The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus Volume 5 | Issue 7 | Article ID 2483 | Jul 12, 2007

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China and the Two Koreas Clash Over MountPaekdu/Changbai: Memory Wars Threaten RegionalAccommodation

Yonson Ahn

China and the Two Koreas Clash Over MountPaekdu/Changbai: Memory Wars ThreatenRegional Accommodation

Yonson Ahn

China’s Changbai

Mount Paekdu (Korean), meaning “White-Topped Mountain”, or Changbai (Chinese),meaning “Forever White Mountain” straddlesthe border between North Korea and China. Ithas long flared as a hot spot in claimingnational history, identity and territory involvingChina, Korea and earlier kingdoms in theregion. It has also emerged as a source ofcontention between China and the two Koreas,North and South. China has recently movedaggressively to develop the Changbai area inJilin Province on the Chinese side of the border.Plans include economic and infrastructuraldevelopment including the Mt. ChangbaiAirport and the Mt. Changbai Eastern Railroad,both under construction. The railroad is a keyto linking China’s largest nature preserve toChangchun (1) and to the promotion ofdomestic and international tourism. China hasalso filed a claim to make the mountain aUNESCO World Heritage Site.(2) There is evenmomentum behind a Chinese proposal to holdthe Winter Olympic Games there in 2018. Inaddition, Chinese actions like the torch-lightingceremony for the 2007 Asian Winter Gamesatop Mt. Changbai, the naming of schools afterthe mountain, and military operations in thearea have exacerbated tensions between China

and the two Koreas. The Asia Winter Games’official song includes a paean to Changbai. Thepressroom for the Games at Changchun inFebruary 2007 provided pamphlets onChangbai Mount.(3) All these activities layfoundations for claims that the landmark isChinese.

Chinese students perform a torch-lighting ceremony forthe 2007 Asian Winter Games at Lake Tianchi/Chonji(Heavenly Lake) on top of Changbai/Paekdu Mountain

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Pamphlets promoting Mount Changbai distributed at the2007 Asian Winter Games

In 2005, China’s Jilin Provincial Governmentestablished the “Committee for Protection,Development and Management of Mt.Changbai,” an organization directly under theprovincial government and responsible formanagement of the mountain.(4) Thecommittee channels foreign and domesticinvestment toward the building of several newresorts within the mountain that includeattractions such as hot springs, ecologicalsightseeing, a water park, animal and plantappreciation, hot-air balloon sightseeing, a golfcourse, hunting, horseback riding, and ice andsnow sports.(5) The Changbai range also hasrich natural resources such as timber and coaldeposits, and a variety of ginseng grows there.

Chinese attempts to revitalize the border areaspeak to multiple agendas with broad regionalimplications: political, economic, cultural andethnic. This is the area inhabited by China’s 2.2

million ethnic Korean minority, including theYanbian Korean Autonomous Prefecture.Bolstering the economy through tourism is ameans to jumpstart the economy of a region onthe China-Korea border. The implicationsinclude strengthening loyalty to China amongthe Korean minority, a particularly importantfactor in the event either of a North Koreanmeltdown or significant steps toward Koreanunity and reunification. The concern of China’sCentral Government relates both to theconsequences of a possible future reunificationand the present situation in the border areaaround the mountain where large numbers ofNorth Korean refugees are living, and wherethe potential exists for territorial boundarydisputes. Pan-nationalistic activities by SouthKoreans aimed at creating a united GreatKorea, including Yanbian, a Chinese prefecture,have intensified China’s concerns. (6)

Tourists on Mount Changbai, Jilin

Turning the Paekdu/Changbai area into a majortourist destination has the potential to increasetension between China and Korea. The majorityof tourists to date are South Koreans. Indeed,the number of South Korean tourists to Chinahas grown rapidly and they now rank as thesecond largest source of tourism. ChangbaiM o u n t a i n i s a m o n g t h e i r f a v o r i t edestinations.(7) Indeed, the area has become amajor tourist attraction for both Chinese andKoreans. The homepage of the provincial

