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S Korean man sets himself ablaze in protest against Japan

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This man was 2 years old in 1945. Honestly, is there something in the water over there? Doesn't anyone in South Korea think there's something seriously wrong going on?

20 ( +24 / -4 )

@OssanJapan

Honestly, is there something in the water over there?

The ROK has the most vivid and detailed history education in Asia, where crimes of Imperial Japan is drilled into the head of every student before they finish K12 education.

So when you want to study the rise and failure of Imperial Japanese military, you want to refer to the Korean sources, as they have far more detailed account of war's direction, with minute by minute account of all major battles. Japanese sources are whitewashed and leaves one puzzled and confused.

-19 ( +4 / -23 )

This is it. This is the breaking point! Japan are now going to relent to the pressure that's being put onto them. And it's all thanks to the actions of this old man in Seoul....

-3 ( +6 / -9 )

Wait, another one? Who sets themselves on fire because Japan is making it hard for Korea to make cell phones... They really are losing their collective minds over this.

And certain people claim Japan's actions will not hurt Korea. Seems some people burning themselves to death would disagree.

19 ( +22 / -3 )

It's a good bet that South Korean schools don't teach things like;

Hong Sa-ik (hangul 홍사익;hanja 洪思翊; 4 March 1889 – 26 September 1946)[1] was a lieutenant general in the Imperial Japanese Army, and the top-ranking ethnic Korean in Japan to be charged with war crimes relating to the conduct of the Empire of Japan in World War II.

7 ( +15 / -8 )

@extanker

They really are losing their collective minds over this.

Well, Uniqlo has thrown the towel and is shuttering the store at Central Seoul on the busiest shopping district because Uniqlo's sales went down 80% since the boycott began.

@OssanJapan

It's a good bet that South Korean schools don't teach things like;

They do, as a traitor. Nothing is held back. There is actually a government published "Dictionary of Traitors" detailing the treacherous activities of all traitors. No one's spared, not even President Park Jung Hee.

That's what makes Korea's history education so dangerous, because an average Korean has a better understanding why the Imperial Japan succeeded then failed than average Japanese do.

The next time Korea and Japan go to war, Japan is guaranteed to lose because Koreans remember why Japan lost the last time, while Japanese don't remember.

-20 ( +0 / -20 )

Well, Uniqlo has thrown the towel and is shuttering the store

It probably doesn't matter because Koreans copy anything successful in Japan, and would have launched their own version of Uniqlo --- with comparable quality at cheaper prices.

-3 ( +4 / -7 )

Samit, go to war?

That is just ridiculous, what are you even asking for.

If anything like that happened, South Korea would almost certainly lose its alliance with the US and become more closely aligned with China and North Korea, is that what you want for your people?

The lifestyle South Koreans enjoy is much more similar to Japan than it is China... be very careful what you wish for.

Going to war over an old grievance which like it or not, done well or not has been legally resolved is madness.

Yes the terrible war happened.. but move on seriously.. Japan isn't that Japan, the country that is acting like that in the region now is China.

If you want to learn from history learn that its Nationalism, blind faith in a cause, 'perfect leaders' that is what is dangerous, not simply being 'Japanese'.

South Korea is the place that has mandatory military training and Japan, half the guys you could knock over with a wet towel..

13 ( +15 / -2 )

Made me picture the Vietnamese monk who did the same to protest the Vietnam war.

1 ( +2 / -1 )

The next time Korea and Japan go to war, Japan is guaranteed to lose because Koreans remember why Japan lost the last time, while Japanese don't remember.

War is the inevitable result of inept leadership.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Korean government owes it to their people to explain that things are being worked on a government level and that self-immolation needs to stop. If they don't, then they are complicit in stirring up the hysteria that results in these type of acts. What's next, riots and assassination attempts?

10 ( +10 / -0 )

Samit BasuToday  07:21 am JST

The ROK has the most vivid and ridiculous horror stories education in Asia, where fabricated crimes of Imperial Japan is drilled into the head of every student before they finish K12 education. We call it brainwashing. Some brave Korean Professors like Lee Yong-Hoon, or a research fellow Lee Woo-Young

criticize them all as lying people, lying politics, lying courts. As a result, and hate to say, as usual, a research fellow Lee Woo-Young was assaulted a few days ago by two lunatic thugs just for exposing inconvenient truths at symposium held at UN European HQ last month.

To Speak of truths in SK, you need put your life on the line.

10 ( +13 / -3 )

It probably doesn't matter because Koreans copy anything successful in Japan, and would have launched their own version of Uniqlo --- with comparable quality at cheaper prices.

Lolololololololololoololololololol

Sure Jan

To Speak of truths in SK, you need put your life on the line.

