Dear friends,

We warmly invite you to join us for the 78th Anniversary Jeju April 3 Victims Memorial Ceremony, to be held on Saturday, April 4, 2026, at 6:00 PM in Bayside, New York.

This gathering is a time to remember the victims of Jeju 4·3, honor the pain and resilience of survivors and bereaved families, and share the historical truth and enduring significance of Jeju 4·3 with our community and future generations.

This year’s memorial also carries a special hope: the hope for the establishment of a Jeju 4·3 memorial monument in the United States. Through remembrance, we seek not only to honor the past, but also to build a future rooted in truth, justice, human dignity, and peace.

Event Information
Event: 78th Anniversary Jeju April 3 Victims Memorial Ceremony
Date: Saturday, April 4, 2026
Time: 6:00 PM
Location: News M Hall, Bayside, New York
Host: Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Bereaved Families Association of the U.S.

Your presence and solidarity would mean a great deal to us. We would be grateful if you could join us and also share this invitation with others who may wish to remember Jeju 4·3 with us.

For inquiries, please contact: 43jejuusa@gmail.com

With gratitude,
Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Bereaved Families Association of the U.S.

It Wasn’t Cannons, It Was Proximity: Speaking of Jeju 4·3 in Boston

By Suyeon Yang (President, Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Victims’ Families Association in the U.S.)

In 2021, after seven years of preparatory work in Washington, D.C., we formally launched in Boston a U.S.-based Jeju 4·3 victims’ families association and memorial organization. We began in a deliberately restrained manner. Before any grand declaration, what we needed first were records and procedures, and programs sized to what a small operational team could carry, repeated consistently and built carefully over time.

Over the past four years, we have sustained annual seminars and memorial services, along with roundtables, educational programming, and public outreach. When people ask, “How far have you come?” I often answer this way: we are not yet at the stage of celebrating “results.” We are still building, one by one, the conditions that allow memory to be maintained socially and institutionally.

The Goal Is Not “Attention,” but Procedure

Our overarching aim is clear: to press the United States to participate in a fact-based process of truth-finding regarding Jeju 4·3, and to move, based on those findings, toward responsible recognition and an apology through accountable public procedures.

This is not an outburst of emotion. It is a task that can be translated into the language of human rights and transitional justice. For decades, Jeju 4·3 was reduced, within legal and administrative speech, to a mere “incident.” Yet the accumulation of official investigations and scholarship has already demonstrated that it involved large-scale civilian casualties and state violence.

Korea’s related special law defines Jeju 4·3 as the armed conflict and the suppression process that unfolded on Jeju Island from March 1, 1947 to September 21, 1954, during which residents’ lives were lost.

The Most Common Barrier in Boston: Not Politics, but the Frame of Imagination

When speaking about 4·3 in Boston, the wall I most often encounter is not “political stance,” but a default imaginative frame. For many American audiences, the word “massacre” tends to be stored as an image of distant killing, bombing, artillery, air raids. So they first ask what weapons were used.

One day, a thoughtful and well-prepared American audience member asked me:

“Were cannons used in Jeju at the time? If so, then children and women could have been targeted indiscriminately, right?”

The question was sincere. What he likely meant was something like this: “If this was truly mass violence, there must have been technical means, and then civilian casualties would have been unavoidable.” He was trying to understand violence primarily as equipment.

I do not want to condemn that interpretive habit. International discourse has often analyzed tragedy through weapons systems and chains of command. But Jeju 4·3 contains a core reality that this framework misses.

“No.” It Wasn’t Cannons, It Was Proximity That Did the Work

I answered: “No.” At least in the records I have encountered, survivor testimony, families’ accounts, and Korea’s official investigations, the central scenes repeatedly point to something other than cannons.

The problem was not weaponry. It was proximity.

Not destruction falling from afar, but death carried out up close. Not anonymous targets, but neighbors in a community where people knew names and faces, where individuals were pulled out one by one, identified, separated, and punished at close range.

That is why Jeju 4·3 is not only a matter of many deaths. It becomes a question of how social relations were dismantled, what forms of fear, suspicion, and enforced silence were installed inside ordinary communal life.

I watched the audience member’s expression shift. A moment of disorientation crossed his face. I remember it clearly, not as guilt, but as the reaction that appears when someone’s default image of violence is shaken.

And in that moment I became certain: speaking of Jeju 4·3 in the United States is not about amplifying sorrow. It is about correcting a familiar translation of violence.

Numbers Matter, But Numbers Alone Cannot Convey Proximity

Numbers matter. But numbers alone cannot transmit that proximity.

Korea’s official truth-finding report, The Jeju 4·3 Incident Investigation Report, confirmed and publicly announced 14,028 victims. Among them, figures have also been presented indicating 814 children aged 10 and under, about 5.8 percent. Meanwhile, estimates of the total scale of loss vary depending on sources and methods, but English-language contexts often repeat an estimate of around 30,000 deaths, sometimes described as roughly 10 percent of Jeju’s population at the time.

Listing these numbers is easy. The harder work is translating what those numbers mean, the texture of life they point to: which homes emptied, which village routines stopped, who survived and what they were forced to keep silent about, into public language that can carry dignity.

Where “The United States” Enters, and Why Accuracy Matters

This is also the point at which the word “United States” inevitably enters the conversation. The story is often split into two simplistic positions: one insists that the U.S. commanded everything, while the other evades responsibility by saying it was purely Korea’s internal affair.

Our demand is neither. What we ask for is a record-based examination of the period when U.S. governance and support structures were in operation, and of the continuities that followed.

