Category: Archived Events

GW Institute for Korean Studies 2018 Signature Conference: The Evolution of Rights in Korea

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GW Institute for Korean Studies 2018 Annual Signature Conference:

The Evolution of Rights in Korea

Friday, April 20, 2018, 8:30 am – 6:00 pm
8:30 am: Breakfast
9:30 am: Panel I – Rights in Historical Perspective
11:30 am: Lunch
1:30 pm: Panel II – Institutional Mechanisms for Rights Claiming
4:00 pm: Panel III – Mobilizing Rights for the Marginalized
Saturday, April 21, 2018, 8:30 am – 11:00 am
8:30 am: Breakfast
9:30 am: Panel IV – Shaping Rights for New and Non-Citizens
Lindner Family Commons, Elliott School of International Affairs
1957 E Street NW, Room 602
Washington, DC 20052

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Rights talk has become ubiquitous in contemporary Korea, and people are increasingly asserting their rights via the courts and other channels. Yet our understanding of how claimants define and articulate their rights and act to remedy their grievances has yet to be comprehensively updated in the field of Korean studies. The mechanisms and processes of claiming rights are how rights become legible. Through comparisons across time and issue area, this conference will examine the institutions and practices that shape rights in Korea. In particular, the conference papers will trace the social and political significance of rights in Korea, analyzing how experiences of Japanese colonial occupation, war and national division, authoritarian rule, democratization, and transitional justice imbued the concept of rights with distinctive meanings. They will elucidate and compare the rights narratives of minority groups, including women, persons with disabilities, LGBT individuals, laborers, migrants, and North Korean defectors. The conference aims to advance the study of rights discourses and rights-claiming in Korea by bringing together scholars from political science, law, sociology, history, and geography.
Conference Schedule
Friday, April 20, 2018

8:30 AM – 9:00 AM                            Breakfast

9:00 AM – 9:30 AM                            Welcoming Remarks & Introduction

                                                                   Welcoming Remarks: Jisoo M. Kim

Introduction: Celeste Arrington and Patricia Goedde

9:30 AM – 11:30 AM                          Panel I: Rights in Historical Perspective

                                            Discussant: Li Chen (University of Toronto)

Legal Disputes and the Precursors of Rights (Kwŏlli) in Chosŏn Korea

Jisoo M. Kim (George Washington University)

Precarious Inheritance: Women and the Rights over Separate Property in Colonial Korea

Sungyun Lim (University of Colorado, Boulder)

A Tale of Two Commissions: The Evolution of Rights Claims in the Jeju Commission and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Korea

Hun Joon Kim (Korea University) 

11:30 AM – 1:30 PM                          Lunch

1:30 PM – 3:30 PM                             Panel II: Institutional Mechanisms for Rights Claiming

Discussants: Stephan Haggard (University of California, San Diego) and

         Eric Feldman (University of Pennsylvania)

The State, the Constitutional Court, and I: Fundamental Rights and Judicial Review in Korea

Hannes Mosler (Freie Universität Berlin)

Evolving Legal Opportunity Structures in South Korea

Celeste Arrington (George Washington University)

The Institutional Development and Sustainability of Public Interest Lawyering in Korea

Patricia Goedde (Sungkyunkwan University)

3:30 PM – 4:00 PM                             Coffee Break


4:00 PM – 6:00 PM                             Panel III: Mobilizing Rights for the Marginalized

  Discussants: Eric Feldman (University of Pennsylvania) and

   Sida Liu (University of Toronto) 

The Disability Rights Movement and Legal Practice in South Korea

Jae Won Kim (Sungkyunkwan University)

Now, Later, Never: On Shigisangjo and Prematurity

Ju Hui Judy Han (University of California, Los Angeles)

The Movement for an Anti-Discrimination Act

Jihye Kim (Gangneung-Wonju National University) and Sung Soo Hong (Sookmyung Women’s University)

From “Humane Treatment” to “We Want to Work”: The Changing Notion of Labor Rights in South Korea

Yoonkyung Lee (University of Toronto)

 

 

Saturday, April 21, 2018

8:30 AM – 9:00 AM                            Coffee and Breakfast

9:00 AM – 11:00 AM                          Panel IV: Shaping Rights for New and Non-Citizens

Discussant: Hae Yeon Choo (University of Toronto)

The Rights of Non-Citizenship: Migrant Rights and Hierarchies in South Korea

Erin Chung (Johns Hopkins University)

Human Rights or Citizen Rights? Explaining Global Policies toward North Korean Refugee Resettlement

Sheena Chestnut Greitens (University of Missouri)

How North Koreans Understand the Rights and Responsibilities of Democratic Citizenship: Implications for Political Integration

Aram Hur (New York University)

