[KS] Korean-Chinese mostly descendants of "independence fighters"?

T.N. Park tnpark at mac.com
Sun Dec 14 19:05:13 EST 2003


With the crackdown on overstaying "illegals" in South Korea, there is a
great deal of news, in both the English and Korean media, about the plight
of ethnic Koreans from China, many of whom are now petitioning the South
Korean government for naturalization as ROK citizens.

There is certainly precedent in Korea for more generous treatment based on
shared Korean ethnicity: most "kyopo" who themselves or whose direct
ancestors emigrated after the establishment of the Republic of Korea in 1948
and who obtained citizenship in another country are eligible for what
amounts to a virtual "green card" giving them the right to work freely in
South Korea for renewable periods of two years.

My question relates to the accuracy of how the Korean-Chinese, or rather,
their forebears, are typically being described in much of the media. A
sample can be found in today's Korea Times:
http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200312/kt2003121417310710220.htm.

Specifically, it says: "The ethnic Koreans [i.e., those ethnic Koreans from
China "seeking to regain their nationality"] are mostly descendants of
independence fighters who fled to China during Japanese colonial rule."

Barring for a moment whether the phrase "regaining their nationality" is
appropriate for individuals who never had ROK citizenship in the first
place, I'm curious about the veracity of the notion, now commonly accepted
in South Korea, that most of the ethnic Koreans in/from China are
descendants of so-called "independence fighters" (I'm assuming they are
referring to the "Righteous Armies" and other militia that fought against
the Japanese during colonial rule).

When I was in college in the late 1980s and early 1990s, I saw Western
estimates based on official PRC figures putting the number of ethnic Koreans
in China at about 1 million. More recently, I've seen figures putting it at
2 million (this would be PRC citizens, not including North Korean refugees).
I have also read figures that put the actual number as high as 5 or 10
million, accompanied by suggestions that PRC officials deliberately keep the
number low so as to avoid any possibility of encouraging a Korean separatist
movement that would seek to eventually re-attach predominantly Korean
portions of northeast China with the rest of the Korean homeland.

Whether the actual number is close to 1, 2, 5, or 10 million, could the
majority of these people really be descendants of "independence fighters"?
That would seem an incredibly large force of forebears, one that could have
given the Japanese military a far greater headache than they actually did.

It would guess that the a sizable chunk of the ethnic Koreans in China are
descendants of those who went to China under the auspices of the ruling
Japanese authority in Manchuria. I imagine another sizable group would be
descendants of people who, prior to the establishment of Manchukuo, simply
went there to escape harsh conditions in Korea, but did not participate in
any form of independence movement.

The issue is taking on even an anti-American tone. A caller to one of our
network's news programs, for example, expressed a sentiment I've heard
elsewhere: the ethnic Koreans in China deserve citizenship because they are
the descendants of freedom fighters, unlike the ethnic Koreans in the US and
elsewhere in the West, who abandoned Korea when it needed their help most.

If anyone can point me toward some accurate figures or accounts of the
origins of the ethnic Koreans in China, I'd be most appreciative. Thanks in
advance for your help.

T'NP





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