Historically, U.S. military government in South Korea, USAMGIK, ended on August 15, 1948, when the Republic of Korea was established and governing functions began transitioning. Jeju 4·3 unfolded and expanded across this boundary between the military government period and the early state-building period.

This is precisely where accuracy is required. What did U.S. authorities know? What policy priorities were operating? What command, training, and advisory systems influenced realities on the ground? These are not agitational questions; they are questions for verification.

And verification need not damage the U.S.-Korea alliance. Properly conducted, it can clarify the human rights standards that an alliance should share.

Procedure Before Probability

Running a victims’ families association in Boston, I often find myself resisting the habit of consuming this issue as political debate. American audiences sometimes ask, “So if the U.S. apologizes, is it over?” Korean audiences ask, in a different key, “Is there any chance the U.S. will apologize?”

Both questions are realistic. But for me, what matters before probability is building procedure and language. Apologies do not arrive suddenly as gifts. Apologies are reached through a system: accumulation of records, formation of a public sphere, protection of victims’ dignity, and institutional commitments that prevent similar violence from recurring.

Speak the Numbers, But Do Not End With Numbers

In that sense, I want this column to do two things.

First, not to leave Jeju 4·3 as merely an island tragedy, but to expand it into a universal question: in the formation of postwar governance, policing, and anti-communist security regimes in East Asia, how can civilians become targets, and through what mechanisms?

Second, not to evaluate commemoration by emotional intensity, but to ground it in precise language and minimally disputable facts. We will speak the numbers, but we will not end with numbers. We will speak of violence, but we will not speak in a way that erases the proximity through which violence operated.

That question, “Were cannons used?” left me with a principle.

When we speak of Jeju 4·3, we must deliver the concrete mechanics of how violence functioned more accurately than any dramatic scene meant to shock the imagination. Not cannons, but proximity. Not technology, but relationships. Not only gunshots, but the architecture of silence left behind after the gunshots.

And the work of dismantling that architecture is…

▪ Why we built this resource ▪

We are families of Jeju 4·3 victims living in the United States. As fellow Americans, we don’t want this history to remain invisible simply because it happened far from here. We built this page to offer a clear, evidence-based introduction to Jeju 4·3 in English—without sensationalism and with respect for human dignity.

Our work includes:

Creating public education resources in English
Publishing the Walden Korea Journal
Fundraising for a Jeju 4·3 Memorial Monument in the U.S.
Sharing a consistent message of peace, coexistence, and respectful remembrance

If you believe this kind of education and remembrance matters, please consider making a donation on Facebook. Even a small contribution helps sustain our publishing, educational work, and memorial fundraising efforts.

What is the Jeju 4·3 Incident?

Jeju 4·3 (pronounced “four-three”) refers to a period of political violence and mass civilian victimization on Jeju Island, Korea, that began in the aftermath of Japan’s surrender in 1945 and unfolded amid the early Cold War division of the Korean Peninsula. In Korean public life it is often called the “Jeju 4·3 Incident,” the “Jeju Uprising,” or the “Jeju Uprising and Massacre.”

Under Korean law, “the Jeju 4·3 Incident” is defined as the incident in which civilians were sacrificed during armed conflict and suppression operations from March 1, 1947 through September 21, 1954.

Why it is called “4·3”

The name comes from April 3, 1948, when armed attacks began and the conflict entered a decisive phase. Over time, “4·3” became shorthand for the broader multi-year cycle of violence, not a single-day event.

A brief timeline

• March 1, 1947: A rally on Jeju escalates after police fire on civilians, a moment many accounts identify as a key trigger for intensified conflict. (Korea Policy Institute)

• April 3, 1948: Armed resistance and state repression expand.

• Late 1948 to early 1949: Large-scale “scorched earth” style operations produce the highest civilian toll, alongside detention, torture, village destruction, and summary executions documented in multiple historical studies. (Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus+1)

• September 21, 1954: The period is commonly marked as ending when restrictions tied to the conflict are lifted.

What happened, in plain terms

Jeju 4·3 was not simply one “day of violence.” It was a multi-year process in which political polarization, counterinsurgency, and state security measures repeatedly collided with civilian life. Communities were subjected to sweeping suspicion, forced displacement, detention, and lethal violence. The result was not only the loss of life, but also the long-term breakdown of trust within families, villages, and public institutions.

Many American readers instinctively picture “massacre” as distant killing by artillery or aerial bombardment. Jeju 4·3 is often remembered differently: as violence carried out at close range through policing, raids, detention, interrogation, and executions, intertwined with the destruction of everyday social relations.

How many people were harmed

Numbers vary depending on definitions and documentation methods, and that variance is itself part of why rigorous historical work matters.

A widely cited estimate is about 30,000 deaths, often described as nearly one-tenth of the island’s population at the time, alongside the destruction of many villages and homes. (heritage.arch.cam.ac.uk)
Separate from estimates, “registered” or “identified” victim counts appear in official and institutional records and have changed over time as documentation has expanded. (For example, one public-facing summary reports registered victims in the mid–14,000 range as of a recent reporting period, while also noting higher estimated totals.)

Why scholars see Jeju 4·3 as a Cold War turning point

Jeju 4·3 is frequently analyzed as an early flashpoint of Cold War governance and security policy in Northeast Asia. One scholarly synthesis describes Jeju 4·3 as a watershed for understanding the development of the Korean War, linking the episode to the broader architecture of emergency powers, counterinsurgency, and mass political violence that intensified across 1948–1953. (Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus)

You may also encounter strong formulations in the literature, including claims that Jeju 4·3 was among the earliest large-scale civilian massacres in post–World War II Asia. Some peer-reviewed writing uses “first” language, but the more careful takeaway is this: Jeju 4·3 sits near the beginning of a postwar regional pattern in which anti-communist state-building, occupation-era governance, and internal security campaigns produced catastrophic civilian harm.