Well there's no denying these truths. Well, if you're outside japan that is.

https://www.mic.com/articles/113424/japan-is-trying-to-whitewash-its-world-war-ii-history-we-can-t-let-that-happen

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_history_textbook_controversies

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitewash_(censorship)

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/04/26/national/history/japans-whitewashing-world-war-ii-history-rankles-u-s-veterans/

https://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/04/opinion/whitewashing-history-in-japan.html

-11 ( +1 / -12 )

Made me picture the Vietnamese monk who did the same to protest the Vietnam war.

Actually he did it to protest oppression of Buddhists by Vietnamese catholics, who controlled the southern part of the country prior to unification.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

Frankly speaking the Korean media and the mass is crossing the line with this thing.

I understand to mourn their victims and ask respect, but all this hate against Japan is really exaggerated.

The SK government should not allow such things to happen.

9 ( +9 / -0 )

And even people like such are listed as traitors. Literally no one is spared.

Such esteemed people listed as traitors? Sounds like the Russian revolution, or China's cultural revolution. You don't find it odd that such great people are called traitors? It doesn't make you wonder that maybe, just maybe, things were a little more complex than the black and white version you were presented?

Simplified versions of history make it easier for politicians to talk the public into a destructive and tragic war. Enough people like you, and you will get your. And it won't be the fun and games you expect, but a national tragedy. I suppose your history books 50 years later will do a one-sided whitewash of that as well.

10 ( +10 / -0 )

The SK government should not allow such things to happen.

LoL, they are probably supplying the gasoline...this supports their drumming of nationalism and adds to the number of people they will ask Japan to compensate for...they are even asking for compensation because ronaldo didn't take the field in a friendly game...

9 ( +10 / -1 )

This is clearly a mental health issue, for SK,nothing to do with comfort women. This man did not live through the War. It is a shame SK does not spend any money on mental health issues, affecting people like this man.

6 ( +9 / -3 )

Well, to be fair, both sides do distort the truth about each other, I lived in SK for a year and they get fed a lot of myths and distorted truths about the Japanese which comes from and is taught in the schools. I love SK, the people, the food, the culture one of the best, but like with NK, SK is equally prone to a level of indoctrination in the schools when it comes to history especially pertaining to the Japanese. Pushing hate will never solve these problems, it just won’t happen and that’s regrettably sad. Both sides have deep pride and both sides will never take responsibility or accountability for pushing and teaching their versions of selective history, outcome and how to push forward to deal, confront and lower the temperature.

0 ( +5 / -5 )

That's the problem with these people. The nutters on one side point to comments made by the nutters on the other side as though they somehow represent all people in the country. In a sense, they promote each other at the expense of decent people on both sides.

100% agree.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

The ROK has the most vivid and detailed history education in Asia

Yes, extremely vivid and detailed, but most people would not call it education, more like indoctrination.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Has self immolation, in any form, ever been proven to be an effective form of protest?

5 ( +5 / -0 )

would not call it education

Does this qualify as education then?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_history_textbook_controversies

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitewash_(censorship)

-9 ( +0 / -9 )

What a shameful loss of another life, just because of Moon and gangsters' brainwashing some uncivilized people of Korean.

8 ( +9 / -1 )

Another foolish person who accomplished absolutely nothing.

Kang told reporters "there will be grave ramifications on bilateral relations" if South Korea is removed from Japan's list.

Right, and we all know what that is. Engage in full on attack on all things Japanese from South Korea. Violent demonstrations against riot police, burnings of hinomaru flags, world wide misinformation campaign showing pictures of Japanese atrocities and the tag line, "Japan never apologized/compensated comfort women," destruction of Japanese goods and potential violence against Japanese citizens.

Once again, the Korean government has the audacity to basically threaten Japan. Absolutely zero sense of humility or accountability from anyone in the Korean government. Sane, sensible, and rational adults would approach Japan and state their case for continuing to be on the white list. Things like, "hey, we understand your concern over our export controls, certainly we could have done better, but what can we do to resolve these issues and ensure they do not happen again?"

But nope. The South Korean government shows what bullies and petulant kids they are, threatening Japan with basically violence, because they think they can bully Japan into submission any time they want. No matter how baseless their reasons, South Koreans think all they have to do is to bring up comfort women and colonial atrocities to shut up the Japanese government and people. And the anti-Japan crowd on this website and around the world eat this up.

There have been weeks of this trade issue reported on this website, and the anti-Japan crowd has yet to give even ONE valid reason why what Japan is doing is wrong. They are ignoring the incredibly lax export controls shown by the South Korean government, they are ignoring the multiple times Japan has apologized and compensated victims of its past aggression, and they are continuing to muddle the issue with irrelevant topics about how Germany showed more 'compassion' than Japan did, blah blah blah.

Grow up!