11:00 AM – 11:30 AM                      Coffee & Wrap Up

Soh Jaipil Circle “International Legal Issues for a Unified Korea”

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International Legal Issues for a Unified Korea: Protection of Third Party Rights under Pre-Existing Bilateral Treaties with Angela Kim

Wednesday, April 11, 2018
12:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Light lunch will be served

The Elliott School of International Affairs
Chung-Wen Shih Conference Room
Sigur Center for Asian Studies
1957 E St. NW, Suite 503
Washington DC, 20052

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As of today, based upon the UN Treaty Series, the DPRK has about 50 bilateral treaties with third States and the ROK has over 300 bilateral treaties with third States. If and when a unification of the two Koreas occurs, one of the many international legal questions to be dealt with is the legal status of these pre-existing treaties with third party States. This important question can be answered by examining international law rules on treaty interpretation and state succession.

However, international law of state succession is an area of controversy and uncertainty. This is largely due to the inconsistency of state practice and the attendant uncertainties which occur from a choice among different types of state succession. For example, a unified Korea could occur either by incorporation or merger. However, there is a lack of adequate state practice on succession by unification as in the DPRK and ROK context. The questions which flows from this are: (1) Whether a Unified Korea has liberty to do as it pleases with its pre-existing treaties and (2) how can third States that have bilateral treaty relations with either North or South Korea feel secured and protected regarding their rights under those treaties? This presentation aims to answer these questions by focusing specifically on state practice resulting from unification of States such as Germany. It also examines sources of international law which can protect rights of third States under pre-existing bilateral treaties.

Angela Kim is currently a Visiting Scholar at the Institute for Korean Studies. She is a PhD candidate in Law at the Chinese University of Hong Kong and is expected to graduate in August 2020. She received her Master of Laws from the George Washington University Law School in 2015 with a specialization in International and Comparative Law, and her Bachelor of Law from Handong Global University in 2014. She is currently conducting research for her thesis, titled “The Law of State Succession in the Case of Unified Korea: The Legal Effects on Treaties and the Rights of Third States,” with her research interests lying in legal perspectives on Korean studies, and especially those dealing with Korean unification.

 

 

The Soh Jaipil Circle is named after the famous champion of Korean independence who earned a medical degree at GW. The Circle will bring together people from the academic and think tank communities for serious and engaged conversations of Korea issues.

CSIS:Spring Summitry on the Korean Peninsula: Peace Breaking Out or Last Gasp Diplomacy?

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Spring Summitry on the Korean Peninsula: Peace Breaking Out or Last Gasp Diplomacy?

Monday, May 7, 2018 9:00 am – 11:30 am
CSIS Headquarters

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Please join CSIS Korea Chair experts and special guests to assess the results of the April 27, 2018 inter-Korean summit and its implications for the U.S.-North Korea summit in May.

Speakers will include (in alphabetical order):

Dr. Victor Cha 
Senior Adviser and Korea Chair, CSIS; D.S. Song-KF Professor of Government, Georgetown University

Ambassador Cho, Yoon-je
Republic of Korea Ambassador to the United States

Dr. Bridget Coggins 
Adjunct Fellow, CSIS Korea Chair; Associate Professor of Political Science, University of California, Santa Barbara

Dr. Michael Green
Senior Vice President for Asia and CSIS Japan Chair; Director, Asian Studies Program, Georgetown University

Dr. Katrin Katz
Adjunct Fellow, CSIS Korea Chair; Former Director for Japan, Korea, and Oceanic Affairs, National Security Council (2007-2008)

Ambassador Robert King
Senior Adviser, CSIS Korea Chair; Former Special Envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues, U.S. Department of State

Mr. Mark Landler 
White House Correspondent, The New York Times

Ambassador Mark Lippert
Senior Advisory Board, CSIS Korea Chair; Vice President, Boeing International; Former U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea

Dr. Sue Mi Terry
Senior Fellow, CSIS Korea Chair; Former Director for Japan, Korea, and Oceanic Affairs, National Security Council (2008-2009); Former Senior Analyst on Korean Issues, Central Intelligence Agency

Ambassador Joseph Yun
Former Special Representative for North Korea Policy and Deputy Assistant Secretary for Korea and Japan, U.S. Department of State

This event is made possible through general support to CSIS.