The U.S. connection, and why it belongs in an American conversation

Jeju 4·3 began during the period of the United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK), when the U.S. functioned as the occupying authority in southern Korea after 1945. U.S. government historical documentation notes that the United States terminated Military Government on August 15, 1948 and then began transferring governmental functions to the newly inaugurated Republic of Korea. (Office of the Historian)

That timing matters because Jeju 4·3 intensified across the boundary between occupation governance and the early Republic’s security apparatus. The question is not a simplistic binary of “the U.S. did everything” versus “the U.S. had nothing to do with it.” The serious question is procedural and evidentiary:

• What did U.S. authorities know, and when?

• What policy priorities shaped security practices under occupation and after transfer of authority?

• What advisory, training, or operational relationships existed, and how did they influence outcomes?

Even in Korean policy analysis, Jeju 4·3 is explicitly discussed as an episode that began under U.S. military government, and U.S. responsibility and apology are repeatedly raised as unresolved issues in the broader landscape of Korea’s transitional justice.

Why we built this resource in the United States

Most Americans have never heard of Jeju 4·3. That absence is not neutral. It shapes which histories are legible, which losses are recognized, and which standards of human rights and accountability are applied consistently across alliances.

Scholarly writing on reparative justice for Jeju 4·3 emphasizes how limited international awareness remains and how reconciliation efforts can stall when accountability is treated as “finished business” rather than an ongoing process. (Southwestern Law School)

Walden Korea and the Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Victims’ Families Association in the U.S. created this site for three practical reasons:

1. Public education in English. We provide reliable, documented entry points for people encountering Jeju 4·3 for the first time.

2. A procedural approach to truth and accountability. We focus on records, verification, and explainable claims, not partisan spectacle.

3. Human dignity and trauma awareness. Jeju 4·3 is not only “history.” It is intergenerational trauma carried by survivors and families, including within diaspora communities in the United States.

Our goal is not to convert grief into political theater. Our goal is to support a credible historical record, insist on human-rights standards worthy of democratic societies, and create the conditions in which acknowledgment, education, and prevention become possible.

References and further reading

• Walden Korea Journal, Issue 1- Walden Korea Publication Page

• Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation (Official, English PDF Guide) - A Guide to the History of the Jeju 4·3 Incident

• Special Law translation (definition and dates): “The Special Law for Truth Investigation about the Jeju 4·3 Incident and Honoring Victims,” excerpted in The Jeju 4.3 Incident Investigation Report (download page). cdm21069.contentdm.oclc.org

• U.S. Military Government termination and transfer: U.S. Department of State, Office of the Historian, Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS), noting termination of Military Government on Aug. 15, 1948 and transfer of functions. Office of the Historian

• Cold War and Korean War “watershed” framing: Su-kyoung Hwang, “South Korea, the United States and Emergency Powers During the Korean Conflict,” Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus (2014). Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

• Scale estimates and Peace Foundation-referenced figures: Cambridge Heritage Research Centre, “Commemorating South Korea’s Cheju April 3rd Incident” (includes death-toll estimates and cites the Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation as a source for victim-registration figures). heritage.arch.cam.ac.uk

• Transitional justice and the role of Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation investigations: East Asia Institute, discussion of Jeju 4·3 within Korea’s transitional justice landscape, including continued investigations by the Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation and the recurring question of U.S. responsibility. eai.or.kr

• Reparative justice and limited international awareness: Eric K. Yamamoto, Miyoko Pettit & Sara Lee, “The 2018 Reopening of the Jeju 4.3 Mass Convictions,” (PDF), discussing ongoing reconciliation needs and the lack of broader awareness. Southwestern Law School

• Additional background (accessible overview that explicitly situates Jeju 4·3 under USAMGIK): Korea Policy Institute article, “Early Cold War Genocide: the Jeju 4.3 Massacre and U.S. Responsibility” (2020). Korea Policy Institute

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BROOKLINE, Massachusetts | April 19, 2025
The 77th Anniversary Memorial for the Victims of Jeju 4·3 was held on April 19 at Hunneman Hall in Brookline, Massachusetts. The event was convened to share the truth of Jeju 4·3 with the global public and to amplify a message of justice, human rights, and peace.

Hosted by the Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S. and its Memorial Committee, chaired by Suyeon Yang, the annual memorial marked the recent inscription of Jeju 4·3 records on UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register. The gathering also served as the organization’s first public step toward formally advancing a Jeju 4·3 resolution in the U.S. Congress.

Jeju 4·3 and the UNESCO inscription

The Jeju 4·3 Incident refers to mass civilian killings and related state violence that occurred on Jeju Island from 1947 to 1954. An estimated 30,000 civilians were killed during suppression operations carried out by South Korean authorities during the period of the U.S. Army Military Government in Korea.

In April, UNESCO inscribed Jeju 4·3 records in its Memory of the World Register. The newly inscribed materials total 14,673 items and include lists of prisoners from illegal military trials, postcards from prisons, testimonies from victims and bereaved families, civil society records, and official government investigation reports.

Memorial remarks and the congressional resolution initiative

The memorial was emceed by Hyunjung Lee, a Walden Korea committee member. In her commemorative address, Chairwoman Suyeon Yang emphasized that Jeju 4·3 must be remembered not only as a regional history of Korea, but as a global human rights story that demands ethical attention. She noted that the community has moved beyond an era of silence and is now rewriting the historical record through documentation and testimony. She further described the memorial as the first international commemoration held after the UNESCO inscription and called for U.S. society to engage this history with a shared sense of responsibility.

