Category: Soh Jaipil Lecture Series

On September 19, 2019, GWIKS held a lecture series with Professor Eunjung Kim, Associate Professor at Syracuse University, on “Curative Violence: How to Inhabit the Time Machine with Disability.” Moderated by Professor Jisoo M. Kim, Director of the Institute for Korean Studies at GW, Professor Eunjung Kim started her lecture with introducing Hwang Woo Suk, the South Korean scientist who claimed that he had achieved the first cloning of patient-specific embryonic stem cells. After Hwang’s publication, South Korean media featured Kang Won Rae, a South Korean singer who was disabled with a spinal-cord injury, of which one newspaper features with the headline “No More Wheelchair for Kang Won Rae;” this showed the emotional desire for cure. Then, she went on explaining “curative violence” which refers to the exercise of affective and physical force intending to erase problematized bodily differences for the putative betterment of the Other. She provided several examples including Sim Ch’ŏng, where Sim Ch’ŏng sacrificed herself to cure her blind father. She demonstrates that this story reflects an ideological apparatus that reinforces gender hierarchy where daughters should sacrifice to empower patriarchs and the nation. Professor Eunjung Kim also made a connection between political ideology and cure that “curability and the hope for reintegration into society successfully depoliticize the colonial and postcolonial management of the disease and violence done in the name of cure.” She wrapped up her lecture with her current research project where she looks at coexistence of the struggle against the foreclosure of disabled people’s lives caused by the impairment rating system to reduce disability benefits and the struggle against occupational illness, debilitation, and deaths caused by the manufacturing process of electronics. She takes cases of Samsung and Wonjin Rayon and sees how these cases are connected to the disability rights movements.

Read introduction to her book “Curative Violence: Rehabilitating Disability, Gender, and Sexuality in Modern Korea“

On January 22, 2020, GWIKS held a Soh Jaipil Lecture Series with Dr. Sunhye Kim, Assistant Research Professor of International Affairs and Postdoctoral Fellow at the Institute for Korean Studies at GW, on “‘Baby Miles’”: Reproductive Rights, Labor, and Ethics in the Transnational Korean Reproductive Technology Industry.” Moderated by Professor Jisoo M. Kim, Director of the Institute for Korean Studies at GW, Dr.Kim started her lecture by introducing the term ‘baby miles,’ which means the total miles that over which a baby is given birth during the journey in Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) Industry. Referring to ‘food miles,’ distance food is transported from the time of its making until it reaches the consumer, the term ‘baby miles’ was originated in 1978 when the test-tube baby was given birth, she explained. For example, she showed how it took 64,728 miles between South Korea and Ukraine to have a baby from the initial stage of recruiting a gestational surrogate to the final stage of picking up a baby. She then presented a few examples of markets in the ART industry, including the sperm market, gestational surrogacy market, egg market, and medical tourism agencies.

Dr. Kim went on to describe research methods of her multi-sited ethnographic project to examine the transnational circuits of the assisted reproductive technology (ART) industry in South Korea to demonstrate how the concepts of reproductive rights and labor have been contested, negotiated, and reconstructed by various actors—including infertile couples, gamete donors, gestational surrogates, state agents, and medical professionals—across national boundaries. She showed the history of reproductive technology in Korea and how reproductive technology was considered as moral concerns of human cloning, rather than social problems. It was only after 2005 that South Korea changed from anti-natalist policy pro-natalist policy as the delayed marriage became the social problem, and viewed infertility issue as a family issue rather than an individual woman’s fault and ART as a hope technology rather than dangerous technology.

In addition, Dr. Kim emphasized that the reasons why Korean intended parents choose to have a baby through the ART are not only because of the cost and regulation, but also the confidentiality. She then discussed the preference of Korean intended parents who prefer Korean donors to donors from other East Asian countries, to ones from Southeast Asian countries and to ones from the western countries, based on her interviews with an intended mother, a broker, and an IVF doctor.

Lastly, Dr. Kim moved on to the discussion of reproductive labor. She suggested that a surrogate is a reproductive labor as a gestational carrier and an intended mother is a reproductive labor as an eggs producer because they have to work closely in the process. Also, she talked about the division of paid mothers, gestational surrogates, and unpaid mothers, intended mothers, and introduced the ‘local baby’ movement which bans on transnational surrogacy for foreigners.

