A new chapter in the lengthy volume of Sino-Korean relations was written in Taiwan province February 15-18 with a state visit from Korean President Park Chung Hee, who earlier had traveled to Malaysia and Thailand. The Korean chief executive was met at the airport by President Chiang Kai-shek, other top leaders of the Chinese government, the diplomatic corps, and hundreds of Korean residents. Two hundred thousand persons lined Taipei main thoroughfares as President Chiang rode with President Park to the Grand Hotel on a hilltop overlooking the city.
President Park and President Chiang had several discussions of the close anti-Communist relationship between the two countries, and of the possibility for forging stronger bonds among all the free countries of Asia. In the final communique, they spoke of further summit meetings and of the desirability of similar conferences involving other nations and leaders. Both are ardent advocates of a strong East Asian alliance, and this may have given strong impetus to such an undertaking.
The former four-star general from Korea also saw something of Taiwan's industrial and agricultural prosperity. He went south to witness a military maneuver that demonstrated free China's readiness for defense or for counterattack against the Communists. Together, the Koreans and free Chinese have military forces of more than 1,200,000 men, by far the largest combination of two free nations to be found in free Asia. Meanwhile, members of President Park's party discussed economic and cultural cooperation with Chinese officials.
Throughout the visit, a warm, brotherly atmosphere prevailed not only in the discussions between the two Presidents, but in the other meetings and the social functions. This was to be expected. China and Korea are called "brother countries" by their own people. The Chinese and the Koreans are considered "brothers" because they are ethnologically akin to each other and have much in common. For example, they eat rice as their staple food, use ideographic writing, and regard the Confucian doctrine of filial piety as the utmost virtue.
The Sino-Korean relationship is more than 3,000 years old. Historical contacts began as early as 1122 B.C. when the Shang, China's second dynasty of record, was overthrown by King Wu of the Chou dynasty. In that year, a young noble of the Shang court named Chi-tzu (Kija in Korean) is said to have refused to serve the new dynasty and emigrated to Korea with 5,000 followers. Another mass exodus took place in 108 B.C. when Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty established Lolang (Nangnang in Korean) and three other colonies in Korea,
Because of its geographical position, Korea also served as a bridge over which Chinese culture was transmitted to Japan, The Chinese system of writing was taken to Korea by early emigrants. In 285 A.D., a scholar of Paekche (one of the three Korean kingdoms, Kudara in Japanese) named Wang In (Wani in Japanese) presented 10 copies of the Confucian Analects and a copy of the Thousand-Character Classic to Emperor Ojin of Japan. These are said to have been the first books known to the Japanese.
Buddhism was imported into China in the first century during the reign of Emperor Ming of the Han dynasty. From China, it spread to Korea in 372 and to Japan in 552.
Despite the invention of a phonetic system called hunmin chongum (known today as hangul) in 1446, books written in Korea until the end of the 19th century were often wholly in Chinese. Even today, most Korean nouns are written in the Chinese characters.
Many Similarities
As in China, most geographical names in Korea consist of two Chinese characters. The names of persons are written in the same way. In most cases, a person has a two-character given name preceded by a single character family name.
The Chinese and the Koreans do not belong to the same language family. However, many Korean words, especially those expressed in Chinese ideographs, are pronounced more or less like Chinese. Take family names for example. "張" is Romanized "Chang" in both China and Korea. "李", one of the most common family names in both countries, is Romanized "Li" or "Lee" in China and "Lee", "Rhee" or "Yi" in Korea. Other family names that are Romanized in the same way include (Chu), 韓 (Han), 黃 (Huang or Hwang in China and Hwang in Korea), and 康 (Kang).
Closely connected with names is the use of seals instead of signatures. In Chinese and Korean legal procedure, a seal bearing the name of a person is regarded as more important than his signature. For instance, a legal document, especially a title deed or negotiable instrument, is always valid with an authentic seal and need not have a signature. A document with authentic signature but without a seal may be invalidated. Seals are engraved on square, rectangular, oval, or round blocks of wood, buffalo horn, ivory, meal, or crystal. To prevent forgery, specimens of important seals are registered with the authorities.
The two countries adopted the Gregorian calendar early in the 20th century. However, as farming is still the principal occupation, the lunar New Year remains the biggest festival.
Herbs Still Popular
Except for surgery, many Chinese and Koreans rely on herb medicine, the origins of which are lost in obscurity. Ancient books of China record herb treatments and cures of 5,000 years ago.
The Koreans learned herb medicine from the Chinese who settled in Lolang. In 459 A.D., a Korean doctor named Tongnae was invited to teach medicine by the Japanese Emperor. Tongnae and his descendants practiced medicine in Japan for generations. They are said to have originated the world-famous pharmaceutical industry of Osaka.