Global Tensions, the World Economy, and Health Security – A Conversation with former U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte

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Global Tensions, the World Economy, and Health Security – A Conversation with former U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte

Tuesday, April 17, 2018 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm
CSIS Headquarters

Please join the Center for Strategic and International Studies for a Smart Women, Smart Power conversation with former U.S. Senator Kelly Ayotte (R-NH). She will share her insights on the national security issues America faces concerning North Korea, Iran, and Russia, as well as the competition with China, and shifting dynamics in the Middle East.  Her leadership of CSIS’ new health security commission will also be a focus of discussion.Senator Ayotte represented New Hampshire in the United States Senate from 2011-2016, where she chaired the Armed Services Subcommittee on Readiness and the Commerce Subcommittee on Aviation Operations. She also served on the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Budget, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Aging Committees. Prior to her service in the Senate, Senator Ayotte was New Hampshire’s Attorney General, the first woman to hold the position.

She currently serves on several Fortune 500 boards, including Caterpillar, News Corp, and BAE Systems, as well as the non-profit boards of the One Campaign, the International Republican Institute, and the McCain Institute among others. She is the Perkins Bass Distinguished Visitor at Dartmouth College and a Visiting Fellow at the University of Chicago Institute of Politics. In 2017, she was a joint visiting fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics and the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs.

Senator Ayotte graduated with honors from the Pennsylvania State University and earned her Juris Doctor degree from the Villanova University School of Law.

FEATURING
Former Senator Kelly Ayotte
(R-NH)

China and North Korea: Past, Present, and Future

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With international attention focused on a potential U.S.-North Korea summit meeting in May, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a surprise trip to Beijing in late March to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The North Korean leader’s visit to Beijing, his first foreign visit since assuming power in late 2011, came amid strained bilateral relations in recent years. Kim and Xi appear to have reinvigorated the historical bonds between the two countries and reaffirmed China’s crucial role in the future of the Korean Peninsula. This conference will explore the dynamics and tensions of the historical relationship between China and North Korea, the potential impact of Korean reunification on China, and China’s role in a limited military conflict and its aftermath.

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In a photo provided by North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency, , President Xi Jinping of China, left, and Kim Jong-un, North Korea’s enigmatic young leader, inspect an honor guard during a ceremony at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 26, 2018. Kim made an unannounced visit to Beijing, meeting with Xi weeks before planned summit meetings with American and South Korean leaders, Chinese and North Korean state news media reported on Wednesday, March 28, 2018. (Korean Central News Agency via The New York Times) — EDITORIAL USE ONLY —

Panel 1, 9:15am – 10:15am
China and North Korea Relations

This panel will examine the historical China-North Korea relationship, changes in political and security relations, and role of past and present economic ties on the future of the bilateral relationship.

Panelists

  • Jennifer Staats, Moderator
    Director, East and Southeast Asia Programs, U.S. Institute of Peace
  • Stella Xu
    Associate Professor of History, Roanoke College
  • Yafeng Xia
    Professor of History, Long Island University Brooklyn
  • Junsheng Wang
    Visiting Senior Fellow, Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security, Atlantic Council
    Director and Associate Professor, Department of China’s Regional Strategy, National Institute of International Strategy, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, China

BREAK

Panel 2, 10:30am – 12:00pm
Would a Reunified Korea under South Korean Leadership be Positive or Negative for China?

This panel will assess China’s position on the ideal end state for the Korean Peninsula and whether a reunified peninsula under South Korean leadership would be beneficial or detrimental to Chinese economic, political, and security interests given South Korean, Japanese and U.S. likely responses.

Panelists

  • Frank Aum, Moderator
    Senior Expert on North Korea, U.S. Institute of Peace
    @frankaum1
  • Yun Sun
    Co-Director, East Asia Program; Director, China Program, Stimson Center
  • Zhu Feng
    Professor of International Relations and Executive Director, China Center for Collaborative Studies of the South China Sea, Nanjing University, China
  • Heung-Kyu Kim
    Director and Professor of Political Science, China Policy Institute, Ajou University, South Korea
  • Michael Green
    Associate Professor and Director of Asian Studies, Georgetown University
    Senior Vice President for Asia and Japan Chair, Center for Strategic and International Studies
    @JapanChair

Lunch Keynote Address, 12:00pm – 1:15pm
Ambassador Mark Lippert

Mark Lippert is a current member of the Board of Trustees at the Asia Foundation and former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea.
@mwlippert

BREAK

Panel 3, 1:30pm – 3:15pm
War and its Aftermath on the Korean Peninsula – What Role Could China Play?

This panel will discuss the contours of a potential conflict on the Korean Peninsula, to include U.S. operations, how China may respond, and opportunities for cooperation. Participants will also examine Beijing’s role in shaping the post-war situation on the peninsula.

Panelists

BREAK

Closing Remarks, 3:30pm – 4:15pm

Join the conversation throughout the day on Twitter with the hashtag #ChinaGUUSIP.

This conference is cosponsored by the Georgetown Center for Security Studies and the United States Institute of Peace, and made possible in part by the generosity of the Bilden Asian Security Studies Fund.