On February 18, Douglas Gabriel the Korea Foundation Postdoctoral Fellow at the GW Institute of Korean Studies gave a lecture on the “State of Grace: The North Korean-Built Angkor Panorama Museum in Light of DPRK-Cambodian Cultural Relations,” diving into the North Korea’s cultural relationship with Cambodia. Moderated by Immanuel Kim, the Korea Foundation and Kim-Renaud Associate Professor of Korean Literature and Culture Studies in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at the George Washington University, the event included lecture and live interaction sessions.

Cambodia, known for its Angkor Wat and Khmer Rouge, Dr. Gabriel introduced us to art of North in Cambodia. The Angkor Panorama Museum, located within the Angkor Archeological Park, was built by the Mansudae Overseas Project from North Korea. While the museum questionably closed only after four years since its opening, there are much to learn about the culture and relationship between Cambodia and North Korea from the museum.

Mansudae Art Studio located in North Korea, manages all of the country’s art projects and art exports. North Korea has left its footprint in Senegal, Sudan, Madagascar, Tanzania, Namibia and more through the Mansudae Art Project. Mostly boastfully presenting North Korea and its authority through the monumental statues and buildings, Mansudae has maintained its unique neo-classical architecture style. The Angkor Panorama Museum, however, does not portray any of North Korea’s culture or history. Uniquely, the museum was built on brotherly relationship between Kim Il-Sung and Cambodian Prince Norodom Sihanouk who shared the anti-imperialist ideology. The two shared close relationship, recognizing each other’s countries as nation-states. North Korea had financed the museum and accepted the request to build the museum in local content and to include Cambodia’s history and culture instead of those of North Korea.

Inside the museum it leads the visitors to walk through a windy hallways to a panorama room which begins with Cambodians fighting against imperialism to find liberty, then the process of rebuilding the country, and finally ends with a message that shows Cambodia’s prosperity along with the successfully built Angkor Wat.

Furthermore, Dr. Gabriel touched on Sihanouk living in exile in North Korea under Kim Il-Sung’s hospitality. Kim built an enormous resident outside of Pyongyang, with a mixture of Korea and Cambodia’s architect style, just for Sihanouk. During his time in North Korea, Sihanouk filmed a movie in Korean language with North Korean casts, and yet including Cambodian tradition and culture, and containing the message of anti-imperialism. In addition, Sihanouk expanded his artistic skills into music by composing and creating a music album on the theme of friendship with other socialists countries.

Mansudae’s unusual project of promoting the host countries’ tradition and history and Sihanouk’s North Korean movie and friendship-promoting songs, presents North Korea and Cambodia’s strong cultural relationship.

After Dr. Gabriel’s lecture followed a live interaction session in which audiences were able to share their experience and analysis from the museum. The event was very successful attracting viewers from the US, South Korea, Australia, Belgium, Canada, Finland, France, Germany, India, Israel, Japan, Norway, Russian Federation, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom.

On January 25th, GWIKS hosted a webinar as part of their Soh Jaipil Lecture Series and was joined by guest speaker Dr. Joan Cho, professor of East Asian Studies and Government from Wesleyan University. Dr. Cho discusses, her book manuscript, “Dictator’s Modernity: Development and Democracy in South Korea, 1961 – 1987.” Reflecting back on the pro-war period, Dr. Cho walks us through a reexamination of the democratization process of Korea and the economic industrialization to come out of it into the modern era.

Korean Democratization: The “Dream Case.”

In reviewing the overall positive progression of South Korea’s rise to democratic governance and economic stability, Dr. Cho urges us to rethink and reanalyses the case of South Korea’s democratization that has been coded as an overall “dream case” of success due to its linear progression since the 1960s. On a national level, most of the evidence evaluating South Korea’s democratization is supportive of the theory of democratization, which states that as states become more industrialize and experience economic prosperity, they become more democratized in their governance and policy. When looking at this case on a sub-national level, however, we actually see variations that suggest that both the economic development and democratization process were temporal and not as parallel in progression as one would think:

Major economic development was focused on benefiting the wealthy and influential people of status and government.

Coming out of the Korean War, President Park Chung Hee put a heavy emphasis on an “Economy First” policy that primarily focused on economic development taking precedent over political progression during authoritarian rule. With this came Export Oriented Industrial Strategy that was put into place to help facilitate South Korea’s economic development that carried on throughout Presidencies.

