Award Winning Works of 4th Int’l Essay Contest on Dokdo Prize

Ten truths about Dokdo not known in Japan

Park Eun-ji Park Eun-ji is currently a high school student attending Daegu Jung Hwa Girls’ High School. She is deeply interested in international relations and through the preparation of this essay, she realized that many of the secrets are found within the people who are trying to protect Korean land and history embedded within it.

The isle disputes of South Asia are a rising concern in the internationalcommunity. The Dokdo-Takeshima controversy is not an exception, threatening peace and intimacy between Korea and Japan. This territorial land known as Dokdo resembles a missing puzzle piece in Korean history; it truly claims the historical evidence as a fragment of Korea but lacks of vast acceptance by the international society.

In order to raise awareness, many activists and diplomatic organizations strive to preserve singularity, depending on historical truth that should not be distorted but clearly distinguished and noticed in the line of fidelity.

The power of truth relies on the flow of history. Many secrets arise from the base of historical contents. The first secret is that Korea has documented the presence of Dokdo for a very long time, presenting it in multiple forms of maps and documentary evidence.

Starting from 512 to the year 1908, a total of nine Korean historical documents indicated the geological location of Dokdo and its relatively adjacent position to Ulleungdo, determining that Dokdo was acknowledged as a part of Korea’s domain. Thus, the pools of recognition were also displayedfrom the time of Korea’s ancestors.

Secondly, Dokdo was also perceived as a Korean territory by foreigncountries as stated in past archives. With the passing of time, the positions and contours of Dokdo depicted in maps became gradually discernible.

With this clarity, the presence of Dokdo emerged in Western maps titled as “Liancourt Rocks” in reference to being discovered on Jan. 27, 1849 by those sailing on a French vessel. Awareness plays a key role in preventing fallacies from surfacing; not only is it a building block to creating credibility, but ensures the definite answer of honest certainty. Dokdo was clearly distinguished by Western territories as Korean land; recognition was manifested ever since.

Moreover, the surprising factor of foreign recognition is that more andmore of these findings are being unearthed and revealed to society. Recently, the American embassy introduced a confidential document written on Oct. 3, 1952. A well-known Dokdo activist, Mark S. Lovmo introduced the document entitled “Koreans on Liancourt Rocks” which contended context regarding the acceptance of Dokdo as explicitly Korea’s boundary.

While disclosing the evidence, Lovmo was confident that Dokdo isKorea’s territory. He has supported this clause by operating a web site for the past eight years, which is viewed by thousands of visitors daily and provides contents such as historical maps and documents that are the soleclues structuring evidence and supporting Korean history.

A letter from the Charge d’Affaires ad interim E. Allan Lightner is another document that discloses the truth. Written on Oct. 16, 1952, it infers the subject that the Dokdo isle was used as a bombing target by U.S. military soldiers. They thought that the island was barren and isolated and continued use of the island for the purpose of experimenting with explosive materials. Reference was also made to an alleged incident in 1946 when American bombs killed Korean islanders on Dokdo.

Enclosed within the letter, on Oct. 10, The Korea Times carried an Orient Press report stating that the Korean government had requested U.N. military authorities to include Dokdo within the established Sea Defense Zone which was based on anti-Japanese sentiments as well. Even at that time,Korea intended to stir up anti-Japanese feelings and pave the way for increased governmental efforts to assert sovereignty over the islands. Hence, the documented evidence is a stepping stone that reflects the search forvalidity of Dokdo and its presence as a piece of Korean land.

The historical tie between Dokdo and bordering Korean territory is another significant point. Dokdo inhabitants shared an intimacy with the residents of Ulleungdo, a neighboring islet which is only an hour away. In fair weather, Dokdo is visible with the naked eye standing appoint in Ulleungdo,which is not possible from Japanese territories.

The dwellers of Ulleungdo would wait for a stream of smoke fuming from Dokdo which meant that islanders were preparing food and were safe within their land. This mutual sense of solidarity visualizes the perpetual fellowship that was existent in former times, a claim that the society ofDokdo was tightly-knitted to its bystanders.

Although not registered as a part of history, a bond between islanders of Jejudo and Dokdo was also existent. In Korean language, the terminology haenyeo means a female diver which is a common occupation around coastal areas. Their roles are fundamental for cultural purposes as thehaenyeo of Jejudo hold the potential to designate Dokdo as a UNESCO World Heritage site.