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Department of Commerce enjoins, “Let’s makemore and more foreigners know ChangbaiMountain and know Jilin.”(8) Yet the area is notwithout frictions. In 2006, China ordered adozen hotels including four run by SouthKoreans and one by a North Korea-affiliatedresident in Japan, operating on its side ofMount Changbai/Paekdu on the border withNorth Korea, to stop business and leave by theyear's end, as part of its preparations to list themountain as a UNESCO Natural WorldHeritage. (9) The conflict is rooted both inChinese claims to a UNESCO site and toattempts to secure tourist revenue in the area.The World Heritage Project speaks to Chineseclaims to historic greatness, with implicationsfor sovereignty, which have sparked angryrejoinders from North and particularly SouthKorea. Indications of Chinese attempts tomonopolize the tourism industry in the areasuggest a further source of conflict.

In contrast to recent friction over developingthe mountain area, there has been multilateralcooperation among China, North Korea, andRussia on the Sino-Russian-North Koreanborder area, where the Tumen River EconomicDevelopment Program, with UN DevelopmentProgram (UNDP) support, gained formalrecognition in 1995. This DevelopmentProgram originated with attempts by Jilinprovince to secure an outlet to the East Sea/Sea of Japan via the Tumen River.(10) Paekduwas in fact part of the UN Tumen RiverDevelopment Program. This earlier example ofmultilateral economic cooperation among thethree bordering countries stands in sharpc o n t r a s t t o t h e c o n f l i c t o v e r t h ePaekdu/Changbai mountain area.

Clearly, the mountain has importance to bothChina and Korea, but in different ways. ForChina, Changbai appears to have economic andstrategic value in a potentially volatile borderregion, but it is also linked to Chinese historicalclaims to greatness and regional primacy,hence the World Heritage project. For Koreans

in both North and South, Paekdu has profoundhistorical and cultural significance. In an April19, 2007 interview, Prof. Han Zhenqian ofPeking University, said, “Of course Changbai isa sacred mountain range, but for most Chinesepeople it might be just one of China’smountains.” What should be noted, however, isits significance for people of the NortheastProvinces as the homeland of the Manchus,who ruled China from 1644-1911 under theQing dynasty. The mountain range is themythical birthplace of Bukuri Yongson,ancestor of Nurhaci and the Aisin GoroImperial family, who were the founders of theManchu state and the Qing Dynasty. Thesacred mountain is prized as the originalManchu homeland. During the Qing, annualrites were held there to celebrate the origins ofthe ruling dynasty. Changbai can be found inChinese geographical texts dating back to theShanhai jing, "Classic of Mountains and Seas,"of the 3rd century B.C. to 2nd century commonera, a major source of Chinese mythology.(11)The homepage of the Jilin Department ofCommerce states, “Changbai Mountain is thesymbol and pride of Jilin and also the namecard to the world.” (12) A 2005 ‘Report on theChangbai stratagem by North and SouthKorea” by a group in Jilin Province, urgedpromoting and educating people aboutChangbai as the origin of the Manchu and thusChinese territory.(13) This claim can be seen inan interview with a guide at the ManchuMuseum by KBS (Korean BroadcastingSystem). The guide states, “The Manchusoriginated from Changbai . . . while theKoreans came to Changbai later.” (14)Changbai as essential to the Manchu heritagehas been promoted by the Jilin provincialgovernment. Thus, Changbai plays a significantrole in the regional identity and history ofvarious inhabitants of China’s Northeast, aboveall, but not limited to, the Manchus.

How do Korean Chinese, especially residents ofYanbian, view this conflict between Korea andChina? In a June 8, 2007 interview, Kim Kwang