First five years of this strategy was dedicated to Light Manufacturing as part of 1960’s export plan. Next five years covered the emergence of HCI drives with the development of chaebols, or large industrial conglomerates such as Hyudai and Samsung.

These strategies relied on many domestic resources, prompting the development of Industrial Complexes (ICs) across the peninsula. In the 1960s this would start out as inland cities and slowly progress out to coastal areas in the 1970s with the heavy chemical industrial drive. Finally, in the ’80s other arenas lacking their own Industrial complexes gained developments to make up for the uneven distribution of industrialization in addition to pressures faced by the Labor Movement. 

Those who supported regime change to democracy were those within urban settings of the country as much of the rural inhabitants supported the ruling regime at the time.

Those who lived closer to the Industrial Complexes became more supportive of the ruling regime as economic growth diffused political discontent and allowed the regime to buy legitimacy through economic progression. However, these effects would be temporary and became weaker and smaller progressively, as support only seemed to grow during the appointment of a new IC and not during the development nor completion of one with an area.

The working class in the short term were supportive of the ruling regime under the propaganda that those who contributed to the economic growth through laboring within these factories and IC’s were the “pillar and warriors” of South Korea’s modernization movement, as quoted by President Park. The long term effect would inevitably result in the gradual rise of labor disputes and discontent as Park’s rule became more authoritarian in the 1970s. Park began taking a domestic security approach of labor exclusion and repression against the working class as time progressed to continue maximizing economic development despite grievances becoming more prevalent. This includes:

– Suspending workers’ rights to bargain collectively and to engage in collective action

– Reconfiguring the Union structure from industrial to an enterprise union system

– And increased reliance on security forces (police, military, and KCIA) to keep order and labor under control.

Pro-Democratic protests were concentrated in a few cities, mainly in or around Seoul, with nationwide protests not kicking off until 1987.

The long term effects of it all would lead to the first nationwide protest and the largest protest to encapsulate the Labor Movement and the “Great Work’s Struggle,” to come in 1987 were 1.28 million workers ( a third of Korea’s working class) from the peninsula’s most prominent industrials (mining, transportation, service, and manufacturing). These works took to the streets to demand not only demand economic equality throughout the country but also demand a democratized workplace to liquidate state-corporate unions and allow democratic and independent unions to exist on behalf of the workers’ safety and wellbeing.

Through closer examining this case on a deeper level, Dr. Cho’s examined the finite and historical details of how economic development through industrialization impacted the process of democratization, mainly the durability of the authoritarian regime of time. The authoritarian industrial policies that were implemented created a centralized pattern of industrialization that was concentrated, to be used as mediators to labor activism, resulting in the organization and politicization of workers to bring about economic growth and democratization close together. This overall analysis not only expands the perceptions of South Korea’s democratization story but also shows that democratization is not a linear process, with ups and downs that require action to ensure it continues through the fine line of authoritarian to the democratic transition of a state.

On Wednesday, January 13th, GWIKS hosted their first Soh Jaipil Lecture Series webinar of 2021, joined by Guest Speaker Yewon Andrea Lee to discuss the socioeconomic politics behind tenant shopkeeper protests in Seoul. In sharing her research, Dr. Lee aims to bring awareness to the ongoing political movement characterized by the dilemma between tenant shopkeepers and property owners over the disproportionate value of the working-class over the real estate investors. This is a divide that paints the picture of gentrification that is happening in Seoul against the benefits brought upon by these small shopkeepers in the form of culture, diversity, and inclusivity for the sake of capitalistic greed.

Utilizing archival research and engaging in interviews through collaboration with “People who Want to Run a Commerical Business with Peace of Mind” or Mam-Sang-Mo, Dr. Lee describes some of her findings in her efforts to bring attention to this exclusive practice. These finds are divided into three categories: (1) Sweat Equity Expropriation, (2) Occupying Living Spaces, (3) Solidarity with the City’s Social Movement Actors.

