by STEVE HAN
A school aimed at raising awareness of South Korea’s territorial claim over the easternmost islets will open in New York City on Oct. 25, according to the Independence Hall of Korea, the country’s largest history museum.
The institution, named Dokdo School, first opened in Cheonan, South Korea in February of last year amid the decades-long territorial dispute with Japan over the small group of islets, known as Dokdo in Korea and Takeshima in Japan, despite being internationally recognized as the Lioncourt Rocks. The school opening in New York aims to bring more international attention to the dispute.
Seo Kyoung-duk, Dokdo School’s principal, said he plans to launch the school in 100 cities around the world by 2019. For many years, Seo has been at the forefront of South Korea’s efforts to solidify its possession of the islets.
“Dokdo School in New York will share ideas and educate foreigners on why the Dokdo Islets belong to Korea,” Seo said.
Even though South Korea is currently occupying the islets, Japan has been staking its claims on the territory since its colonization of the Korean peninsula for much of the first half of the 20th century. Recently, the Japanese government required middle and high schools to teach that the islets are “indigenous Japanese territory” in history classes.
