The Dokdo problem has arisen again between Korea and Japan after Japan officially designated a 'Takeshima Day'. A lot of Korean people are protesting against Japan and demanding its retraction. Foreign Ministry spokesman Lee Kyu-hyung said that the government would not tolerate and would deal with any attempt to get Korea's sovereignty of Dokdo.
Now, animosity against Japan is growing among Korean people, but only a few months ago, the 'Korean wave' fever in Japan was a big issue in Korea.
The Chung-Ang Herald met Takasaki Shota , a Japanese exchange student to learn how Japanese people view Korea on the two subjects which are contrary to each other.
CAH : A few days ago, Japan finally designated a 'Takeshima Day'. What do you think of this attitude of Japan? What do Japanese people think about Dokdo?
Takasaki : This is a very hard question for me. Maybe there would be no people in Korea who think that Dokdo belongs to Japan. Likewise, there would be no people in Japan who think that Takeshima belongs to Korea. I think that it is natural that people insist on the benefits of their own country. This will be a problem which only experts of international law can solve.
CAH : What impression do the young generation of Japanese and the adult generation have on Korea respectively?
Takasaki: There are many young people who have a good impression of Korea because of the World Cup 2002 and the inflow of the Korean culture. They sing Boa's songs in Karaoke and watch Korean movies in theater. I heard that there is a growing number of people trying to learn Korean in Waseda University.
I think that there are also many adults in Japan who get a good impression of Korea through the mass media. However, I think that they primarily have no interest in Korea. The attitudes of those people have not changed by the World Cup or the inflow of the Korean culture.
CAH : How do you feel about Korea while living in Korea? Is there any change to your impression on Korea?
Takasaki : I have felt that Korean students live their lives so fast and busy. I have not found any changes to my impression of Korea yet.
CAH : What do you think of the attitude of Koreans toward Japanese?
Takasaki: It depends on who I meet. For example, if I go to a restaurant, the owners are very kind to me, but there are also some people staring at me. However, I haven't met people who are totally against Japan yet.
Japan is called "the closest and the farthest" in Korea. Indeed, many people in Korea and Japan are amicable and understand each other's culture, but at the same time they are hostile in historical matters.
Dokdo has led the two countries in a historical war for many years. This time, the problem must be solved completely and peacefully, without breaking the diplomatic relationship between the two countries.
By Kim So-young
International reporter