0100492606

open access

Version of Record

Current Status and Significance of Museum Exhibits on Zainichi Korean in Japan and Korea

Japanese (日本語)

国際協力論集

32

73-88

神戸大学大学院国際協力研究科

2024-12-20

With the rapid increase in the number of foreign residents in Japan and Korea in recent years, the role of museums as social educational facilities has been raised as the realization of multicultural conviviality becomes an important social issue. This article conducted a survey of museums related to Zainichi Korean, which have been established one after another in Japan and South Korea in recent years. In the postwar period, social interest in Zainichi Koreans was very low in both Japan and South Korea, and many Zainichi Koreans have faced ethnically discriminatory social structures. However, since the 1970s, there has been a growing movement among Zainichi Koreans to document their own history, and many private museums have been established with the support of Japanese citizens. In particular, since the 2000s, a number of museums have been established in Zainichi Koreans’ residential areas, providing exhibitions that combine Zainichi Koreans’ history with local history and spaces for local residents to interact with each other, and offering a place to imagine a society where the human rights of diverse people are respected and they can live as equal citizens. In South Korea, on the other hand, due to the growing interest in overseas immigration in recent years, many exhibits emphasized the ethnicity and patriotism of Zainichi Koreans and demonstrated their strong network with South Korea. The examples from both countries are considered socially significant in that they make visible the existence of the Zainichi Koreans as a minority and raise issues about the social structure in which discrimination against them remains. In order for these museums to contribute to the realization of a multicultural society, it is necessary to consider exhibits that represent the diverse realities of Zainichi Koreans, as well as to promote collaboration between museums in Japan and Korea.

紀要論文