U.S.-Korea Relations: Retrospective on the Jeju April 3 Incident, Human Rights, and Alliance

Retrospective on the Jeju 4.3 Incident, Human Rights, and Alliance

The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars’ Korea Center hosts, in cooperation with Walden Korea and The Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation, a featured conference entitled U.S.-Korea Relations: Retrospective on the Jeju April 3 Incident, Human Rights, and Alliance. The conference will bring together U.S. and South Korean scholars and experts to address various facts and controversies related to unresolved history, truth, justice, and reconciliation in the context of the U.S.-Republic of Korea alliance.

Registration

INTRODUCTIONS

Sue Mi Terry Director of the Asia Program and the Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy

Ko Hee-bum

Chairman, The Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation

PANELISTS

Kathleen Stephens

President and CEO, The Korea Economic Institute of America; Former U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea

Sung-Yoon Lee

Kim Koo-Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies and Assistant Professor, The Fletcher School, Tufts University

Suyeon Yang

Chairwoman, Walden Korea; Chairwoman, Jeju 4.3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S.

Jo-hoon Yang

Member, The National Committee for Investigation of the Truth about the Jeju 4.3 Incident

John Merrill

Visiting Scholar, Johns Hopkins University; Former Chief of the Northeast Asia Division, Bureau of Intelligence and Research, U.S. Department of State

Hojun Huh

Head of Research, The Jeju 4.3 Research Institute

Charles Kraus

Charles Kraus is the Deputy Director of the History and Public Policy Program at the Wilson Center.

Bruce Cumings (invited)

Gustavus F. and Ann M. Swift Distinguished Service Professor of History and the College, University of Chicago

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Agenda

12:30pm – 12:45pm ET

Welcome Remarks

Dr. Sue Mi Terry Director, Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy, Wilson Center Mr. Ko Hee-bum Chairman, The Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation

12:45pm – 02:15pm ET

Panel I

Moderator Dr. Sue Mi Terry Director, Hyundai Motor-Korea Foundation Center for Korean History and Public Policy, Wilson Center

Panelists

Amb. Kathleen Stephens President and CEO, The Korea Economic Institute of America; Former U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea

Dr. Sung-Yoon Lee Kim Koo-Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies and Assistant Professor, The Fletcher School, Tufts University

Ms. Suyeon Yang Chairwoman, Walden Korea; Chairwoman, Jeju 4.3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S.

Mr. Jo-hoon Yang Member, The National Committee for Investigation of the Truth about the Jeju 4.3 Incident

Discussion and Q&A

02:15pm – 02:25pm ET

Coffee Break Coffee and light refreshments will be provided

02:25pm – 03:55pm ET

Panel II

Moderator Dr. Sung-Yoon Lee Kim Koo-Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies and Assistant Professor, The Fletcher School, Tufts University

Panelists Dr. John Merrill Visiting Scholar, Johns Hopkins University; Former Chief of the Northeast Asia Division, Bureau of Intelligence and Research, U.S. Department of State

Dr. Hojun Huh Head of Research, The Jeju 4.3 Research Institute

Dr. Charles Kraus Deputy Director, History and Public Policy Program, Wilson Center

Dr. Bruce Cumings (invited) Gustavus F. and Ann M. Swift Distinguished Service Professor of History and the College, University of Chicago

Discussion and Q&A

03:55pm – 04:30pm ET

Reception Reception location TBC.

04:30pm – 04:30pm ET

Adjournment Thank you for attending

04:30pm – 06:00pm ET

Private Roundtable: U.S.-South Korea Dialogue (By-invitation-only)

Ms. Jae-Jung Lee, Member of the ROK National Assembly Mr. Han-kyu Kim, Member of the ROK National Assembly

Co-Moderators: Dr. Sue Mi Terry and Dr. Chung-In Moon

Registration

Jeju 4·3 International Network for Truth and Justice established in Jeju City

The Jeju 4.3 International Net­work for Truth and Justice was established in the Jeju City Communication and Cooperation Center at 2:00 PM KST on June 27, 2022. Peo­ple from Jeju, Seoul, Japan, the United States, Europe, and Taiwan joined forc­es to seek the truth and justice.

Seven different organizations came together to join hands, with the Jeju As­sociation for the Bereaved Families of 4.3 Victims in Jeju as the hub: Jeju 4.3 Pan-National Committee to Commem­orate the Jeju 4.3 Massacre, Memorial Committee fortheJeju 4.3 Uprising and Massacre, Association for the Bereaved Families of 4.3 Victims in Japan, Jeju 4.3 Victims and Families Association in the U.S., Taiwan Jeju 4.3 Victims Association, and the Jeju 4.3 Network Europe. In addition, participation by two other groups are in the planning: Jeju 4.3 Net­work Tokyo andJeju 4.3 Network Osaka.

At the founding ceremony, representatives of each organization participated through video conference, and Jeju Provincial Governor Oh Young-hoon and National Assemblyman Kim Han-kyu of the Demo­cratic Party delivered congratulatory speeches. Koh Hee-beam, chairman ofthe Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation, visited the site of the founding ceremony and delivered congratulatory remarks.

In its founding declaration, the 4.3 Internation­al Network for Truth and Justice announced that it would become a catalyst for connecting the next gen­eration by fostering the spirit of 4.3 and resistance against injustice to reaffirm peace and human rights.

