Another Change in Unification Education... Erasing 'Moon's Trace' and Highlighting 'North Korean Dictatorship'

Yoon Administration's First Directive... Omission of Moon's Emphasis on 'Peace'
Revival of 'South Korea as the Only Legitimate Government on the Korean Peninsula'
North Korea's Nuclear Development... 'Negotiation' Removed, 'Dictatorship Maintenance' Highlighted

In the first unification education guideline published under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, the keyword 'peace,' which was emphasized during the Moon Jae-in administration, has been removed, and instead, the liberal democratic basic order has been emphasized. Notably, the expression "The only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula is the Republic of Korea," which was deleted during the Moon Jae-in administration, has been revived, and North Korea's nuclear development is recognized as a means for the Kim Jong-un regime to maintain its dictatorship, marking significant changes.

The National Institute for Unification Education announced on the 14th that it has published a unification education basic textbook containing these contents. The basic textbooks include ▲2023 Unification Education Basic Direction ▲2023 Understanding Unification Issues ▲2023 Understanding North Korea, three types in total.

Revival of "The Only Legitimate Government on the Korean Peninsula is Korea" Deleted by Moon

President Yoon Suk-yeol [Photo by Yonhap News]

First, the unification education basic direction is a guideline containing the goals of unification education. Compared to the 2018 version titled "Peace-Unification Education Direction and Perspective," the word "peace" has been removed from the title. The previous guideline reflected the policy of the Moon Jae-in administration, which pursued a declaration to end the war. The institute explained that the revision emphasizes principles proclaimed by the constitution, such as the liberal democratic basic order.

The most notable point is the revival of the expression "The only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula is the Republic of Korea," which was deleted during the Moon Jae-in administration. On page 21 of the unification education basic direction, when describing the background and nature of the division, it states, "In December 1948, the United Nations recognized the government of the Republic of Korea as the only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula." It is described that North Korea refused UN-supervised general elections and established an independent regime.

Previously, the 2016 guideline included the expression "The government of the Republic of Korea is the only legitimate government on the Korean Peninsula," but it disappeared during the 2018 revision. Instead, the expression "Eventually, in 1948, the South and the North each established two governments, the Republic of Korea and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," appeared. This effectively recognized North Korea as a government.

Moon: Partner for Cooperation → Yoon: Subject of Caution over Nuclear Development

President Moon Jae-in is shaking hands with Kim Yo-jong, First Deputy Director of the Party Central Committee and a member of the North Korean delegation, introduced by Chairman Kim Jong-un. / Photo by Korea Joint Press Corps

A significant change is also detected in the perspective on "North Korea's nuclear development." The current guideline explains that "North Korea threatens peace on the Korean Peninsula and the world through nuclear development, and especially under the Kim Jong-un regime, it has focused more on developing nuclear weapons and missiles to maintain its dictatorship." This marks a shift emphasizing 'dictatorship' compared to five years ago, when North Korea's weapons of mass destruction development was described as "a means for external negotiations and internal regime consolidation."

The perspective on the North Korean authorities also recognizes that "If the North Korean regime does not abandon its nuclear weapons and continues to pose military threats, North Korea is a subject of caution threatening our security." However, it also emphasizes that "if North Korea actively cooperates in building a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, including complete denuclearization, it will be a partner with us in achieving peaceful unification."

The guideline during the Moon Jae-in administration defined North Korea as "a subject of caution threatening our security but also a partner in building unification together." However, under the Yoon Suk-yeol administration, it is interpreted that North Korea cannot be a partner as long as it continues nuclear and missile development. This is also a key stance emphasized in Yoon's bold initiative for denuclearization.

"North Korea is a Dictatorship Through Idolization"… Emphasis on North Korean Human Rights Issues

National Institute for Unification Education

Regarding the North Korean regime, it is defined as a one-person dictatorship centered on the leader demanding "unconditional loyalty" through idolization of the ruler. This repeatedly emphasizes the term "dictatorship," which was not found in the 2018 guideline. At that time, the guideline only described the North Korean regime as "a one-person rule system led by the supreme leader of the Workers' Party."

Additionally, in the educational sections on understanding unification issues and North Korea, the reality of North Korean human rights based on liberal democratic elements and universal values was emphasized. In the understanding unification issues section, the issue of detainees was added to the abduction issue, and the content related to North Korean human rights increased from 4 pages to 8 pages. Particularly, in the understanding North Korea section, the content dealing with North Korean human rights significantly increased from 3 pages to 13 pages.

Furthermore, the institute announced that it will no longer publish the basic textbook titled "Understanding Peace on the Korean Peninsula," which was published for two years from 2021 to 2022 during the Moon Jae-in administration. Regarding this, an official from the Ministry of Unification explained, "Since there were many overlapping contents such as inter-Korean dialogue and cooperation, it was not published separately but integrated into the textbook on understanding unification issues."