Video messages of solidarity were delivered by Changbeom Kim, Chair of the Jeju Bereaved Families Association, Kwanghyun Oh, Chair of the Jeju 4·3 Bereaved Families Association in Japan, and Jeju Special Self Governing Province Governor Younghoon Oh.

Catherine Yang, based in Washington, D.C., presented the purpose and significance of the proposed congressional resolution. She underscored that the resolution is not solely about assigning responsibility for the past, but about renewing an international commitment to human rights and democracy going forward. The draft resolution, prepared by the Jeju 4·3 Victims and Families Association in the U.S., includes acknowledgement of the historical context of U.S. involvement during the US military government period, requests for disclosure of relevant records, and an expression of solidarity with survivors and bereaved families.

Passing memory to the next generation

A highlight of the program was a speech by Joseph Choi (Jaeyoon Choi), a ninth grade student at Bedford High School and a second generation Korean American. Beginning with the question, “Why am I only learning this history now,” he offered a reflection on silence, memory, and solidarity, and emphasized that what his generation can do begins with listening.

Language, art, and healing

Professor Diana Lynch of Boston University, a poet and scholar, spoke on the role of language in confronting suffering and opening a space for healing. She described Jeju 4·3 as an event that must be held in poetic and ethical memory, and stressed the responsibility of speaking against silence.

The memorial also featured performances that carried the themes of remembrance and repair. Pianist Benjamin Choi performed Janáček’s Sonata 1.X.1905 (From the Street), Evoking a sense of grief and suppressed emotion and illustrating the capacity of music to hold memory. Child singer Hazel Cho performed “Camellia’s Dream,” followed by Chairwoman Suyeon Yang’s concluding tribute song accompanied by Jeju 4·3 video images.

Ongoing work and public access

The Jeju 4·3 Victims and Families Association of the U.S. continues human rights education and arts based public programming through Walden Korea, and engages in community service and cultural exchange in partnership with the civic arts group The Scent of Camellia, led by Hyejung Lee.

The full video of the 77th Anniversary Jeju 4·3 Memorial in the United States will be available beginning in the fourth week of May, after final production, at:

Korean: www.43jeju.com
English: www.waldenkorea.org

Membership in the Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S. and its Memorial Committee is open to all, including those who are not bereaved family members. Those who wish to join the work of truth seeking and historical remembrance may submit a membership form online. There is no membership fee.

Media Contact

Jeju 4·3 Victims and Families Association of the U.S. and Memorial Committee
Website:

Hallyu, the Korean Wave, is a global phenomenon that reflects worldwide appreciation for Korean culture, including film, K-pop, cuisine, and traditional arts and crafts. Hallyu can also serve as a doorway to deeper layers of Korean history, including the Jeju April 3 Incident.

What is the Jeju April 3 Incident, and why must we know?

The Jeju April 3 Incident (1947–1954) unfolded during a volatile period in Korean history, marked by social unrest and conflict in the aftermath of World War II and Korea’s liberation from Japanese colonial rule. The incident resulted in the deaths of more than 30,000 civilians and left a lasting scar on Korean society.

The Jeju April 3 Incident is widely understood as a major instance of collective trauma in South Korea, a profound psychological wound shared by a community that has endured mass violence. It is also increasingly studied by scholars worldwide as a case that illuminates the early Cold War dynamics in Northeast Asia. Some interpretations argue that the Jeju April 3 Incident should be understood as a critical precursor to the later escalation on the Korean Peninsula, including the Korean War, in which approximately 36,000 American soldiers were killed.

Community Commemoration Event

Come hear the stories of victims’ families and descendants living in our community. Join us in commemorating the 76th anniversary of the Jeju April 3 Incident. This solemn and educational gathering offers an opportunity to learn about the incident’s historical significance, honor those affected, and reflect on the importance of empathy, remembrance, and healing in the aftermath of collective trauma.

The event is family-friendly and includes arts and crafts activities designed to help participants connect with the history and emotional impact of Jeju April 3.

Date and Time: April 27, 5:00 p.m.
Location: Boston Korean Church in Brookline (32 Harvard Ave)
Admission: Free (dinner provided)

High School Essay Contest: Memory and Justice

We also invite high school students to participate in an essay contest reflecting on their experience at the event. All participants will receive a special memento, and outstanding essays will be awarded scholarships. Selected essays may also be considered for publication in the Walden Korea International Journal, offering students an opportunity to share their work with a broader audience and contribute to public dialogue on Korean history and memory.

Submission Deadline: May 30
Eligibility: High school students
Submission Process: Students who attend the event will receive a submission link by email.

Essay Guidelines

Your essay should address the following areas:

Unique Reflection (required)
Reflect on your experience at the event and what you learned about the Jeju April 3 Incident.

Collective Trauma Impact
Discuss the impacts of collective trauma, using academic research to support your analysis.

Future Implications
Consider how the Jeju April 3 Incident continues to shape society today, including attitudes and reconciliation efforts.

Formatting Requirements

Length: 1,000–2,000 words, in English
Font: 12-point Times New Roman
Spacing: Double-spaced

For questions, please contact: info@waldenkorea.org

This video features a lecture speech delivered at the 75th Anniversary Jeju 4·3 Victims Memorial Ceremony in the United States by Professor Sung-Yoon Lee (Ph.D.), an international politics scholar at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University.

