Cultural insight: ‘Pachinko’, which stars Kim Min-ha (left) and Lee Min-ho (right), chronicles the lives of Zainichis or Korean residents in Japan during the country’s occupation of Korea. – Handout
AS President Yoon Suk-yeol’s foreign policy advisers attempt to mend fractured relations with Japan, they will likely sense a palpable change in the dynamics; they will realise they have more leverage than their predecessors. They can thank, in part, Korea’s ascent on the global stage, its popular culture being a huge boon. Though the cultural dimension may have its limits and needn’t be a zero-sum factor, perhaps it can serve as an alternative pathway to smoother relations.
The troubled modern history of the neighbouring countries remains a major stumbling block. To be sure, Japan has issued apologies for its colonisation and wartime treatment of Koreans in the first half of the 20th century. But to many Koreans, the apologies were half-hearted and negated by Japan’s bowing to wartime criminals and whitewashing of its imperial aggression and atrocities. Up-and-down bilateral relations have been stuck at a low for years now.
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