Sweat Equity Expropriation

The confrontation that is happening between the tenant shopkeepers and the property owners has been characterized as “Sweat Equity Expropriation.” One fourth (1/4) of South Korea’s working class made up of self-employed workers, and of that fraction, individuals generally make 60% of what the average income a wage working in Korea would make, is generally comprised of the low skilled and low educated population of South Korea, as well as those who go beyond retirement to keep working because they require the funds. These individuals are tenants within the property complexes and are establishing shops within neighborhoods in Seoul that are increasing the property value and prosperity of these neighborhoods due to the culture, inclusivity, popularity, and business they bring to the area. Property owners are exploiting these benefits to expand rent within the land that they own and are choosing to buy out and evict these businesses within the space that has become popular thanks to the presence of these tenant shops, to the protest of the shopkeepers who are the contributors to these expansions yet cannot afford pay the rent hikes that come out of this expansion scenario.

Many Tenant Shopkeepers have demanded policy changes in the form of stricter commercial rent control, as well as demanding the right to have secured compensation for their contributions to the property they were residents of before they are evicted, as rightful contributors to the increase of property value to these areas. This dilemma has manifested into politics and protests taking form in the process of Occupying livelihood spaces.

Occupying Livelihood Spaces

In an effort to have their concerns and voices heard in response to their forced and coerced evictions, many of the Tenant Shopkeepers have occupied their shops and physically resist the property owners in an effort to gain power against them and bring awareness to their struggles. It is through the violent confrontation that the emotions and the issue at hand become one that many people can empathize with as these force evictions are erasing the time and labor these individuals have put into their shops for the greed of the property owners looking to further advance their real estate. What policy measures that have taken shape thus far has primarily focused on settling the grievances of the Tenant Shopkeepers and not directly tackling the issue of the Property owners themselves who are pushing them out. As the issue has gained increasing amounts of attention and awareness, Tenant Shopkeepers have become to work in Solidarity with Seoul’s Social Movement Actors.

Solidarity with the City’s Social Movement Actors

Seoul, being a big city, is home to a large network of progressive social movements and activists that have connected with organizations like Mam-Sang-Mo to help the Tenant Shopkeepers in a unique opportunity that has further exposed their dilemma to the wider public. Many of these Shopkeepers, given their backgrounds, come from an older generation and have not entirely been exposed to the positive aspects of progressive movements compared to the younger generation. Recognizing the message behind the Sweat Equity Expropriation and imploying occupying tactics that provide a venue for these actors to participate in the protests against evictions. In forming this unity and working together in protest of their eviction, they form a new foundation of support and solidarity that keeps their fight going and gives them a voice, protection, and opportunity to gain the rights they deserve against the Property owners.

The solidary created in this movement has further honed and expressed the messaging behind this struggle in addition to creating a collective identity of the Tenant Shopkeepers. Tenant shopkeepers are seeing themselves as part of the working class that is emerging through this movement, and in working with the social movement actors they are changing and growing into a larger, positive force that can bring change to these gentrifying communities.

On November 20th, 2020, the GW Institute for Korean Studies hosted “The Survival of the Chosŏn Dynasty in the Imjin War (1592-90) and the Issue of Governance” as part of their Soh Jaipil Lecture series. Joined by Dr. Nam-Lin Hur, Professor at the University of British Columbia, and moderated by GWIKS Director, Dr. Jisoo Kim, the lecture embarked on a historical journey, to trace back the events leading to the Japanese withdrawal from Chosŏn through a new perspective. In interpreting how the events unfolded leading to the Chosŏn Dynasty’s survival, Hur focuses on three key factors: Governance, Diplomacy, and Military. He argues, “Hideoyoshi’s (Japan) failure in achieving his original war goals had to do with, among a few major factors, Chosŏn Korea’s military operations of defense in 1592 – operations that capitalized on the military economies of small scale which was built into the governance of its military system.”

Reflecting back on Hideoyoshi’s goals, we find turning points that build upon one another to eventually push the Japanese out of Korea with each goal shattered. The primary goal was the subjugation of Korea under Japanese rule, which was undermined by different styles of governance and the uprising of Korean forces. When Hideoyoshi’s forces, the Daimyos, took Hansong, the capital at the time, they were under the assumption that by taking, the entire country submits under the conquerer’s control. His original grand strategy was by taking control of Hansong, and thereby the peninsula, the nation would be reorganized under the Japanese structure of Kaiso. In reviews of diplomatic letters and exchanges between Hideoyoshi, his forces, he made it clear that King Seonjo, the ruler of the Dynasty would become subject under him to rule over the new territory and was not to be killed.

