EPIK Journals Online Vol. 7

EPIK Journals Online Vol. 7 Iss. 01

Politics of Statue: Peace Monument and the Personification of Memory

Author: Eunji Hwang, Yonsei University

Abstract:

The very purpose of a statue is to bring the past into the present and even further for progeny. An effective statue, as a symbol, generates far-reaching political power as a processor, mediator, and transmitter of memory. In this regard, this paper attempts to approach the political meaning of the Peace Monument to answer the question, “Why does Japan keep on demanding the removal of the statue?” Although some argue that the 2015 agreement between Korea and Japan concerning the comfort women issue marked another stage in the progress of the bilateral relationship for future generations, it sparked an angry backlash in Korea for being another humiliation of the victims and the Korean people. This paper argues that the disruptions in the current Korea-Japan relationship stem from its unique characteristic where people are overly awash with affection rather than cognition in evaluating the statue. Because public recollections of the same historical events differ dichotomously between Korea and Japan, colonial memory has been crowded out in Japan but remains strong in Korea. In this circumstance, the Peace Monument lit the fuse of the sensitive issue, becoming a political football through the personification of memory into a tangible and sympathetic figure. Its symbol of resistance, urging Japan’s sincere apology, has been augmented by the triangular interaction of the statue, its location, and the ceaseless collective actions around the statue as the pivotal figure. As a consequence, the Peace Monument significantly contributed to the making of the politics of identity and the space for resistance.

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