Professor Sung-Yoon Lee’s 2022 op-ed in The Hill argues that remembrance, truth-seeking, and reconciliation should begin with a presidential visit to the Jeju April 3 Peace Park.

In an op-ed published in The Hill on April 6, 2022, Sung-Yoon Lee, a professor at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, makes a clear and consequential argument: a U.S. presidential visit to the Jeju April 3 Peace Park would be a meaningful starting point for the United States in addressing the unresolved grievances of the victims of the Jeju 4·3 Incident. Southwestern Law School

Jeju Island witnessed the systematic killing of civilians beginning in 1948, a tragedy made more complex by the historical context of U.S. authority on the peninsula during the period of the U.S. Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK). Lee emphasizes the moral and diplomatic importance of remembrance and reconciliation, pointing to the significance of public gestures that acknowledge victims and validate historical pain. House Docs+1

The op-ed argues that both South Korea and the United States have, at different times, minimized or avoided full accountability, slowing the pursuit of truth and reconciliation. The mass killing of civilians, including women and children, and the destruction of communities, remains a critical but insufficiently understood chapter in post-1945 Korean history that warrants sustained attention in the United States. House Docs

Lee specifically suggests that when President Joe Biden travels to South Korea, he should pay respects at the Jeju 4·3 Peace Park as an act of acknowledgment and a gesture toward healing that could strengthen the U.S.–ROK relationship. He also proposes that Congress can contribute to reconciliation through tangible support, including educational initiatives for victims’ families, drawing on precedents in which the United States has addressed past wrongs through public recognition and material measures. House Docs+1

At its core, the piece calls for the Jeju 4·3 Massacre to be recognized as a shared historical and ethical issue, not solely a domestic Korean tragedy. It urges actions that support truth-telling, public memory, and reconciliation as foundations for a more mature and credible bilateral partnership. House Docs

To read the full op-ed, please visit:
https://thehill.com/opinion/international/3258230-biden-should-visit-south-koreas-jeju-april-3rd-peace-park/

Date and Time:
Thursday, April 6, 6 pm
followed by a reception at 7 pm.

Location
7th floor, Cabot Intercultural Center, Tufts Fletcher School
160 Packard Ave., Medford, MA

Host: Jeju 4.3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S.

Support organizer: Jeju 4·3 International Network for Truth and Justice, Memorial Committee for the Jeju April 3rd Uprising and Massacre, Fletcher School North Korea Working Group

Sponsor: Jeju Special Self-Governing Province

RSVP: info@waldenkorea.org
Tel) 617-849-8433

Walden Korea Lecture Series

International School of Philosophy in Asia (ISPA)

Slavoj Žižek “Are There Still Masters or Are There Only Servants of Servants?”

10 am (EST-U.S & Canada), Wed, December 21

Webinar Lecture

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86835446597?pwd=WnpZSFgyc3c2Zkc2elhHajhYL04xZz09

Meeting ID: 868 3544 6597

Passcode: 4343

All are welcome to join by video or audio

Dr. Žižek will take questions from audience

Email: info@waldenkorea.org

Host: Walden Korea

Sponsor: Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation

The Walden Korea Lecture Series brings together leading scholars and public intellectuals to engage the most urgent questions of our time. In the 21st century, global mobility and the rise of the “global value chain” have turned large parts of Asia and beyond into vast, interconnected production zones, reshaping global capitalism. Accelerating industrialization has fueled the growth of major metropolitan centers while intensifying environmental degradation, climate crisis, and climate change.

As regional economies have been integrated into global markets, local lifeworlds have been reconfigured and increasingly subordinated to the norms of a monetary regime. In this sense, Asia can no longer be understood as merely a particular geographic region. It has become a key site through which the dynamics of global capitalism can be examined as a universal condition. For this reason, the lecture series takes Asia as a critical vantage point for developing what it calls a “planetary philosophy,” a framework for thinking across borders, systems, and scales.

At the same time, rapid technological development continues to detach certainty from lived, spatio-temporal experience, while algorithmic forms of intelligence increasingly shape how we perceive, decide, and know. The energy infrastructures that sustain contemporary civilization, from coal and oil to electricity, have enabled extraordinary growth, yet they also constrain the imagination and obstruct the possibility of genuinely different futures. But the future is never simply ahead of us; it is always tied to rupture in the present. Alternative possibilities are already embedded within today’s reality as latent potentials.

From this perspective, the Walden Korea Lecture Series, the inaugural program of the International School of Philosophy in Asia, invites all who are interested in challenging normative perceptions of the contemporary world and seeking alternative approaches to prevailing knowledge systems.

The Walden Korea Lecture Series is the first program launched under the International School of Philosophy in Asia (ISPA) and is funded by the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation. The opening lecture will be delivered by Slavoj Žižek, the Slovenian philosopher, cultural theorist, and public intellectual. Žižek serves as International Director of the Birkbeck Institute for the Humanities at the University of London, is a Visiting Professor at New York University, and is a Senior Researcher at the University of Ljubljana’s Department of Philosophy.

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

NTRODUCTIONS

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

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

The Jeju 4·3 International Network for Truth and Justice was established at 2:00 p.m. KST on June 27, 2022, at the Jeju City Communication and Cooperation Center. Participants from Jeju, Seoul, Japan, the United States, Europe, and Taiwan joined forces to advance truth and justice related to Jeju 4·3.