 

 

Lecture Series: Cho Hong Je

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Dr. Hong-Je Cho, a Senior Research Fellow at the Korea National Defense University’s Research Institute for National Security Affairs and a Visiting Scholar at the Space Policy Institute at the Elliott School, gave his presentation on “North Korea’s Missiles: Past, Present, and Prospects.” Dr. Cho, who has served as a South Korean Air Force Officer for the past 29 years, shared with the audience his knowledge and insight into North Korea’s nuclear and missile program. He began by providing context on the rapidly evolving nature of the Korean peninsula’s security situation, in light of the diplomatic outreaches and proposals for summits following the PyeongChang Olympics.

Dr. Cho stated four different reasons as to why North Korea has been developing nuclear weapons and missiles. He stated, firstly, that North Korea desires to guarantee its survival, ultimately preventing regime change and military “decapitation” by the US. Secondly, North Korea seeks to bolster domestic support through such a program. Third, Dr. Cho claimed that this could ultimately be viewed as an asymmetric strategy. Lastly, its nuclear weapons program and ballistic missiles are to compensate for its outdated conventional weapons. Despite this outdate nature of its conventional weapons, Dr. Cho pointed out that the [North] Korean People’s Army ground force consists of a million active duty soldiers, as well as millions more in civilian reserve.

In the history of North Korea’s missile development and testing, Kim Jong-un has been actively launching missiles to a much greater extent than his father and grandfather. Dr. Cho gave a few numbers to illustrate North Korea’s missile fleet: it currently possesses more than 800 ballistic missiles, with 600 of these being Scud missiles.

However, North Korea’s missiles do face some limitations and challenges. First, North Korea has yet to completely master miniaturizing its nuclear warheads, where they would be small enough to fit on a missile. Second, they are still working on their reentry vehicle technology, where their missiles would be strong enough to withstand enormous temperature and structural pressures during its descent through the earth’s atmosphere to its target. Despite these limitations, Dr. Cho gave an estimate that North Korea would most likely be able to surpass these challenges within the next 2 years.

Given that 2018 is North Korea’s 70th anniversary of the founding of its regime, it is of concern that Kim Jong-un may launch missiles as a means of commemorating this date. For one thing, we can be optimistic that by sitting down at the negotiating table and opening dialogue, we have the potential to halt North Korea’s nuclear weapons experiment and missile launches. On the more pessimistic and skeptical side regarding the North’s intentions, the international community can continue to strengthen sanctions, cooperate with one another, and identify countermeasures to the North’s program. Dr. Cho emphasized the need for the complete, irreversible, and verifiable denuclearization of the North and the importance of open dialogue and gathering around the negotiation table to establish perpetual peace on the Korean peninsula. To finish his remarks, he quoted Sun Tzu in The Art of War: “To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.”

 

Written by Bomie Lee

Charlotte Horlyck Lecture Summary

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In her March 8 lecture, Charlotte Horlyck, Smithsonian Institution Senior Fellow of Art History at the Freer|Sackler, discussed “Charles Lang Freer and the Collecting of Korean Art in the Early 20th Century.” Through researching letters, collection catalogues, and purchase documents, she found that while Chosun-era pottery is most valuable today, collectors focused on Koryo celadon wares in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. This interest developed quickly after Korea opened to the west in the 1880s, because missionaries and diplomats could obtain art as gifts or even from tombs and bring it home with them. Japanese collectors also sold Korean pottery, like New York’s Yamanaka and Co., and pieces circulated among the estates of prominent collectors. Korean culture was seen as traditional while Japan and China were changing and modernizing, but scholarship about Korean culture was scarce at the time. Charles Freer began collecting Korean pottery in the late 1880s because James McNeill Whistler, a favorite artist of his and designer of the Freer Gallery’s famous “Peacock Room,” was inspired by Asian art. Freer based his choices on aesthetics rather than history. He donated his collection to the U.S. government in 1906, and the Freer Gallery opened in 1926, becoming the first art museum on the Smithsonian campus.
flag of North Korea

Providing Healthcare in North Korea: Issues, Ethics, and Politics

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Providing Healthcare in North Korea: Issues, Ethics, and Politics

Description

The Organization of Asian Studies has invited Dr. Kee Park and Dr. Charlie Sands to discuss their work in providing healthcare assistance to North Korea. Topics include North Korea’s healthcare system and capabilities, medical education system, health plans for the future, work of intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, the effect of foreign assistance on both the social and political climate, and ethical and moral implications of the recent “Maximal Pressure” policy.

Date and Time

Wed, April 18, 2018

2:00 PM – 4:00 PM EDT

Location

Elliott School of International Affairs

1957 E Street Northwest

Room 505

Washington, DC 20052

Reservation

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