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Il observed: “For us, Changbai is a sacredmountain, too. When I was on the summit ofthe mountain, our land, Choson, could be seen.China’s claim to Paekdu is related to NorthKorea’s lack of strength in internationalforums. So the two Koreas should be reunitedso as to become stronger.” Kim, a 3rdgeneration Korean Chinese who left Yanbianalmost 10 years ago to find work in SouthAfrica, visited Mount Paekdu on a field triporganized by the Yanbian authorities 15 yearsago. Kim expresses particular concern over theloss of autonomy of ethnic Koreans in Yanbian.This is evident in the Changbai developmentprogram. When the Jilin Provincial Governmentestablished the “Committee for Protection,Development and Management of MountChangbai” in May 2005, the Yanbian KoreanAutonomous Prefecture’s right to manageMount Paekdu was transferred to JilinProvince. Moreover, when the new highwaybetween Changchun and Tonghua and theairport in Baishan near Mount Paekdu arecompleted, tourists will be able to reachBaishan directly without passing throughYanbian. That means the significance of theKorean Autonomous Prefecture as the “path toM t . B a e k d u ” w i l l b e r e d u c e d . ( 1 5 )Consequently, not only will Yanbian benefitlittle from the Changbai development project,its tourism industry will actually be negativelyimpacted. It is difficult, however, for KoreanChinese to convey the importance of MountPaekdu. Thus, for example, Korean Chinesevisitors who reach the summit of the mountain,in contrast to some South Korean visitors, donot shout “Hurray” or “Paekdu is our territory”.Nevertheless, Korean Chinese scholars inYanbian University interviewed by the DongaDaily, a leading South Korean newspaper, allstressed the centrality of Mount Paekdu forethnic Koreans. But given the sensitivity of theissue in China, the interview with the DongaDaily was anonymous. The scholars urgedKoreans to refrain from emotional outburstswhich could negatively affect the outcomes.(16)An interesting question is whether Korean

Chinese could act as mediators in the conflictbetween Korea and China.

South and North Korea’s Paekdu

Outraged South Korean protestors against China’s claim ofMount Paekdu chew on a Chinese flag.

Some South Korean nationalist groups arguethat recent activities on the Chinese side of theborder amount to preemptive Chinese claims tothe whole mountain as Chinese territory. Onesignificant protest took place during the 2007Asian Winter Games, which were held inChangchun, in China’s northeast. A group ofvictorious South Korean women athletes heldup hand-printed signs during the awardceremony on January 31, 2007, whichproclaimed in Korean "Mount Paekdu is ourterritory". Chinese netizens immediatelydenounced the athletes and released a parodypicture on the internet, in which the athletesclaim “Mars is our territory” (17) (Picture 6)Chinese sports officials responded that this wasa "politically-motivated banner that underminesChina's territorial sovereignty", and delivered aletter of protest stating that political activitiesviolated the spirit of the Olympics and werebanned in the charter of the InternationalOlympic Committee and the Olympic Council ofAsia. The head of the Korea Olympic Committeeresponded by stating that the incident wasunplanned and held no political meaning. (18)

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South Korean medal-winning athletes triumphantly raisesigns reading "Mount Paekdu is our territory!" during the

award ceremony at the 2007 Asian Winter Games.

A Chinese netizen's parody mocking the South Koreanmedalists’ claim to Paekdu. It reads “Mars is our territory.”

The Paekdu controversy has reignited theChina-Korea “history wars” which have ragedfor five years over the ancient kingdom ofKoguryo (Korean)/ Gaogouli (Chinese) (37 B.C.to A.D. 668). As the Paekdu mountain range islocated in the old territory of Koguryo andfurthermore, Koguryo also considered themountain sacred, China’s claim is deemedtantamount to claiming the ancient kingdom asChinese territory. Thus, the Paekdu issuerelates to the ongoing Koguryo dispute. SouthKorea’s Donga Daily criticized China’s recentmove, calling it the “Mt. Paekdu Project” andinterpreting it as a bid to retrospectivelyincorporate the territory of Koguryo intoChinese history and territory.(19) In short, therecent “Mount Paekdu Project'' is viewed bySouth Korean nationalists as integral to the

“Northeast Project”, a five-year state-fundedproject launched in 2002.(20) This project dealswith various problems related to history,geography and ethnic issues in China’sNortheastern provinces, Heilongjiang, Jilin, andLiaoning. In re-examining the ancient history ofthe region, it concludes that the Koguryokingdom, which Korean nationalists consideran ancestral state of Korea, is an ethnic regimewhich constitutes a part of China’s nationalhistory. This has given rise to political tensionsbetween Korea and China.

