Chosun University, Spring Academic Conference of the Japanese Military Comfort Women Research Association

"Chains of Memories and Testimonies of Violence" Theme
May 18 Democratization Movement Archives, June 21-22

The Institute of Humanities and the Public History Research Center at Chosun University will hold an academic conference titled "The Chain of Memories and Testimonies of Violence" over two days on the 21st and 22nd, in collaboration with the Research Association on Japanese Military Comfort Women and the East Asia Research Institute at Sungkonghoe University. Provided by Chosun University

Chosun University (President Kim Choonseong) Humanities Research Institute’s Public History Research Center (Director Lee Jungseon) announced on the 17th that it will hold an academic conference under the theme "Chains of Memories and Testimonies of Violence" in collaboration with the Japanese Military 'Comfort Women' Research Association and the Sungkonghoe University East Asia Research Institute.

The conference, which will be held on the 21st at the 7th floor multipurpose auditorium of the May 18 Democratization Movement Archives, will examine the testimonies of victims and the voices of women that resonate and respond to each other, opening new paths regarding the Japanese military 'comfort women', the Jeju April 3 Incident, the May 18 Democratization Movement, the Busan-Masan Democratization Protests, and the Myanmar Democratic Uprising.

By listening and responding to the continued and expanding chains of memories and testimonies amid global trends of denial and hatred, the conference seeks to explore the possibilities of writing history that revives the 'past affairs' into the present.

The academic conference consists of two sessions. The first session, "Memories of Violence and Locality," features presentations on the following topics: "Gwangju, A Re-examination of Women's History" by Lee Chunhee (Co-representative of the Gwangju Democratization Movement Comrades Association); "Survey Results and Utilization Plans for Japanese Military Comfort Women Victims in Gwangju" by Lee Jungseon (Professor, Department of History and Culture, Chosun University); "Meeting Victims of the Busan-Masan Democratization Protests During the Healing Journey of May 18 Sexual Violence" by Yoon Kyunghoe (Secretary of 'Yeolmae', a group of May 18 sexual violence survivors); and "Trauma Testimonies and the Problem of Community" by Song Hyerim (Ph.D. candidate in Comparative Literature, Yonsei University).

The second session, "Memory, Crossing Localities and Generations," will include presentations such as: "Seeing My Mother's Gwangju of 1980 in Myanmar 2021" by Lee Hoeyoung (Ph.D. candidate in Spirituality, Honam Theological University); "The Description and Perspective of Japanese Military Comfort Women in High School Korean History Textbooks" by Park Jungeun (Master’s graduate, Chosun University Graduate School of Education); and a presentation by Park Sunggun (Undergraduate, Department of History and Culture, Chosun University).

Afterwards, Jang Soohee (Visiting Professor, Department of Korean Language and Literature, Dong-A University) and Shin Suyeon (Records Researcher, May 18 Democratization Movement Archives) will lead a comprehensive discussion and hold a Q&A session with participants.

Lee Jungseon, Director of the Chosun University Public History Research Center, stated, "Our research center specializes in the study of local history, culture, and the May 18 movement, and we conduct various activities with citizens using these as a medium," adding, "We will continue to work with citizens through local history in the future."