A 30-second video advertisement on Dokdo debuted on a Times Square billboard in New York City Monday. / Korea Times |
By Do Je-hae
Staff Reporter
A series of media advertisements advocating Korea's sovereignty of Dokdo ― called Takeshima in Japan ― have been appearing in the U.S.
Creators of the ads claim that they are meant to increase global recognition of Dokdo as Korean territory. However, there are concerns that they could play a role in publicizing to the world that Dokdo is an area of international territorial dispute.
A 30-second video advertisement debuted on a Times Square billboard in New York City Monday, coinciding with the 91st anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement, a milestone in Korea's resistance activities against the Japanese colonial rule of Korea from 1910 through 1945.
Titled "Dokdo is a part of Korea," the video will be played 48 times daily on the billboard, which airs CNN news broadcasts throughout the day.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has consistently argued that Korea exercises full territorial rights to Dokdo and has dismissed Tokyo's claims of "illegal occupation" by Korea of the islets.
While the two countries have maintained conflicting positions on Dokdo for decades, the official position of the Korean government has been that "there is no territorial dispute regarding Dokdo, as the Korean ownership of the islets is clearly backed by historical, geographical and legal basis."
It is in this context that the government has opposed the proposition of a "special bill on the declaration of territorial rights of Dokdo."
A group of 33 lawmakers from the ruling and opposition parties had proposed the bill but decided not to bring it to a vote in the plenary session. The legislation was reportedly abandoned mainly due to the opposition from the government.
"The bill counters the government's position that there is no territorial dispute regarding Dokdo," Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said during a Foreign Affairs, Trade and Unification Committee session at the National Assembly on Feb. 17. "The bill may negatively influence efforts to solidify our case on Dokdo's sovereignty."
Under such circumstances, some experts say that the series of overseas ads may result in highlighting it as an area of international territorial dispute, rather than serving their original intent of strengthening Korea's claims to Dokdo.
Previously, another full-page ad appeared in The New York Times, proclaiming Korea's rights to the island.
The ad was one of the reasons that United States once designated Dokdo's status as "undesignated sovereignty" in 2008 rather than its previous listing as "Korean territory."
"Approaching the issue of Dokdo jurisdiction by placing ads in U.S. newspapers can be a problem," said Kim Dong-suk, a former director of the Korean American Voters' Council of New York and New Jersey. "Stressing the fact that Dokdo belongs to Korea actually had adverse effects."
The U.S. Board on Geographical Names (BGN) has used the neutral term "Liancourt Rocks" in reference to Dokdo on their online maps.
The decision to change the reference was partly due to the ad, which alerted the BGN officials in charge that the area is under territorial dispute.
Some scholars and experts have emphasized the need for securing additional documents and data on Dokdo rather than flashy ads.
The groups of islets in the East Sea, or Sea of Japan, are currently monitored by the Korean Coast Guard.
Japan's Shimane Prefecture in 2005 passed a ruling designating Feb. 22 as "Takeshima Day," to assert their claims.
Zenbe Mizoguchi, governor of Shimane Prefecture, said, "Galvanizing public support at the national level is absolutely necessary to settle the issue in Japan's favor."
jhdo@koreatimes.co.kr
독도 해외광고 부작용 우려
한국의 독도 영유권을 옹호하는 광고가 독도를 한국 영토로 전세계에 알리는데 긍정적인역할을 한다는 게 일반적인 주장이다. 하지만 이러한 광고가 독도를 국제적인 영토분쟁 지역으로 널리 알리는 부정적인 역할을 할 수 있다는 우려도 나오고 있다.
월요일 삼일절 91주년을 맞아 뉴욕 타임스퀘어 광고판에는 독도를 알리는 30초짜리 비디오 광고가 첫 선을 보였다. `독도는 한국땅’이라는 제목의 이 광고는 하루에 48차례 방영된다.
독도에 관한 한국 정부의 입장은 분쟁은 없다는 것이다. 이러한 맥락에서 한국 정부는 `독도의 영토권 선언에 관한 특별법 제안’을 반대했다.
이러한 상황에서 일부 전문가들은 일련의 해외광고가 독도를 오히려 분쟁지역으로 부각시키는 결과를 낳지 않을까 우려하고 있다.
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