For decades, South Korean academics, intellectuals, and politicians have shaped public opinion through exaggerated or distorted historical narratives.
Today, however, a growing number of South Koreans are beginning to reexamine historical facts through statistics and objective analysis.
This emerging movement—calling for open debates and opposing the politicized “comfort women” activism—may eventually help restore a healthier Japan–Korea relationship.

This is a continuation of the previous chapter.
Calling for an open debate.
Since my graduate school days, I have been reading historical books on Korea–Japan relations written by South Korean scholars and specialists, but every one of them left me with a strong sense of discomfort.
My field is economics, a discipline that objectively analyzes statistics and numerical data.
I do not judge matters through a biased lens or subjective impressions.
From that perspective, the historical books on Korea–Japan relations were completely inconsistent in what they presented.
For example, between 1940 and 1945, the population of Korea doubled.
Yet the books stated that “plunder and exploitation by the Japanese military were rampant.”
If that were so, why would the population double?
It is clearly inconsistent when compared with statistical data.
In such circumstances, a controversy erupted when Seoul National University’s Professor Emeritus An Byeong-jik was criticized in South Korea as “endorsing Japan’s colonial rule.”
This caught my interest, and as I read Professor An’s works and gathered materials myself, the more I investigated, the clearer it became that the books written by South Korean scholars I had read since graduate school were full of content contrary to historical fact—utterly filled with falsehoods.
Thus I established the “Association Against Anti-Japanese Ethnic Nationalism,” and I continue my research every day.
Until now, many people have been misled by the irresponsible statements of South Korean scholars, intellectuals, and politicians who exaggerate and distort history, but a movement seeking historical truth is now beginning to spread even within South Korea.
I can feel this personally.
Ordinary citizens still cannot openly raise their voices to challenge anti-Japanese narratives or speak the truth about history, but if a catalyst emerges, such voices could rapidly spread throughout South Korean society.
When President Moon’s policy failures reach a point where they can no longer be concealed by anti-Japanese sentiment, this may erupt.
Recently, using the royalties from a book that sold 30,000 copies, we published a newspaper advertisement calling on scholars, politicians, and the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance (the former Chong Dae Hyup) who criticize us to participate in an open debate.
Together with members of the “Association Opposing the Installation of Comfort Women and Forced Labor Statues,” we are also planning counter-demonstrations against the weekly Wednesday “comfort women protests” held in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul.
If things continue like this, South Korea will not be able to develop, and the country may even collapse.
I feel a deep sense of crisis.
From now on, together with rational people in Japan, we intend to act to expose the absurdity of anti-Japanese policies and to restore the truth of history.
I firmly believe that this will contribute to repairing Korea–Japan relations and further developing friendly and good-neighborly relations between the two countries.