EIJS-SIIA Workshop 2009 

August 21-22, 2009, Stockholm

An international academic workshop on the Japanese-South Korean relationship will be convened by European Institute of Japanese Studies at the Stockholm School of Economics in cooperation with the Swedish Institute of International Affairs on August 21?22, 2009. The workshop takes a multidisciplinary approach and invites papers dealing with the Japanese?South Korean relationship from various angles.

Call for Papers

The Japanese?South Korean relationship is of utterly importance for Northeast Asia, where a Cold War frontier still exists. In a sense the two countries are natural partners: They are both economically strong democratic societies; in fact the only two Asian countries that are members of the OECD. Both have security treaties with the USA and American soldiers stationed on their soils. They share security concerns when it comes to the North Korean nuclear threat as well as the rise of China. Japan and South Korea also share similar values, customs, culture and language. All this would make for a strong cooperative bilateral relationship between the two countries. Yet, this is not the case. There is still plenty of distrust and suspicion between the two, and this is manifested in territorial disputes (Dokto/Takeshima), fishery disputes, historical issues such as the Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula, the “comfort women” issue, and other crimes committed by the Japanese Imperial Army. There is also the Yasukuni issue as well as the issue of Koreans in Japan. The relationship is highly politicised and filled with emotions.

The two countries, as well as peace and stability in Northeast Asia as a whole, would gain tremendously from improved relations. At this workshop we would like to invite papers which discuss the Japanese?South Korean relationship, both negative and positive aspects of it, from a number of different angles. By inviting a multidisciplinary approach, our aspiration is to deepen the understanding and broaden the views of the participants and to achieve cross-fertilization across disciplinary borders. Our ambition is moreover that the workshop shall result in at least one scholarly publication from a publishing house of international stature.

The number of paper contributors will be limited to 13?15 people of high academic standing. We especially invite participants from Japan and Korea. Fellow European scholars are also encouraged to contribute proposals. We will also invite 15?20 additional academics, concerned students, officials, journalists, etc. The working language will be English.


Organizing Committee
Dr. Marie Soderberg
Professor
The European Institute of Japanese Studies (EIJS)

Dr. Linus Hagstrom
Senior Research fellow
The Swedish Institute of International Affairs (SIIA)

Contact
Ms. Nanhee Lee at the EIJS
for submission of proposals and questions.