In part, in response to China’s “Mount PaekduProject” and “Northeast Project”, viewed asattempts to claim Korea’s ancient history asChina’s, the South Korean Education Ministrydecided in February, 2007 to rewrite historytextbooks to highl ight the historicalsignificance of ancient Korea by advancing thestart of the Bronze Age among the states thatruled the Korean Peninsula to about 2,000-1,500 B.C.(21) In this and other ways, greaterstress is placed on the antiquity of the Koreannation. Moreover, various governmentbranches in Seoul actively deploy images ofPaekdu in public places such as the Incheonairport and the Seoul railway station, as well asin government offices. In dealing with thePaekdu issue, the government and SouthKorean NGOs speak with one voice. SouthKorean academic and civic groups, as well asthe press, have also called for unity of Northand South Korea “to preserve (the) sacredmountain”. They stress that the two Koreasought to unite at least when their territorialrights and historical and cultural claims arethreatened.(22) In the “history wars” overKoguryo, a shared Korean nationalism hasc o m e t o t h e f o r e t o d e a l w i t h t h eChangbai/Paekdu dispute.

Some nationalist groups in South Korea gofurther in claiming the entire mountain asKorean territory. In short, the friction has thepotential to grow into a border dispute betweenChina and both Koreas. The border between

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North Korea and China was clarified in1962.(23) The two countries then agreed toshare the mountain and the lake that formed inthe volcanic crater at its peak, Chonji/Tianchi(Heavenly Lake). Since the Paekdu/Changbaiarea is considered sacred terrain bynationalists in both Koreas as well as in China,the dispute is not only over “national” land, butalso over soil that is historically integral to thevery sense of nationhood.

Why have Korean nationalists been so outragedover China’s recent actions? What does MountPaekdu mean for them? Koreans considerPaekdu, the highest mountain on the KoreanPeninsular and in China’s Northeast, to be theancestral birthplace of their people. Themythical founder of Korea, Tan’gun, is said tohave been born here, making Mount Paekduthe site of the Korean national foundation myth.In short, Mount Paekdu is a Korean holy sitethat is emblematic of the “national spirit”.Thus, China’s claim of Paekdu is interpreted aslaying claim to Korea’s ancestry.(24) The geo-body of the Korean Peninsula is represented asranging “from Halla to Paekdu”, two mountainswhich span the peninsula. Mt. Paekdu islocated on the border with China and Mt. Hallais located on Cheju, an is land off thesouthernmost tip of the peninsula. MountPaekdu appears in the beginning of the SouthKorean national anthem, “Aegukka" (Song forLove of Country): “Until the East Sea's wavesare dry, and Mt. Paekdu is worn away, God willwatch over our land forever! Our countryforever!” These points illustrate the overridingcultural and historical significance of Paekdu inKorea.

Lake Chonji/Tianchi (Heavenly Lake) at thePaekdu/Changbai peak (above), and Mount Halla (below)

Paekdu has yet greater significance in NorthKorea. The present leader, Kim Jong Il's officialb iography s tates that Paekdu i s h isbirthplace.(25) Paekdu is deemed thebirthplace of the Korean revolution, for it wasthere that the young General Kim Il Sung, thefather of Kim Jong Il, organized the anti-Japanese guerrillas in the 1930s. And NorthKorea’s Central Broadcasting Station describesKim Jong Il as having been “born with Paekdu’sspirit.”(26)

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North Korean souvenir stamp issued in 1992 shows KimJong Il braving the elements in a winter landscape of

Paekdu Mountain.

Kim Il Sung (middle, back row) with soldiers of the Anti-Japanese Army in Manchuria in a 1937 photo.

