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BEIJING -- Access to the Chinese-language edition of the Chosun Ilbo (http://chinese.chosun.com/), which greatly criticized Chinese distortions of Koguryo history, has been blocked in China since Thursday. Connection to "World Arirang Forum" (www.arirang-world.org/bbs/cgi-bin/leobbs.cgi), the hottest cyber discussion site for ethnic Koreans in China interested in the Koguryo issue, has also been blocked. Accordingly, both sites can be accessed in Korea or in other parts of the world, but not in China.
Through this measure by the Chinese authorities, the verbal compromise worked out just two days ago between Korea and China -- which called on the Chinese government not to get directly involved in the Koguryo issue and not to make it a political issue -- may be rendered useless only two days after it was announced. The Chinese have not clearly said that they blocked access to the two sites because of the Koguryo issue, however.
Since the Koguryo issue became a diplomatic issue between Korea and China, the Chinese media has been completely avoiding reporting on the issue. Given that most ethnic Koreans in China and [Han] Chinese have been learning of the Koguryo issue through Chinese Choson.com and World Arirang Forum, ways for Chinese and ethnic Koreans in China to keep up with the Koguryo issue have now become greatly restricted with access to the two sites blocked. Traffic at the Chinese-language edition of Chosun.com on Thursday morning was only 40 percent of what it is normally.
Among Korean media sites, however, the Chinese shut down access to the Chosun Ilbo only. The Chinese language editions of the Dong-A Ilbo and Yonhap News have not been blocked.
Through exposing facts like how the "Koguryo Culture Travel Season" was, for all intents and purposes, a propaganda campaign of distorted history aiming to incorporate Koguryo into Chinese history and how famous state universities like Beijing University and Fudan University were using textbooks that distortedly claimed Koguryo as Chinese history, the Chosun Ilbo has played a leading role in raising the Koguryo history issue. Moreover, by reporting how in an encyclopedia on Koguryo history put together through a general effort by China's community of historians, Koguryo is described as a separate nation outside China's domain, China's claims that "Koguryo was an ethnic minority regime of China" were revealed as distortions. Moreover, the Chosun Ilbo has been running a special series to mark the 12th anniversary of Sino-Korean ties entitled "China: Running toward Hegemony."
World Arirang Forum, which was shut down along with Chinese Chosun.com, was a debate forum where ethnic Koreans in China were greatly discussing Chinese distortions of Koguryo. In particular, the website enjoyed wide support, with Internet users of other ethnic minorities in China such as Mongols and Manchus joining in the debates, condemning Chinese historical distortions. That the site hasn't been shut down but simply had access blocked in China seems to be because its server is not in China, but in Korea.
(Cho Jung-shik, jscho@chosun.com )
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