Seven organizations formed the initial coalition, with the Jeju Association for the Bereaved Families of 4·3 Victims serving as the central hub. The founding members included the Jeju 4·3 Pan-National Committee to Commemorate the Jeju 4·3 Massacre, the Memorial Committee for the Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre, the Association for the Bereaved Families of 4·3 Victims in Japan, the Jeju 4·3 Victims and Families Association in the U.S., the Taiwan Jeju 4·3 Victims Association, and Jeju 4·3 Network Europe. Two additional groups, Jeju 4·3 Network Tokyo and Jeju 4·3 Network Osaka, were also reported to be in preparation.

At the founding ceremony, representatives of each organization participated by video conference. Jeju Provincial Governor Oh Young-hoon and National Assemblyman Kim Han-kyu (Democratic Party) delivered congratulatory remarks, and Koh Hee-beom, Chair of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation, attended in person and offered congratulatory comments.

In its founding declaration, the Network stated that it aims to serve as a catalyst for connecting the next generation by fostering the spirit of Jeju 4·3 and resistance to injustice, reaffirming commitments to peace and human rights.

A spokesperson emphasized that the Jeju 4·3 Massacre, which claimed an estimated 10 percent of Jeju’s population at the time, occurred 74 years ago but should not be treated as a problem unique to Jeju. The statement located Jeju 4·3 within the post–World War II geopolitical struggle on the Korean Peninsula, describing it as a history in which Jeju residents sought to shape their future after liberation rather than have it dictated by great powers.

The spokesperson also highlighted that progress on truth and justice was achieved through sustained efforts by bereaved families, civic society, and Jeju 4·3 organizations, leading to the enactment of the Jeju 4·3 Special Act, the adoption of a government-level fact-finding report, and a presidential apology. Subsequent amendments to the Special Act were described as historic steps enabling compensation and retrials through state mechanisms.

The statement further noted that in the 1970s and 1980s, when open discussion of Jeju 4·3 was extremely difficult in Korea, early calls for truth-seeking first emerged in Japan. It pointed to more recent developments, including the formation of the Jeju 4·3 Victims and Families Association in the United States and the establishment of Jeju 4·3 network initiatives in Taiwan. It also referenced ongoing activities in other countries, including the United Kingdom and the Netherlands, aimed at advancing international awareness and fact-finding.

Looking ahead, the Network stated its intention to pursue truth and accountability regarding the role of the U.S. Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK). It framed historical truth as something that does not arrive automatically but must be built through collective action across generations, emphasizing solidarity as the foundation for a more just future.

Representatives participating in the founding ceremony stated that the Network will collaborate across civil society networks, strengthen international awareness, and investigate the role of USAMGIK in Jeju 4·3. Organizers noted that the Memorial Committee for the Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre began reaching out to Jeju 4·3-related associations worldwide in September 2020. Formal discussions on establishing the international network began in January 2021, and the Network was launched six months later. Each participating organization appointed a co-representative, and a joint secretariat was formed, composed of co-representatives and directors responsible for key areas of work.

The Jeju 4·3 International Network for Truth and Justice plans to organize international forums and seminars, develop solidarity projects, expand international representation of Jeju 4·3 history, and strengthen cross-border cooperation to advance peace and justice.

Walden Korea signed a business agreement with the Korea Support Center and the Koryo People’s Cultural Center “Beyond Incheon,” located in Hambak Village in Yeonsu-gu, Incheon, South Korea. The agreement is intended to promote the history of Primorsky, Manchuria, and the Korean Peninsula to a global audience. Hambak Village is described as Korea’s largest concentrated ethnic village, where approximately 7,000 Koryo (Goryeo) people live together as a community.

The term “Koryo people” (Goryeo people) refers to ethnic Koreans who have lived across the post Soviet region, including Uzbekistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Ukraine, particularly following the collapse of the former Soviet Union.

In spring 2019, marking the 100th anniversary of the March 1st Independence Movement and the establishment of the Korean Provisional Government, President Moon Jae-in visited Uzbekistan and stated that the first generation of Koryo people were independence activists and patriots.

Historically, in 1863, Koreans who crossed the Tumen River and settled in Primorsky Krai formed Korean villages that later became central sites of the independence movement, including serving as a base for armed resistance. That trajectory was disrupted in 1937, when forced deportations to Central Asia devastated the community. Tens of thousands of Koryo people reportedly died during the relocation and in its aftermath. Those who survived rebuilt their lives in Central Asia, cultivating barren land, establishing collective farms, and sustaining their communities while educating the next generation. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, many Koryo people dispersed across Eurasia, and some later migrated to South Korea, including through pathways that expanded after 2007.

Despite their historical connection to the independence movement, many Koryo people in South Korea face significant barriers to recognition, educational opportunity, and social integration. In contrast to ethnic Koreans from China (Joseonjok), many Koryo people are not fluent in Korean, in part because Korean-language instruction was banned in the Soviet Union after 1945. As a result, many have remained concentrated in residential enclaves such as Hambak Village, where language access and community support are more readily available.

Many Koryo people who resettled in South Korea were highly educated professionals in their former countries, including doctors and professors. However, after arriving in Korea, many encountered limited pathways for professional recognition and employment, and were often funneled into low-wage work.

As part of its related programming, Walden Korea plans to launch a modern Korean history study trip that brings second-generation Korean students and U.S. residents to South Korea. The itinerary will include visits to a Koryo community where participants can meet descendants of anti-Japanese independence activists and learn more about the Korean diaspora. Participants will also visit the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) to study inter-Korean relations and will include a learning component on the Jeju 4·3 Massacre.

Walden Korea signed a business agreement with Remainers, a Korea-based company focused on Korean culture, on July 24, 2022. Remainers is led by Lim Sung-hee, a master of traditional soybean paste and red pepper paste; Lee Hyun-kyung, a master of natural dyeing; and Yoon Kyung-ja, a developer.

