TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION

Yesterday I had my formal visit to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. My work as a chair of the International Monitoring Project of the South African Truth and Reconciliation had been life changing. The effort to collectively heal the trauma of a nation trough truth telling and participation of all sides of conflict was genius. After being in a hearing where victims and perpetrators describe their motives, pain, regret and fears changed the way I performed as a lawyer - returning to integrate healing into my efforts on a much deeper level.

The TRC KOREA has a staff of over 250 people, but with a sunshine provision that phases it out next April (unless extended for two years which is unlikely under the current conservative post-Roh government). While their investigation reveals nearly 500 sites of mass graves, they have only so far been able to excavate at 10. With thousands of petitions from aggrieved families hoping for some truth and justice, they simply have not had the time to complete this important work. It’s like the sand in the hour glass from the Wizard of Oz - or perhaps like the one in Japan that I got with my tea telling me when it would be steeped. That one was movin’ fast.

However, what they have accomplished is so impressive and shocking. The fact that it became the first of its kind is Asia is very important, as the region has done little formally to deal with the often brutal past, be it Japanese Imperialism or the Korean War. Even more impressive is how it came to be. A courageous group of aggrieved families that I have been meeting camped out at the Diet and engaged in a major grassroots movement for several years to gather the bones (literally) and present them with their call for justice. This they did from Seoul to New York. Their efforts resulted in the creation of the TRC. (Check out the TRC work at www.jinsil.go.kr).

I met with Commissioner Dong-Choon Kim, Ph.D. (Standing Commissioner, Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Korea). He and I had met and had a great dinner gathering of Korean activists in Berkeley back on April 1st when he spoke on “Uncovering the Hidden History of the Korean War. (I had filmed the talk and if you want to watch his description of what they are finding watch the film I put together at http://vimeo.com/user1683292 .)

We also met with the International Liaison Kim Eun-Bok, and an investigator working on the Massacres that involved American Soldiers. I spoke about ways in which we could help from the international community and offered to develop some programs for students and lawyers to work on gathering documents from the US government. We also discussed the “Post period” of the TRC wherein they hope to have the government still support a private Foundation to continue some of the work, particular with a focus on reconciliation activities (monuments, museums, further outreach and a chance for more participants, as they actually had a small window that closed a couple of years ago to take petitions.) I remembered the impact of the public televised hearings in South Africa in breaking the denial and helping the nation heal some of the trauma. I urged them to find a way to record some oral histories from the aggrieved families and others to use in various ways. A possible project for us in the US could be to get some film students to take an internship for a month in Korea and also in the Korean American community to record the oral histories of the victims and US and ROK veterans and have it available for future TRC activity, scholars and filmmakers.

The US Investigator indicated that he was most interested in finding US pilots who had flown certain missions early in the war when mass bombing took place from US forces in the South, killing many civilians. I suggested that Veterans for Peace and some other Vet groups could run some simple ads in their outreach material calling upon veterans to become part of the healing efforts in Korea from the War by stepping forward and giving some statements that can help the Reconciliation process. Perhaps some carry a heavy load from what they saw or did in Korea and wish to contribute something to the situation before they die. The words of my Father-in-Law - he had been an officer in Korea during the war - sometime before he passed away, that “you would not believe some of the things that went on”, rang in my ears. He had never told my wife the details. Perhaps still living soldiers can speak about their experiences and it can have a healing effect on both sides of the sea.

The afternoon brought me first to film several interviews (as I have a desire if funding can emerge to do a short film on Korea and why we are where we are) and then to Dongguk University, a Buddhist founded campus, where I was scheduled to give a talk sponsored by some of the aggrieved families. It was an elaborate affair with greetings from the Dean of the Law School and others. When I arrived they had my paper for the IADL conference next week on the Right to Peace in Korea translated into Korean for the audience and above my head was a huge banner about the talk. I had casually suggested the topics I could speak upon and there they were in big white letters: South Africa TRC Experience and Legal Accountability for Civilian Massacres by the US during the Korean War. (Read my remarks at http://www.ubuntuworks.com/ubuntuworks/NLG_KPP.html)

After the talk and some heartfelt questions and comments about why they continue to seek justice, we adjourned to a dinner that they had planned for me...at a vegetarian restaurant. It was such a sweet gesture, as they had known of my eating needs. There we sat around a long table as each of them went around and gave a few comments of appreciation and about their visions for truth and reconciliation. We set up a formal contact to be in touch as I return to the US and set up an international legal team to help them secure some redress or more information from the US government.
Tomorrow is the mass funeral for President Roh Moo Hyun. A million people will be in the street. I will join it later in the day as I head to the Southern tip of Korea and down a mine shaft that held thousands of bodies from a massacre. Continuing to do the work that Roh stood for is my tribute.