6 ( +7 / -1 )

Too bad for this old man that no one over here cares if someone burns himself to death over such a trivial matter. This is just stupid.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Speed? Its just a sad waste of someones life, but he hasn't achieved what he set out for, it doesn't make me care about his complaint in the same way terrorists don't gain fans for their causes by causing themselves or others harm. Attention maybe, only to the stupidness of the situation and the dangers of being totally obsessed about one thing, be it revenge, a cause, religion, a political system, etc etc etc

4 ( +4 / -0 )

how completely deluded do you have tobe to do this.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

It’s sad really that anti-Japanese sentiment stoked by historical revisionism is the basis of Korean national pride. More than half of the Korean youth I talked to actually believed that Japan invaded Korea in 1910.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

This man's government failed him, but fostering an environment of irrational hatred against Japan, with no efforts to resolve the situation. It's only natural that people will work themselves up into a frenzy in such a situation.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

This fury old man could have a family heritage of suffering under Japanese colonial rule! He was not yet born during Imperial Japan's official surrendering in 2rd Sept. 1945! But if he died, his tragedy will remain deep in the minds of South Korean and it is very hostile to Japan! Lets hope him survive and recovery from his deadly attempt!

-3 ( +0 / -3 )

@BeerDeliveryGuy

More than half of the Korean youth I talked to actually believed that Japan invaded Korea in 1910.

It was 1905, not 1910.

-4 ( +0 / -4 )

This man was 2 years old in 1945.

I logged in to say the same thing, but if he's 72, he wasn't even born then(!)

In the UK we get the same thing, older people going on about the war etc. who weren't born then. Some aren't even old enough to have experienced post-war rationing. The main reason people do this is (they think) it gives them some moral high ground from which they can bash younger people.

Japan did many terrible things during the war, but it's hard to understand why this bad feeling is all coming out now. It strikes me a blame game/political points scoring.

5 ( +5 / -0 )

It’s start at home. I had a 23 yr old co-worker tell me she hated Japanese( she is Korean and born & brought up in Hawaii). I asked her, why? She said her grandmother told her so many stories of atrocities during the war. She continues to pass the hate. This may be stereotypical, but most people say the Koreans get angry easily. (Correct me if Im wrong) Need to forgive and move on and take it easy with the anger.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

It’s start at home. I had a 23 yr old co-worker tell me she hated Japanese( she is Korean and born & brought up in Hawaii). I asked her, why? She said her grandmother told her so many stories of atrocities during the war. She continues to pass the hate.

In my experience, foreign-born Koreans generally don't have much hatred towards the Japanese. A lot of them are as interested in Japan and its pop culture as any other group of youth in the world.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

My Japanese mom had a roommate that was a Korean uni student studying in the States. He began bothering her about how Japan needs to apologize for their annexation of Korea and war crimes from WWII.

She told the guy that she was 2 years old when WWII ended and she had nothing to apologize for. She nor anyone in her generation had anything to do with it.

The Korean dude started bringing up the topic incessantly and even started to follow her around the house pushing this topic at her.

The owners, who also happened to live there, finally had to kick the guy out. He was annoying everyone in that house with his venomous views of Japan.

Most of the Korean-Americans who grow up in the US aren't nearly as brainwashed or hardcore about being anti-Japanese as the one's from Korea are.

I'm not surprised about this suicide nor any of the vitriolic hatred aimed at this country by the Koreans just because of a de-listing of favorable status for trade.

7 ( +7 / -0 )

Sad... but the action proves "nothing" except that he was extremely emotionally motivated to do so.

Which even brings one to wander if SK people are becoming extremely emotional over things that could be resolved by rational and meaningful dialog instead, and starting to take irrational actions.

Are they being stressed and pressured some how..?

3 ( +3 / -0 )

@Samit Basu Today 07:47 am JST

In other words, if something in indisputably bad, it is taught as bad. And then even if something is at least arguably good it is taught as bad anyway?

This explains Korean extremism.

Korean education might be detailed (I don't know, hadn't tried it), but from what you are telling me it isn't good.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

 potential violence against Japanese citizens.

Ummmmmm tone down the overreaction. Absolutely no harm will come to japanese folk. Can't say the same for the Koreans though. Given recent history.

Korean education might be detailed (I don't know, hadn't tried it), but from what you are telling me it isn't good.

Placing the fact that you're judging something you have absolutely no idea about aside, I keep asking in vain but do you consider this great education then?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_history_textbook_controversies

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitewash_(censorship)

-2 ( +0 / -2 )

In terms of propaganda output South Korea is only just behind its brother in the north.

.If that had fought a little better/harder in the 1930s and 40s then this problem would not be happening now.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Can't say the same for the Koreans though. Given recent history.

True, if they are going to keep setting themselves alight.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

The worst thing about setting yourself on fire in some kind of imaginary protest that will be forgotten in a couple of news cycles? The fact that you might survive.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

One word “extreme”

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Basu should understand that what they are doing will just harm his own people. Just think about korean workers who work for Japanese companies.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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