However, the Kaizo belief was not commonplace under the Chosŏn Dynasty, and what the Japanese quickly learned is that they would have to assert governance in the neighboring provinces and countries in order to maintain their control. This alongside further the challenges by Korean forces, who despite acting in treason, took up arms against the Japanese to defend themselves. Traditionally, Koreans were not allowed to form any sort of military that was not under the King’s administration, though this instance was tolerated by King Seonjo within reason, allowing people to do so in small, local militias. This would cause the daimyos to become spread thin across the peninsula, weakening their overall capabilities. Ambush and strategic blocking against Japanese forces made it difficult to advance up towards China. At this point Hideoyoshi has ordered them to go north, assuming that the peninsula had already been subjugated and what they were dealing with was merely a handful of domestic rebellions. In reality, the uprisings made it difficult to retain access to resources to keep the Japanese going, which further thinned their military capabilities as deserting and pillaging became common. Compounded by the eventual entrance of the Chinese into the war, in the end, the Japanese had no choice but to withdraw.

Korea’s defense capitalized on the lack of proper governance, provisions of weapons, and guerillas undermined the Japanese forces that were spread thin, deserters, and lack of coordination and communications that overall, undermined the superior capabilities of the Japanese. Local based military operations on a small scale also made a huge difference, as the Chosŏn Dynasty did not have many soldiers and was not able to operate its military system. However, Chosŏn Korea’s Security System was devised by the local army and navy, central army, and majorly, diplomacy that all took advantage of their situation and resources to defend themselves. The outcome proved in 1592 that Japan had no way to subjugate or govern Korea as Hideoyoshi’s military goals were shattered by a military campaign ruined by Chosŏn’s determination to survive.

On October 30, 2020, the GW Institute for Korean Studies (GWIKS) hosted a Soh Jaipil Lecture Series with Christina Klein, the Associate Professor of English and Director of American Studies at Boston College on the “Cold War Cosmopolitanism: Period Style in 1950s Korean Cinema.” Moderated by Professor Immanuel Kim, the Korea Foundation and Kim-Renaud Associate Professor of Korean Literature and Culture Studies at the George Washington University, Prof. Klein started her lecture by introducing the movie Madame Freedom, directed by Han Hyung-mo from the 1950s. She states this modern Korean movie that had just come out three years after the Korean War caught her interest, which made her dive into Han Hyung-mo’s movies and eventually publish a book on it this year.

Prof. Klein went on introducing Director Han with his background and characteristics of his movies. Han was from a Christian family and had lived in Manchuria before he started to work in the emerging Korean film industry. He was a smart director who was able to create movies that were acceptable to a wide range of audiences both the conservative and the progressive. One of the most interesting characteristics of Han’s movies is the role of women. They are influenced by modernity, thus, challenging the traditional gender norms, being dressed in admirable fashion, and sometimes being presented as professional career holders. Expanding the variety of women’s roles, he also created movies such as My sister is a Hussy in which the main character is a judo practitioner and she beats men, and A Jealousy which portrays lesbians and their hardship in life.

According to Prof. Klien, Han’s movie style can be best understood through the concept of Cold War Cosmopolitanism. She explains how the new foreign political energy along with the idea of ‘Free World and Free Asia’ was spreading during the Cold War. Han is believed to have been affected by the ideology along with the material practice of the cultural production of the Cold War institutions. This was quite obvious as he received support from the Asia Foundation, a CIA-funded film foundation, which provided filming equipment and other filming essentials. Moreover, through the foundation’s support Han was able to collaborate with Hong Kong producers and even join European film festivals. Thus, in Han’s movies, one is able to find western elements, and yet, applied in a genuinely Korean style.

Following her presentation, the moderator moved onto a Q&A session. The audience submitted a wide range of questions, inquiring about how much the US aid had affected the Korean film industry, details of certain films, the link between the Cold War, South Korea and Russia, and more. Answering these questions, Prof. Klein used the Bu-dae-ji-gae (부대찌개), a Korean stew which was made by using US produced meat, as a metaphor and emphasized while Han had adopted western culture, fashion, ideology, filming techniques, etc. into his film, he had applied them in his own Korean manner which makes his films genuinely authentic and Korean.