Under the agreement, the two organizations will share culinary techniques and cultural knowledge grounded in the spirit of Hongik. Walden Korea noted that a Korean cuisine partner is essential because the Korean Wave has grown significantly in the United States, and Korean food is increasingly central to global interest in Korea. Walden Korea also emphasized that cuisine can serve as an accessible entry point through which American audiences connect more deeply with Korean history and culture. Suyeon Yang, Chairwoman of Walden Korea, is a Korean cuisine specialist who studied traditional Korean court cuisine.

Remainers will introduce its gochujang and doenjang kit to the U.S. market and will collaborate with Walden Korea on related cultural programming, including international exchange activities, certificate courses, educational recipes, events, and consulting.

The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. This spring, that step was taken. For the first time on American soil, to the best of my knowledge, events were organized specifically to raise public awareness of a dark chapter of modern history: the Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre, often referred to as the Jeju Island Massacres.

On April 1, the Jeju April 3 Victims Memorial Ceremony was held at the Harvard Faculty Club. Harvard University, a place where scholarship has shaped public understanding for centuries, provided a fitting setting for words that sought to bring light to a tragedy long obscured by distance and silence. The program featured local speakers whose expertise and tone combined intellectual rigor with humility and empathy: Professor David McCann (Harvard University), Professor Edward Baker (Harvard University), Professor Sung-Yoon Lee (The Fletcher School at Tufts University), and Ms. Suyeon Yang, Chairwoman of the Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S.

Together, the speakers offered a troubling yet necessary portrait. Professor Baker opened by situating the massacre within its historical context and arguing that the United States bears responsibility in this chapter of Korean history. A history not distant in time, yet too easily forgotten. Professor McCann then approached the tragedy through literature, illustrating how the pain of Jeju’s victims has been preserved and transmitted through poetry and testimony. These perspectives did not merely describe suffering; they raised the moral and political questions that follow any account of mass violence: how such atrocities become possible, who authorizes them, and how ideology and power can transform ordinary systems into instruments of terror. In combination, the presentations deepened understanding of what happened and why the painful past continues to shape the present.

The Harvard event blended commemoration with short lectures and was hosted by Walden Korea, an academic and cultural platform, and the Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S. It brought together graduate students from Tufts and Harvard, along with researchers and community members interested in Korean history, and it highlighted how much remains unknown in the American public sphere about the complex history of Jeju 4·3. The event’s significance was not only in the facts shared but also in the deliberate decision to speak openly—placing the subject in public view rather than leaving it under the cover of silence.

New York Commemoration Continues the Momentum

Eight days later, on April 9, a second commemoration was held at the New York Academy in Bayside, New York, continuing the effort to raise awareness on American soil. The service opened with a screening of Jiseul: Unfinished Years 2, directed by Oh Mook, which depicts the story of Jeju 4·3. Ms. Yang followed with remarks that held together historical facts and emotional truth, emphasizing that this history is not abstract but lived, inherited, and enduring.

A memorial poem, “Before the Law,” by poet Heo Young-sun, was recited by Jennifer Eun Joo Kim. The commemoration concluded with a salpuri dance performed by Kang Eun-ju, an expressive and fitting finale for an event dedicated to mourning and remembrance. Sungyoon Park presided as master of ceremonies. Due to COVID-19, attendance in person was limited to pre-registered participants, while many others joined via Zoom.

Although these events represent only early steps, they are meaningful steps toward truth-telling and reconciliation. There is no truth without awareness, no awareness without sustained effort, and no justice without truth. Walden Korea and the Jeju 4·3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S. plan to continue public education and commemoration efforts to ensure that the victims of Jeju 4·3 do not remain invisible.

During the Harvard program, Professor Sung-Yoon Lee, a prominent scholar of Korea and U.S.–Korea relations, issued a direct call for President Joe Biden to pay respects at the Jeju 4·3 Peace Park—an 88-acre memorial sanctuary on Jeju Island dedicated to the victims. He noted that President Barack Obama visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park in 2016 and argued that Jeju 4·3 deserves comparable recognition.

Ms. Yang then spoke from an explicitly personal position. For her, Jeju 4·3 is not simply a historical subject; it is family history. She shared that her father lost his father and two brothers—her grandfather and uncles—in the massacre, and she underscored how discussion of Jeju 4·3 was suppressed for decades by the state, leaving many families to carry their grief in silence.

The Harvard event also included recorded video remarks from South Korea, expanding the forum beyond U.S.-based speakers. Those featured included philosopher Doh-ol Kim Yong-ok; Oh Im-jong, Chair of the Jeju 4·3 Bereaved Families Association; Oh Kwang-hyeon, Chair of the Jeju 4·3 Bereaved Families Association of Japan; Koh Hee-beom, Chair of the Jeju 4·3 Peace Foundation; Heo Young-sun, Director of the Jeju 4·3 Research Institute; Oh Young-hoon, Member of the National Assembly; and Professor Taek-Kwang Lee of Kyung Hee University.

These two commemorations—one at Harvard and one in New York—mark the beginning of a broader American-facing effort: to confront the historical record, expand public knowledge, and move toward accountability and reconciliation grounded in truth.

