One voice against Japan

Proposed meeting should lay foundation for national unity

Main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) Chairman Hwang Kyoahn proposed "any form of dialogue" with President Moon Jaein, Monday, to discuss countermeasures to the economic retaliation recently imposed by Japan against a Supreme Court ruling made here.

Ruling Democratic Party of Korea Chairman Lee Haechan welcomed Hwang's proposal immediately, indicating future talks may include leaders of not only the LKP but also other major political parties.

It is good for Hwang to drop his earlier demand for a one-on-one meeting with Moon and be more open to multilateral dialogue, when forming a united political front matters more than ever as the nation faces unprecedented economic pressure from Japan, which some call Japan's "economic infiltration."

Hwang, however, imposed several conditions for the meeting, some of which are quite inappropriate.

Hwang was right when he asked Moon to send a special envoy to Japan as well as the United States without hesitation to pave the way for a diplomatic solution to the trade conflict. He urged Japan to lift its "unconvincing, irrational" export restrictions immediately, saying they would do more harm than good to Japan's own economy, as well.

Absurdly, however, the LKP leader demanded Moon dismiss Foreign Minister Kang Kyungwha and presidential aides for diplomatic affairs, saying they should take responsibility for Japan's measures.

But we all know they are not the ones to blame over what is happening between Korea and Japan. They cannot be responsible for the Japanese action without cause. Moreover this is not the right time to consider a reshuffle of the diplomatic team while Japan is stepping up "Korea bashing" without showing any signs of accepting overtures for dialogue.

If Moon dismisses them now, it can send the wrong signal to Japan as well as the international community. The root cause of the current deadlock is not the Korean diplomats' faults, but Japan's lack of repentance about wrongdoings it committed during its colonial occupation of Korea from 1910 to 1945. This fact should never be overlooked in handling history issues with Japan.

So it is time to give pep talks to Korean diplomats, rather than joining in bashing them.

President Moon indicated last week that Japan's export curbs could be prolonged, asking affected Korean firms to prepare for all possibilities. He also instructed his administration to draw up a contingency plan against the "politically motivated" measures by Japan.

It is clear that it is up to Japan, not Korea, to bring bilateral relations back to normal. The relationships could be restored temporarily, but fundamental issues stemming from colonial rule will remain unresolved unless Japan faces up to its history.

For its part, the Moon administration will have to push for international cooperation to cope with the Japanese action and find reasonable solutions to the ongoing row. The proposed meeting between Moon and party leaders will hopefully be an opportunity to bring political forces together for national unity in the face of Japan's economic retaliation.