Articles

History of the Republic of Korea in the South Korean press (based on the materials of “Choson Ilbo” and “Busan Ilbo” for the first half of 2015)

Vostok/Oriens '2018, №4

DOI: 10.31857/S086919080000781-6

 
The author gives an overview of the South Korean press dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Korea. The material in question largely concerns the life and political activity of the founder and first President of the Republic of Korea Syngman Rhee as well as the topical issues of the Korean War (1950–1953). The article shows that many historical facts are interpreted by the South Korean researchers from the standpoint of the ROK authorities, who are hostile to the DPRK. It allows questioning their objectivity. The author concludes that the main task of many South Korean historians is not the clarification of historical truth, but the suggestion to the mass reader of an opinionated view of the modern history of Korea. At the same time, special attention should be paid to the extensive factual material in the exposition of South Korean scholars. Moreover, South Korean researchers made not only apologetic but also critical remarks about Syngman Rhee. Covering the issues of the Korean War, the Russian researcher should take into account the discrepancies in the specific data and estimates made by South Korean specialists with the Russian historiography.

Keywords: historical policy, Republic of Korea, the DPRK, Syngman Rhee, Korean War, the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Korea

Pages: С. 191–208