“We dismiss the [South Korean] government’s argument that it was unclear whether South Korean troops were responsible for the massacre in the village of Phong Nhi in central Vietnam.” Fifty-five years after the Phong Nhị Massacre on February 12, 1968, the marginalized voices of the victims were finally acknowledged in Seoul Central District Court on February 7. While this ruling indicated the cessation of South Korea and Vietnam’s muddled history, South Korea’s National Defense Minister Lee Jong Sup’s remark on February 17 caused controversy, with the minister insisting on the disinvolvement of South Korean soldiers in massacres of any kind.

A lawsuit against the South Korean government by Nguyễn Thị Thanh, a victim of the Phong Nhị massacre, brought South Korean-Vietnam history into court and eventually led to the defendant paying 30 million Korean won (KRW). Nevertheless, “absolutely no massacres committed by our troops” was what Minister Lee firmly asserted ten days later, during the National Defense Committee (NDC) conference, heralding to lodge an appeal. Regarding this, this denial may be perceived as quite contradictory to what South Korean history faced during the 20th century, judging by the nation’s history of affliction by imperial violence.

South Korea and Vietnam

The wounded history between South Korea and Vietnam dates back to the Vietnam War. From 1955 to 1975, North Vietnam, supported by communist states, and South Vietnam, supported by anti-communist allies, continued their war. Under the regime of Park Chung-hee, South Korea dispatched 350,000 troops to South Vietnam in response to a request from the U.S. Military Assistance, Vietnam (MACV). South Korea made up the second-largest army force under the cause of “contributing to world peace and requiting aids from the allies during the Korean War,” as stated in the Yongsan War Memorial of Korea. However, contrary to what the War Memorial exhibition states (“In order to sweep Viet Cong who used guerrilla tactics, Korean Soldiers gave aid to civil authorities”), numerous survivors of the Vietnam War have reported witnessing South Korean soldiers committing civilian massacres.

Even though the damage to the Vietnamese people caused by South Korea is evident, the Vietnam government is forbidden from holding South Korea to its statutory responsibilities due to the South Korea-Vietnam and South Korea-United States (U.S.) Military Practice Agreement. Because South Korea joined the war as an ally of the U.S., the agreement stated that “the U.S. military would fully compensate for the damage caused during non-combat, while South Korea would not compensate for the damage from the battle.” Therefore, South Korea holds no liability to the Vietnam government.

Ongoing Vietnam Atrocities

Since the end of the Vietnam War, Vietnam has generally abstained from revisiting past tragedies, putting their national priority on development. Such principles have been the foundation of South Korea and Vietnam forming interdependent economic relationships. Since then, the two countries formed diplomatic ties in 1992 and continuously exchanged trade and investments. One example shows how South Koreans plunged to invest in Vietnam. At a time when many foreign companies were having second thoughts about Vietnam’s prospects, Korea committed 3 billion U.S. dollars (USD) to Vietnam during the early 21st century, which amounts to 12 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). Inversely, South Korea is currently Vietnam’s third-largest export market, with a turnover of 21.95 billion dollars in 2021, as stated by Fulcrum. The economic linkage between the two countries makes it more difficult for the Vietnam government to intervene in the court between the victim and the South Korean government.

In South Korea’s case, the Vietnam War is heavily marginalized in the education system. All seven history textbooks used in public schools either only mention the Vietnam War in a sentence or omit the historical event altogether. “I think I never heard of the Vietnam War when I was studying in middle school, and there was merely a sentence or two written in my high school history textbook. And oftentimes, Korea’s modern history is not covered during the semester, as it is near the end of the textbook,” stated Park Seo Hyun (’21, International Studies) who experienced the Korean education curriculum.

Struggles for Atonement

Following the movement “Sorry Vietnam” in Korea in the 1990s, the Korea-Vietnam Peace Foundation was founded in 2016 as a non-profit, non-governmental institution to deal with the memories of Vietnam and Korea and find a solution towards reconciliation. By archiving important records, supporting the rehabilitation of victims, and studying academic research, the organization aims to spread this international peace movement. “When I asked one victim what he wanted from South Korea, I remember him wailing to bring his family back. He was a child during the massacre, who survived in his grandmother’s arms,” stated Kwon Hyun Woo, a member of the foundation.

Kwon added, “The [South Korean] government should establish a committee to scrutinize the history between the two countries, and, in the process, Koreans who also have been scarred during that political turmoil would be soothed.” As there are limits to being a non-governmental level foundation, he hopes for the special law of “Investigation of the Vietnam War Massacre Done by the Korean Soldiers,” proposed in February 2023 in the National Assembly to be passed. From this affair, not only the Vietnam government but also the South Korean people are expected to pay attention to how South Korea treats war victims. In addition, it may influence how the U.S., which started the Vietnam War, might deal with the Vietnam War after South Korea’s acknowledgment.

As the saying goes, “a nation that forgets its past has no future.” Acknowledging the wrongdoings of South Korea in the past is a necessary step to getting in line with history. In line with the theme of this April’s issue, seeing eye to eye, the Korean government should thoroughly retrospect and accept the liabilities of the Vietnam War, even if it requires bearing a loss. Truly sympathizing wholeheartedly as countries that have undergone similar painful histories, South Korea and Vietnam should resolve this somewhat “reserved” history and step towards expressing solidarity.