The 2000 edition of the magazine DemocraticPeople's Republic of Korea describes Paekdu as“the ancestral mountain…the symbol of Koreaand the cradle of Korea… In Paekdu forests theGreat Leader Kim Il Sung mapped out the greatplan to liberate Korea… and led the arduousand glorious anti-Japanese resistance…. KimJong Il grew up there as the ‘son of Mt Paekdu’,‘son of guerrillas’, hearing the sound of guns inthe flames of the anti-Japanese revolution as ifa lullaby…”(27) Thus, Paekdu is glorified as theholy place for revolution and as the key basefor Kim Il Sung’s anti-Japanese guerrillastruggle in the 1930s. Paekdu also locates KimJong Il on the continuum of anti-colonialguerrillas with his father. The façade of theKorean Museum of the Revolut ion in

Pyongyang is decorated with an image ofMount Paekdu. North Korea’s Central NewsAgency claimed that two Million North Koreansmade the pilgrimage to Paekdu in 2006.(28)The number of visitors, officially put at twomillion, or 10 percent of the population, shouldbe understood to convey the importance theleadership ascribes to the revolutionary site. Insum, Paekdu is representative both of theKorean nat ion and of the two Kims’srevolutionary past.

Paekdu is viewed not only as a symbol ofnationhood, but also as an area with economicpotential and showcase to the world. BothNorth and South have an interest in promotingPaekdu tourism, particularly developing a routethat would allow South Korean tourists to shortcut to visit the mountain via North Korea,rather than through China. In 2005 NorthKorean leader Kim Jong Il gave Hyundai, one ofSouth Korea’s major conglomerates, and theKorea National Tourism Organization, agovernment organization in South Korea,permission to develop Mt. Paekdu tourism withan eye to infrastructure construction, includingthe renovation of Samjiyon Airport as agateway for Paekdu tourism. South Korea’s Rohadministration has supported road constructionfor Paeku tourism.(29) The joint North-SouthPaekdu project has been viewed as a symbol ofreconciliation between North and South Koreaby the South Korean media, with political aswell as economic implications.

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North Korean stamp, issued in 1992, of the log cabin in thesecret camp on Mt. Paekdu from which Kim Il Sung is saidto have conducted guerrilla war against Japan thatis also

the designated birthplace of Kim Jong Il.

In short, in both North and South, MountPaekdu is deeply inscribed on the nationalconsciousness. The mountain symbolizes theidentity and the origin of the Korean nationand, thus, plays a crucial role in the politics ofnationalism and identity in Korea, above allNorth Korea. It is the very core of the nationalgeo-body with transcendent significance forforging Korean national identity. In theserespects, Paekdu is far more significant forKoreans than Changbai is for Chinese, with thepossible exception of China’s Manchus.

Paekdu/Changbai as a shared regionaltreasure

The dispute illustrates the ways in which theg e o g r a p h y s u r r o u n d i n g M o u n tPaekdu/Changbai is closely intertwined withrepresentations of the nation on the China-Korea border. Nationalizing geographical spaceis employed to determine the distinctionsbetween “us” and “them”. Geographic space isterritorialized. As the geographical landmark isregarded as inseparable from the nation, themountain Paekdu/Changbai becomes acontested site of nationalist powers in Chinaand in North and South Korea. As the mountainhas two names, Paekdu in Korean, Changbai inChinese, and as it stands astride the borderbetween North Korea and China, exclusiveclaims of territory and legitimacy can onlyincite cross-border tensions. The geographicspace needs to be shared by both, rather thanclaimed as the exclusive territory by either, ifheightened tension over territory and history ofthe border area between neighbors is to beavoided. The historical formation of Korea orChina as nations from an amalgamation ofpeoples in the border region where MountPaekdu stretches has not been acknowledgedin this dispute. Mount Paekdu/ Changbai should

be rooted in shared understandings of territoryand history, rather than exclusive claims insupport of the political agenda of a singlenation. The experience of multilateralcooperation in the Tumen River DevelopmentProgram offers the most hopeful precedent forcross-border co-operation by China and Northand South Korea, cooperation that could makeit possible to develop and preserve thePaekdu/Changbai area not as the singularproperty of a nation-state but as a regionaltreasure to be cherished.

Notes

(1) Department of Commerce of Jilin ProvinceHomepage, “Round Changbai Mountain TouristH i g h w a y ”(http://www.jldofcom.gov.cn/english/04key_projects/detail.jsp?iinfo_id=110). Xinhua NewsAgency, September 10, 2005, “Constructionstarts with new railway connecting to MountC h a n g b a i ”(http://www.redorbit.com/news/technology/236891/construction_starts_with_new_railway_connecting_to_mount_changbai/index.html).(2) Donga Ilbo, July 31, 2006, “China SeeksU . N . T i t l e t o M t . B a e k d u ”(http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2006073164698).(3) Joong Ang Ilbo, January 29, 2007, “With theWorld Watching, China Claims Paekdu”(http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2871832).(4) Donga Ilbo, July 31, 2006, “China SeeksU . N . T i t l e t o M t . B a e k d u ”(http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2006073164698).(5) China Daily, July 25, 2006, “EcologicalP r o t e c t i o n P l a n s M a p p e d O u t ”(http://www.china.org.cn/english/environment/175713.htm).(6 ) Out i Luova (2007) , “Mobi l i z ingTransnational Korean Linkages for EconomicDeve lopment on Ch ina ' s Fron t i e r ”(http://japanfocus.org/products/details/2388),Japan Focus, March 29, 2007.

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(7) People’s Daily, May 25, 2005, “ROKbecomes 2nd largest overseas tourists sourceo f C h i n a ”(http://english.people.com.cn/200505/25/eng20050525_186785.html).(8) “Changbai Mountain - One of the TenF a m o u s M o u n t a i n s i n C h i n a ”(http://www.jldofcom.gov.cn/english/8910/jilin_tourism_detail.jsp?info_id=22), Department ofCommerce of Jilin Province Homepage; CCTV(China Central Television), May, 2, 2004,“ Y a n b i a n ”(http://www.cctv.com/program/travelogue/20040205/100520.shtml).(9) The Hankyoreh, December 24, 2006, “N.Korean Diplomat Requests China to WithdrawOrder to Remove Hotel From Mount Paekdu”(http://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_international/180184.html).(10) Sebastien Colin, “The two Koreas and theTumen Area Development Programme: Actors,Contacts and Current Plans”, paper presentedat the AKSE (Association for Korean Studies inEurope) 30th Anniversary Conference, April16-20, 2007, Dourdan France.( 1 1 ) S e e t h i s(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Changbai_Mountain s ; ) a n d t h i s(http://granitestudio.blogspot.com/2007/02/korean-skaters-draw-ire-of-chinese.html).(12) “Changbai Mountain - One of the TenF a m o u s M o u n t a i n s i n C h i n a ”(http://www.jldofcom.gov.cn/english/8910/jilin_tourism_detail.jsp?info_id=22), Department ofCommerce of Jilin Province Homepage; CCTV(China Central Television), May, 2, 2004,“ Y a n b i a n ”(http://www.cctv.com/program/travelogue/20040205/100520.shtml).(13) Segye Ilbo, September 13, 2006, “MountPaekdu as the Origin of Manchu is ChineseTerritory” (http://www.kinds.or.kr).(14) KBS Special, broadcast December 3, 2006,” M o u n t P e a k d u P r o j e c t ”(http://www.kbs.co.kr/1tv/sisa/kbsspecial/vod/1427702_11686.html).(15) Donga Ilbo, October 26, 2006, “Highway

C o u l d I s o l a t e M t . B a e k d u ”(http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2006102626248&path_dir=20061026).(16) Donga Ilbo, September 4, 2006, “China’s‘Mount Paekdu Project’ – History and CultureDistortion Has Become Conspicuous”(http://www.kinds.or.kr).(17) Chosun Ilbo, February 27, 2007, “OurDispute With China Isn't About AncientH i s t o r y ”(http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200702/200702270035.html);Yonhap News, February 4, 2007, “ChineseNetizens Counterattack Against ‘Mount PaekduC e r e m o n y ’ W i t h a P a r o d y ”(http://www.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?at_code=390328).(18) For more information about the incident,see The Korea Times, February 2, 2007, "SeoulC a u t i o u s O v e r R i f t W i t h C h i n a "(http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/200702/kt2007020218122853460.htm); Chosun Ilbo,February 2, 2007, “China Upset with ‘BaekduMountain’ Skaters”, ;Yonhap News, February 2, 2007, "Seoul AsksBeijing to Respond in Composed Manner toD i s p u t e O v e r M o u n t P a e k t u "(http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200702/200702020024.html).(19) Donga Ilbo, July 31, 2006, “China SeeksU . N . T i t l e t o M t . B a e k d u ”(http://english.donga.com/srv/service.php3?biid=2006073164698); Donga Ilbo, September 4,2006, “China’s ‘Mount Paekdu Project’ –History and Culture Distortion Has BecomeConspicuous” (http://www.kinds.or.kr).(20) The “Northeast Project” is officially calledthe “Serial Research Project on the History andCurrent Status of the Northeast BorderRegion”. The Korea Times, September 15,2006, “China's Ambition Over Mt. PaektuA n g e r s K o r e a n s ”(http://search.hankooki.com/times/times_view.php?term=china++&path=hankooki3/times/lpage/nation/200609/kt2006091517183111990.htm&media=kt).(21) The Hankyoreh, February 24, 2007,