The spokesperson for the 4.3 International Net­work for Truth and Justice said, "The Jeju 4.3 Massa­cre, which claimed the lives of IO percent of the pop­ulation of Jeju at the time, occurred 74 years ago, but it is not a problem unique to Jeju. After World War II, the Korean Peninsula was another battleground between the great powers. It is a righteous history in which the people of Jeju tried to forge the future of the Korean Peninsula after liberation rather than be dictated by the great powers:'

"The 4.3 journey towards truth and justice did not come about by sitting still. The dedicated research and movement of the Jeju 4.3 organizations and civil society, in tandem with the efforts of the bereaved families, led to the enactment of the 4.3 Special Act, the adoption of a fact-finding report at the government level, and an apology from the President of South Korea. The amendment of the Special Act, backed by the efforts of all, made historical progress in enabling compensation and retrial at the govern-ment level;' the spokesperson added.

"In the 1970s and 1980s, when it was hardly possible to talk about the Jeju 4.3 Massacre out in the open, the voices calling for the investigation of the truth first emerged in Japan. And we've come a long way. Recently, the Jeju 4.3 Victims and Families Association of the U.S. was formed. And a meaningful step began in Taiwan with the launch of the J eju 4.3 Network Taiwan. In other nations, such as the UK and the Netherlands, various activities are underway to es­tablish the truth of the Jeju 4.3 Massacre:'

"Even if it takes a long time, we will establish the truth and the responsibility of the U.S. military gov­ernment at the time. The spring of the natural seasons each year comes by itself, but the spring of historical truth must be forged by men and women as well as the next generation. Our collective footprints towards solidarity will become the warp and weft that light up a brighter tomorrow:'

'We [ 4.3 International Network] will bloom in the Jeju 4.3 spirit of protesting against injustice and flow­er into peace and human rights:'

The representatives of each organization who par­ticipated in the founding ceremony of the Jeju 4.3 In­ternational Network for Truth and Justice aim to raise awareness through collaboration among civic societ­ies and investigate the role of the U.S. Army Military Government in Korea.

In September 2020, the Memorial Committee for the Jeju 4.3 Uprising and Massacre, with the view toward establishing the 4.3 International Network, reached out to each J eju 4.3-related association across the world.

In January, 2021, discussions on the establishment of the international network began in earnest and, six months later, it was established. Each representative of the participating organization took on the role of co-representative, and a joint secretariat consisting of co-representatives and directors of various fields with­in each organization was formed.

The Jeju 4.3 International Network is planning to hold various events such as international forums and seminars for resolving the Jeju 4.3 issue, internation­al solidarity projects, international representation of the Jeju 4.3 history, and international cooperation for forging peace and justice. ■

The History You Never Heard Lecture at Northeastern University

December 1, 2021, 4:00-6:00 pm

Curry Student Center, Room 333, Northeastern University

‘The History You Never Heard’ is a Walden Korea long-term project informing the American public of the truth of the 1948 Jeju 4.3 Uprising and Massacre in South Korea and the horrors of state violence. The project consists of seminars and academic programs held across the United States as well as publications, raising awareness on state crimes and the importance of truth, justice, and reconciliation.

The massacre of more than 30,000 civilians on Jeju Island started in April 1948, while South Korea was governed by the United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK). The U.S. had operational control of South Korea’s armed forces at this time. Historical records show U.S. intervention in quelling the uprising. But few Americans know of this dark history. We call on the United States to release more classified documents and cooperate on further fact-finding efforts. The truth needs to be told. Nation states at times make egregious mistakes, and the United States is no exception. The mistakes made by the U.S. in Korea over 70 years ago still cast a long shadow on the politics of the Korean peninsula today.

Meet our Truth Storyteller

HyungJin Kim

HyungJin Kim is a member of the Walden Korea Planning Committee and a Board member of WeHope, a human rights organization dedicated to the ‘comfort women’ victims, striving for years to tell the just narrative in the US. She conducted and announced research on the Jeju 4.3 Uprising and Massacre at the Walden Korea International Strategic Forum held in September. She graduated from Yew Chung International School of Shanghai and will be receiving a Bachelor of Art from Northeastern University with a major in International Affairs. She co-authored an article on Nationalism which will be published from Ethnicities in 2022. She worked at Harvard Medical school as an education technology, media & design assistant. She is now participating in the movement to investigate and reveal the truth of the Jeju April 4th uprising and massacre, and throughout the event 'The History You Never Heard', will shed a light on the truth of the Jeju massacre in the United States.

Prof. Sung-Yoon Lee

Prof. Sung-Yoon Lee is a scholar of Korean and East Asian studies and a specialist on North Korea. He is the Kim Koo-Korea Foundation Professor in Korean Studies and Assistant Professor at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and Faculty Associate at the Program on U.S.–Japan Relations, Weatherhead Center for International Affairs, Harvard University. Prof. Lee has advised senior-most officials in the US government. In 2013, the Guardian called Lee "[a]mong the most insightful and prescient chroniclers."

This event features a presentation by Professor Sung-Yoon Lee

Ms. Suyeon Yang

Ms.Suyeon Yang is a polymathic journalist, activist, psychoanalyst, culinary artist, jazz critic, music theorist, and educator. Ms. Yang established the Jeju April 3rd Memorial and Victim Families Association of the U.S.(43jeju.com) and Walden Korea in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, to remember state violence and spread human rights values and peace and environmental appreciation. She lost her grandfather and two uncles in the April 3rd Uprising and Massacre. The tragedy remains a significant trauma in her family history. Her goal her is to reveal the truth of the April 3rd Uprising and Massacre to the United States and receive an apology from the U.S. government.

Suyeon Yang's slogan her is "Creatio ex nihilo"(Latin for"creation out of nothing"). Ms. Yang studies social and human matters on an artistic basis.