The April Third Jeju Uprising and Massacre, the biggest peacetime massacre of civilians in post-1945 Korean history, warrants study, remembrance, and reconciliation. From March 1, 1947 to September 21, 1954, more than 30,000 innocent civilians were massacred by government authorities in the name of quelling Communists. Scholars view the tragedy as a major turning point, if not the start, of the Cold War in Northeast Asia. Today, some 75 years later, truth, accountability, justice, and reconciliation have yet to be fully established. This retrospective seeks to cast the Jeju Sasam Incident through the prism of truth, justice, human rights, and historical memory. The ongoing tragedy in Ukraine–perhaps the start of a new Cold War–offers a new perspective on this old Korean tragedy.

Presenters

Mr. Edward J. Baker
Former Associate Director of the Harvard-Yenching Institute, Harvard University
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Dr. David R. McCann
Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Literature, Emeritus, Harvard University
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Dr. Sung-Yoon Lee
Kim Koo-Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies & Assistant Professor, The Fletcher School, Tufts University
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Ms. Suyeon Yang
Chairwoman, Walden Korea and Jeju 4.3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S
Remarks

Dr. Do-ol, Young-Oak Kim
Philosopher
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Dr. Alex Taek-Gwang Lee
A professor at the Department of British and American Cultural Studies and a founding director of the Center for Technology in Humanities,
Kyung Hee University, South Korea & Advisor of Walden Korea
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Music

Anna Choi, oboe
a dual-degree student at Harvard University and the New England Conservatory.
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Anthony Choi, cello
a dual-degree student at Harvard University and the New England Conservatory.
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Co-Hosted by
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Walden Korea
The Jeju 4.3 Memorial and Families Association of the U.S.,
Memorial Committee for the Jeju April 3rd Uprising and Massacre,

Sponsored by
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Truth and Justice International Network on the April 3 Jeju Massacre.
43 Committee of Jeju Special Self-Governing Provincial Council.

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‘The History You Never Heard’ is a long-term Walden Korea project dedicated to informing the American public about the 1948 Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre in South Korea and the realities of state violence. The project includes seminars and academic programs held across the United States, as well as publications that raise awareness of state crimes and the importance of truth, justice, and reconciliation.

The massacre of more than 30,000 civilians on Jeju Island began in April 1948, during the period when South Korea was governed by the United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK). At that time, the United States exercised operational control over South Korea’s armed forces. Historical records indicate U.S. involvement in suppressing the uprising, yet few Americans are aware of this history. We call on the United States to release additional classified documents and to cooperate with further fact-finding efforts. The truth must be told. Nation-states sometimes commit grave errors, and the United States is no exception. Decisions made by the U.S. in Korea more than 70 years ago still cast a long shadow over the politics of the Korean Peninsula today.

Meet Our Truth Storytellers

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 victims of Japan’s “comfort women” system. She has worked for years to advance accurate and just narratives in the United States.

HyungJin presented her 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 is completing a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs at Northeastern University. She co-authored an article on nationalism scheduled for publication in Ethnicities (2022). She has also worked at Harvard Medical School as an education technology, media, and design assistant.

HyungJin is currently engaged in efforts to investigate and illuminate the truth of Jeju 4·3. Through ‘The History You Never Heard,’ she will help bring wider public attention in the United States to the history and legacy of the Jeju massacre.

Professor Sung-Yoon Lee

Professor 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 of Korean Studies and an assistant professor at The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, and a Faculty Associate in the Program on U.S.–Japan Relations at Harvard University’s Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. He has advised senior officials in the U.S. government. In 2013, The Guardian described him as “among the most insightful and prescient chroniclers.”

This event features a presentation by Professor Sung-Yoon Lee.

Suyeon Yang

Suyeon Yang is a journalist, organizer, and educator based in Boston, Massachusetts. She founded the Jeju April 3rd Memorial and Victims’ Families Association of the U.S. (43jeju.com) and Walden Korea to advance remembrance of state violence and to promote the values of human rights, peace, and public education.

Yang lost her grandfather and two uncles in the April 3rd Uprising and Massacre, and the tragedy remains a profound intergenerational trauma in her family history. Her goal is to broaden public understanding of Jeju 4·3 in the United States and to pursue truth-telling and accountability, including a formal apology from the U.S. government.

Her personal motto is “Creatio ex nihilo” (Latin for “creation out of nothing”). She approaches social and human questions through an interdisciplinary, arts-informed lens.

‘The History You Never Heard’ is a long-term Walden Korea project that informs the American public about the truth of the 1948 Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre in South Korea and the harms of state violence. The project includes seminars and academic programs held across the United States, as well as publications that raise awareness of state crimes and the importance of truth, justice, and reconciliation.

The massacre of more than 30,000 civilians on Jeju Island began in April 1948, during the period when South Korea was governed by the United States Army Military Government in Korea (USAMGIK). At that time, the United States exercised operational control over South Korea’s armed forces. Historical records indicate U.S. involvement in the suppression of the uprising, yet few Americans are aware of this history. We call on the United States to release additional classified documents and to cooperate with further fact-finding efforts. The truth must be told. Nation-states sometimes make grave mistakes, and the United States is no exception. Decisions made by the U.S. in Korea more than 70 years ago still cast a long shadow over the politics of the Korean Peninsula today.

Meet Our Truth Storyteller

Attorney Dennis Hogan

Our first Truth Storyteller is Attorney Dennis Hogan, who has lived in Nashua, New Hampshire, his entire life.

Attorney Hogan became interested in the Jeju 4·3 Uprising and Massacre after watching our International Forum. A lifelong student of history, he is committed to helping bring the truth of Jeju 4·3 to the American public. In a short video, he shares why the story matters to him and introduces the Nashua region.

We invite you to become a Truth Storyteller. Share with your neighbors the realities faced by victims of state violence—and a message grounded in human dignity, truth, and remembrance.