In fact, a group of 30 haenyeo visited Dokdo in the year 1955 and unfolded an active movement to secure the identity of Dokdo as Korean land. For this reason, many Dokdo activists are trying to unearth proof that haenyeo displayed such considerable activity. With the excavation for evidence,activists are planning a joint project amongst the Jejudo haenyeo and Dokdo security guards through hosting meetings regularly and propelling cooperation. One activist noted that by designating the Korean female divers as a part of the UNESCO World Heritage, the next step of entitling Dokdo as a world property would only be moments away.

This acknowledgement of Dokdo as Korean land mass is ongoing in the modern society. Influential activists and figures from the Korean society along with the international society are continuously flowering achievements. Out of the whole, a number of artists are embedding their creativity in raising awareness aimed within foreign countries.

A Korean franchise merchandizing chicken gangjeong, which is an assortment of fried chicken and a coating of sweet and spicy sauce, started publicizing an outline of the Dokdo isle in paper cups. The CEO Lee Sangjun thought that serving Korean specialty in these Dokdo paper cups would play a crucial function of promoting awareness. Stemmed from the hope to advertise Dokdo to the masses as much as possible, Lee’s inspiration steers foreigners to a pathway of veracity.

Another influential artist who aims for recognition is Lee Jae-seuk who is a graphic artist and a display designer, prominent in his field for his expertise. One of his advertisements was made to the theme “Stop island theft” in a Dokdo guerilla exhibition. His display deals with the sensitive pending issue of the Dokdo crisis, implementing a visual effect that can have a powerful impact on viewers.

His art work operates in the heart of Manhattan. A man with half of his face covered with a Japanese flag printed handkerchief, grabs hold of a sack and is crouching, ready to jump. The contours of the thief show that he has not taken riches but one invaluable entity, Dokdo. People unconsciouslyabsorb the contents on display. What Lee’s work portrays is that the field of advertisement can act as a medium of having the ring of truth and conveying the righteous message to a broad spectrum of society.

The media also enrolls in spurring motivation, but unlike the former characters who intended to appeal to international communities, it is deliber-ately aimed towards straightening out the ideals of Korean citizens which is equally as important. A comedy program called, “Infinite Challenge (무한도전),” broadcasted an episode regarding the Dokdo issue.

There, members of the program were to devote their efforts in collecting a bag of money whilst facing obstacles along the way. Through the episode, many implications of Dokdo were recognizable such as the postal code 799-805 which was the password to opening the money bag. TwoJapanese cars emerged in between the scenes with the number 4:14, leading to the assumption that it concerns the Japanese government’s distribution of an operational plan of conducting explorations in the Dokdoseabed without Korea’s prior permission.

Many Korean activists who worked as guardians of Dokdo made appearances from time to time, triggering excitement and deepening interest. The most imposing part of the episode was the quote, “Time waits for no one,” which in a roundabout way means that without immediate action by theKorean citizens, Dokdo would ultimately lose its identity as Korea’s territory. Consequently, the program posed a lesson to the community through the sphere of the media, expressing criticism for those who were indifferent towards this issue and those who were bending the truth.

Last but not least, the tenth secret of Dokdo is a Korean group known as VANK (Voluntary Agency Network of Korea). This network strives to inform the authenticities of Dokdo to the growing youth through education and thereby, planting inspiration. It is a cyber domain which takes multipleactions such as fixing distorted information regarding Dokdo and the East Sea in websites and publications.

Many of the youths engage in activities that are carried out throughVANK, where the international society can be motivated with the growing buds of youths in Korea. The significance of VANK is that hope is perpetual; youths play the main roles of delivering and modifying the truth. They can be measures in promoting friendship and peace in the East Asian region, alleviating the crisis of Dokdo that swelled from misconceptions and effaced history. More powerful than soldiers are these characters who safeguard the truth of Korean islets. The soil and history of Dokdo can be proclaimed before the Japanese government that Dokdo is part of South Korean territory. What Koreans have and the Japanese lacks of is this motivational influence that sprouts from a determined society.

To this day, the Korean territory known as Dokdo is deliberately displaced with the Japanese designation, Takeshima. However, Dokdo encompasses 10 secrets that are not familiar to the rest of the world, clearly distinguishing itself from the misrepresentation and determining singularity. The islanddoes not merely possess biodiversity and a plentiful supply of natural reserves. It reflects the historical context of Korea, thereby being embedded with pride in the Korean people.