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“Revised High School Texts Fuel Controversy”(http://www.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/192616.html);Chosun Ilbo, February 27, 2007, “Our DisputeWith China Isn't About Ancient History”(http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200702/200702270035.html).(22) The Korea Times, August 1, 2006, “Mt.Paekdu Project' Koreas Should Unite to KeepS a c r e d M o u n t a i n ”(http://times.hankooki.com/lpage/opinion/200608/kt2006080117133154050.htm).(23) The Korea Times, September 15, 2006,“China's Ambition Over Mt. Paektu AngersK o r e a n s ”(http://search.hankooki.com/times/times_view.php?term=china++&path=hankooki3/times/lpage/nation/200609/kt2006091517183111990.htm&media=kt).(24) Another dispute involves one of mostsensitive territorial disputes over Tokdo (inKorean) /Takeshima (in Japanese), a smallisland in the East Sea or the Sea of Japan thatis administered by South Korea but claimed byJapan. Both, Tokdo and Paekdu, are deemed tobe an integral part of Korea’s national territory,but Paekdu as a sacred mountain of the nationhas greater historical significance.(25) The Economist, March 29, 2007, "HistoryW a r s ”(http://www.koreaembassy.org/han_koreaus/learn_eng/lecture_print_h.asp?num=172).(26) Radio Free Asia, March 20, 2006, “NorthKorean Media See Heaven’s Blessing onL e a d e r s , D e f e c t o r S a y s ”(http://www.rfa.org/english/news/2006/03/20/korea_media/) .( 27 ) J on Cannon , “ In Nor th Korea”(http://www.lrb.co.uk/v22/n15/cann01_.html),

London Review of Books, Vol.22, No.15.(28) KBS Global, December 30, 2006, “2 MillionV i s i t B a e k d u W a r V e n u e i n 2 0 0 6 ”(http://english.kbs.co.kr/news/newsview_sub.php?menu=8&key=2006123001).(29) KBS Global, July 18, 2005, “GovernmentAid for Baekdu Tour to Raise Dispute”(http://english.kbs.co.kr/news/newsview_sub.php?menu=2&key=2005071814); KBS Global,August 29, 2005, “Tour for Mt. BaekduE x p e c t e d a t E n d o f S e p t e m b e r ”(http://english.kbs.co.kr/news/newsview_sub.php?menu=8&key=2005082904); Donga Ilbo,August 3, 2005, “5 Billion Won MaterialsSupported to Construct Roads for MountPaekdu Tourism” (http://www.kinds.or.kr ).

Yonson AHN is a former research fellow at theEast Asian Institute, the University of Leipzig,Germany. She is conducting research onKorean “comfort women” and Japanese soldiersduring the Asia-Pacific War and on historicalcontroversies in East Asia, such as debates overthe ancient kingdom Koguryo /Gaogouli,colonial history in Korea and historicalrevisionism in Japan. See her CompetingNationalisms: The mobilisation of history andarchaeology in the Korea-China wars overK o g u r y o / G a o g o u l i(http://japanfocus.org/products/details/1837 ).She can be contacted at yonson@pamir.de.

Many thanks to Mark Selden, John Feffer, andAlexis Dudden for comments on earlier draftsof this article.

This article was written for Japan Focus. Postedat Japan Focus on July 27, 2007.