Eighty TV people from every part of South Korea and Japan boarded a ferry to cruise the straits between the two neighboring countries on November 18th and 19th, 2001 for an exchange of views and to deepen mutual understanding.

The theme of the overnight gathering was "From History to the Future - Proposals from the Media." The meeting was advocated by Mr. Chung Soo-woong of Docusoul of Korea and Mr. Masamichi Murakami of Kumamoto Broadcasting, Japan and sponsored by the associations of broadcasting professionals in the respective countries. The Hoso-Bunka Foundation provided a grant to subsidize the meeting.

On both sides of the straits, there has been a tendency to view the other as a close but distant country. The gathering was the first of its kind, and followed the South Korean government's partial lifting of its ban on Japanese popular culture in 1998, half a century after South Korean independence and the ending of Japanese rule.

The Japanese participants first flew to the South Korean coastal city Pusan to join their South Korean counterparts. The vigorous debate continued all through the evening until midnight aboard the ship, "Camellia." There were also informal group meetings between the TV people of the two countries. The ship finally entered Japanese port Fukuoka on the following morning.

At the symposium, four panelists, experienced TV documentary program producers from each country, engaged in a frank exchange of views before colleagues.

The discussion commenced with the Japanese and Korean speakers describing their differences of approach towards the production of TV documentary programs. The Korean producers referred to the necessity of giving due regard to issues of social justice and historical truth. The Japanese speakers said they consider it necessary to approach program-making by looking at each subject flexibly, with a broad humanity, and to avoid application of nationalistic and self-restrictive criteria.

Some Korean speakers countered that to approach to the main character of a documentary only with present sympathy while neglecting that person's historical background, raises fears about resurgence of the same kinds of behaviors as Japan committed in Korea in the past.

The debate took place in the wake of mounting criticism of Japan in South Korea over delicate issues between the two countries originated in Japanese rule.

The speakers from both sides agreed that it is necessary for a TV documentary program to inform viewers of the universally accepted realities of history.

The second stage discussed the roles of Japanese and Korean TV people in the age of media globalization. A Korean speaker expressed the hope of co-producing programs with Japanese producers to resist the overwhelming influx of Hollywood-style programs in their markets.

A Japanese speaker said that his own experience shows that program producers in northeastern Asia, including Japan and Korea, should be more attentive to the diversity of Asia and know that there are many varied viewpoints and standpoints among the Asian people.

A Korean producer stressed the need to discard preconceptions against those who are covered in documentaries and approach them with sympathy and patience.

The participants concluded the four-hour forum with an invitation to Chinese TV producers to join their second meeting planned for the end of 2002.

Video records of the first meeting were aired in both Japan and South Korea.

For further information about this event, please make contact with Mr. Masamichi Murakami of Kumamoto Broadcasting, Japan. (mailto:murakami-m@rkk.co.jp)