[KS] Re: AKSE Conference and the International Dimension

[Youngsook Pak]

The following person has written why AKSE  does not have topics on
international politics and so on. My response is like this. youngsook

Dear Andrea Campana,

As a member of AKSE from 1982, and now as one of the serving members of the
Coucil I can give you the consensus we have often discussed in AKSE
meetings in the past.

The AKSE's decision that the conference should deal language, history and
all aspects of Korean culture, excluding social science has specific
reasons:

1.In the present political circumstance of the Korean peninsular it is not
desirable in a regular academic conference like AKSE to offer a stage of
debate to inevitably polemic social, economic and plitical issues,
especially when we had North Korean scholars in the past conferences. For
that matter there are enough publications and conferences. Just look at the
AAS bookreview section, journals published by Korean government or
elswhere. Most publications are on these topics.

2. Increasingly there are fewer studies and scholars on the traditional
subjects of Korea. AKSE as the assembly of Korean Studies in European
universities and gathering place of scholars in every two years, we would
like to promote and encourage studies on traditional Korea.


Youngsook Pak, Council Member of AKSE
Dr Youngsook Pak
Chairman, Centre of Korean Studies
Department of Art & Archaeology
School of Oriental and African Studies
University of London
Thornhaugh Street
London WC1H OXG
Tel: 0044-171-323 6185
Fax: 0044-171-323 6179
e-mail: yp at soas.ac.uk


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