accurately name the year the Korean War broke out, a survey said Tuesday,
suggesting a deterioration in their historical understanding of national security
issues.

The 1950-53 Korean War was the single largest conflict to hit the Korean
Peninsula in the past century. Millions of soldiers and civilians perished on
both sides of the divided Koreas while about two dozen nations, including the
U.S. and China, took part in the war.
The conflict, which technically continues to this day as it ended in a truce
rather than a peace treaty, constitutes a considerable portion of the history
curriculum in South Korean schools.
The Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, however, said that a recent survey
of 1,000 South Koreans revealed that only 33 percent could accurately say when
the war began.
"The figure was 47.4 percent among those aged between 19-29 while it decreased
among older respondents," the ministry said in a statement. The survey, performed
by Dongseo Research, had a margin of error of 3.1 percent.
It is widely accepted that North Korea was the aggressor in the war even though
the communist state still claims the South attacked first. The ministry said 14.6
percent of South Korean respondents either denied or were unsure of whether the
North started the war.
"About 21 percent of those between 19-29 said they did not know which side was
the aggressor," it said, again citing higher figures among younger generations.
In a meeting with top military officers on Sept. 17, South Korean President Lee
Myung-bak said people's awareness of national security issues frayed during the
10 years of South Korea's previous liberal governments, which sought
rapprochement with North Korea despite warnings from conservatives that Pyongyang
would exploit the move.
Critics of the reconciliation policy argue the North will turn to provocations
regardless of South Korean efforts at detente, citing its October 2006 nuclear
test.
North Korea went ahead with its second atomic test in May this year and has
test-fired a series of missiles over the years in defiance of U.N. sanctions.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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