Truth and Reconciliation in South Korea

Jae-Jung Suh is a political scientist who has worked on security issues over the Korean Peninsula, U.S. role in Asia’s security, and collective memory in Northeast Asia. His publications include Power, Interest and Identity in Military Alliances (2007); Rethinking Security in East Asia: Identity, Power and Efficiency, co-editor (2004); and "Race to Judge, Rush to Act: The Sinking of the Cheonan and the Politics of National Insecurity", in Critical Asian Studies (2010).

"Unlike most current studies on the subject, which focus on the causes (or origins) of the war, this book focuses on two other aspects: the state’s violent suppression of its own (or allied) people, and the collective memories of the people under the harsh and brutal control of the state. […]This book will greatly contribute to the studies of the Korean War by suggesting a very effective way of challenging the hegemonic view, in which South Korea is simply depicted as the victim and the United States as the savior.[…] The book will certainly be an essential addition to the reading list of Korean War studies." – Dong- No Kim, Yonsei University

• Introduction. Truth and Reconciliation in South Korea: Confronting War, Colonialism, and Intervention in the Asia Pacific 1. The Long Road toward Truth and Reconciliation: Unwavering Attempts to Achieve Justice in South Korea 2. Atrocities before and during the Korean War: Mass Civilian Killings by South Korean and U.S. Forces 3. No Gun Ri: Official Narrative and Inconvenient Truths 4. War Trauma, Memories, and Truths: Representations of the Korean War in Pak Wan-so’s Writings and in “Still Present Pasts” 5. Politicizing Justice: Post–Cold War Redress and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission