{"id":2200027,"date":"2023-02-10T09:31:16","date_gmt":"2023-02-10T09:31:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2200027"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:09:47","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:09:47","slug":"historic-court-ruling-forces-south-korea-to-face-its-dark-past-in-vietnam-war","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/02\/historic-court-ruling-forces-south-korea-to-face-its-dark-past-in-vietnam-war\/","title":{"rendered":"Historic court ruling forces South Korea to face its dark past in Vietnam War"},"content":{"rendered":"
A Seoul court recently ruled in favor of a survivor of a South Korean massacre during the Vietnam War, marking the first such victory for Vietnamese victims. But despite the issue’s sensitivity, it\u2019s unlikely to hamper flourishing relations between Seoul and Hanoi.<\/span><\/p>\n On Tuesday, the Seoul Central District Court <\/span>ordered<\/span><\/a> the South Korean government to pay $23,900 (30 million won) in compensation to Nguyen Thi Thanh. According to Nguyen, then eight years old, a South Korean military unit opened fire on civilians and <\/span>killed<\/span><\/a> five of her family members in Phong Nhi village in Feb. 1968.<\/span><\/p>\n A U.S. Army audit at the time <\/span>concluded<\/span><\/a> around 70 people died and 20 were wounded in Phong Nhi and Phong Nhat, supporting Nguyen\u2019s testimony.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI think those souls can rest now, which makes me so happy,\u201d Nguyen <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> after the ruling.<\/span><\/p>\n The South Korean government had <\/span>argued<\/span><\/a> that a trilateral agreement with Vietnam and the U.S. gave it immunity. It also <\/span>maintained<\/span><\/a> there was no clear evidence that the military was involved in the massacre, asserting that the Vietcong could have carried out the killings while wearing ROK marine uniforms.<\/span><\/p>\n The defense ministry suggested it might try to <\/span>appeal<\/span><\/a> the ruling, stating it \u201cwill review follow-up steps after going through consultations with relevant agencies.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n SOUTH KOREA\u2019S WAR<\/b><\/p>\n Throughout the war, South Korea sent more than 320,000 soldiers to Vietnam \u2014 the largest foreign deployment in its history and the second-largest foreign troop contribution to the war after the U.S. \u2014 in exchange for American aid.<\/span><\/p>\n South Korea\u2019s defense ministry and National Intelligence Agency (NIS) have blocked attempts to access documents relevant to the massacres, stifling attempts to investigate the matter thoroughly.<\/span><\/p>\n However, available documents, including those from the U.S., suggest South Korean soldiers were responsible for <\/span>numerous killings<\/span><\/a>: around 9,000 Vietnamese civilians during the war.<\/span><\/p>\n Despite the evidence, Vietnam doesn\u2019t press South Korea on the massacres.<\/span><\/p>\n Hanoi\u2019s reluctance to bring up the issue with South Korea could be because the ROK is one of Vietnam\u2019s <\/span>largest sources<\/span><\/a> of foreign direct investment. The two countries aim to increase bilateral trade from $80.7 billion in 2021 to $100 billion in 2023 and $150 billion by 2030.<\/span><\/p>\n According to<\/span><\/a> Vietnamese villagers from an area where another massacre took place, South Korea has used this economic influence to cover up the past before.<\/span><\/p>\n Thirty years after another massacre in Ha My village in 1968, a monument was built to commemorate the incident. But while the memorial initially had a poem describing the incident, Vietnamese officials issued orders to conceal it after South Korean diplomats complained, the villagers said.<\/span><\/p>\n The villagers maintained that South Korea told Vietnam it would pay for a local hospital if the poem were covered up.<\/span><\/p>\n But South Korean money is only part of the reason Vietnam doesn\u2019t push the issue more strongly, <\/span>Vu Minh Hoang<\/span><\/a>, a diplomatic historian of 20th-century Vietnam and the Asia-Pacific, told <\/span>Korea Pro<\/span><\/i>.<\/span><\/p>\n Cooperation between the two countries \u201cgoes far beyond just Korean investment in Vietnam,\u201d he said. \u201cIt encompasses a burgeoning bilateral trade, direct aid and credit loans, cultural and educational exchanges and security and diplomatic cooperation on Vietnam’s core strategic interests, including the South China Sea dispute.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIn Dec. 2022, the two countries became Comprehensive Strategic Partners,\u201d he added. This is \u201cthe highest possible level of cooperative relationship that Vietnam grants to any country, a status it has hitherto saved only for major powers with which it has been traditionally close such as Russia, China and India.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n