At the end of World War II, there were 1,657 herb doctors in Korea. By 1961, the number had jumped to 3,101, or about 1.2 per 10,000 of population. Free China has 1,666 herb doctors, or about 1.3 per 10,000 population. Each country has a college of herb medicine.
Asylum in China
Korea was occupied by Japan from 1910 to 1945. During this period, China extended every possible assistance to help the Korean people regain their freedom. After the abortive Samil (March 1) independence movement of 1919, many Koreans sought asylum in China. In April of that year, these freedom-fighters set up a Provisional Government in Shanghai with Syngman Rhee as President. This government in exile was maintained in Shanghai until 1937. After the Sino-Japanese War, it was moved to Nanking and then Chungking. Many Koreans joined the Chinese armed forces in fighting the Japanese. In the Cairo Declaration of December, 1943, Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek, President Roosevelt, and Prime Minister Churchill stated: "The aforesaid three great powers, mindful of the enslavement of the people of Korea, are determined that in due course Korea shall become free and independent."
The Republic of Korea was officially inaugurated on August 15, 1948, the third anniversary of liberation from Japanese rule. The Republic of China was among the first to extend recognition.
Excerpts from a 1962 speech by U.S. Congressman Dante B. Fascell.
President Park is above all a realist who unflinchingly faces facts. In his state of the union message President Chung Hee Park designated 1965 as the "year for hard work."
President Park is also a realist when it come to understanding thoroughly the nature of the free world struggle against Communism.
In April of 1948 the Korean people sent Cho Pyong Ok to China as a special envoy to express their gratitude to the Chinese people. A special mission of Korea was established in Nanking in November of that year. Later it was accredited as the Korean Embassy.
At the invitation of President Rhee, President Chiang went to Chinese, Korea, August 3, 1949, to discuss formation of a Pacific anti-Communist alliance. President Rhee returned the visit on November 27, 1953. A communique issued by the two chief executives in Taipei stressed the need to establish an anti-Communist organization. This led to the establishment of the Asian People's Anti-Communist League on June 15, 1954.
The Korean War broke out June 25, 1950. A week later, China offered three infantry divisions to help Korea combat the Communists. The offer was declined by the U.N. Command in Korea.
Repatriations
In January, 1954, Korea helped in the repatriation to Taiwan of 14,000 Chinese anti-Communist prisoners of war who had refused to return to the mainland. On September 15, 1961, two Chinese Communist pilots, Shao Hsi-yen and Kao Yu-tsung, defected to Korea with their AN-2 light transport plane. Assisted by the Korean government, they arrived in Taipei three weeks later. On June 2, 1964, a group of free Chinese commandos raided Lungshanchien at the tip of the Shantung peninsula. One of the boats carrying six commandos developed engine trouble. They were rescued by a Korean trawler and returned to Taiwan on June 14.
Before the Japanese annexation, Chinese in Korea totaled more than 100,000. Because of travel restrictions, the number dropped sharply after 1910. There were only 23,089 in 1920. The Chinese population of Korea continued to decrease, especially after the Marco Polo Bridge Incident of July 7, 1937.
In May, 1965, there were 28,927 Chinese in South Korea. More than 90 per cent, or 25,839, were from Shantung. Next came Hopei, 1,320. Of the total, 6,340 were in Seoul, 4,214 in Pusan, 3,669 in Inchon, and 3,187 in Taegu. In occupational breakdown, restaurants topped the list with 20.8 per cent. Then came groceries, 4.6 per cent; farming, 4 per cent; industry, 1.9 per cent; medicine and pharmaceuticals. 1.8 per cent; and peddlers, 1.7 per cent. Students totaled nearly 8,000. There are 48 Chinese primary schools, 4 high schools, and 1 vocational school in Korea.
In 1932, there were 959 Koreans in Taiwan. This had increased to 2,775 in 1943. Most of them returned home after Korea regained its independence. However, the number of Korean residents has shown a gradual increase in recent years. The number was 216 in 1946 and 495 at the end of 1964. There are Korean primary schools in Keelung, Taipei, and Kaohsiung.
Before 1959, Korean students constituted more than half of foreign students in China. Of the 14 foreign students in the 1955-56 academic year, 11 were Koreans. In the 1964-65 academic year, there were 429 foreign students, 44 of them Koreans. The change in proportion was caused by a rapid increase in students from Vietnam and the United States. Since 1957, the number of Chinese students going to Korea has averaged two a year. The largest group of nine went to Korea in 1958. Three Korean universities have departments of Chinese and two Chinese universities have departments of Korean.
China and Korea signed a trade agreement in 1961, a treaty of friendship in 1964, and a cultural pact in 1965. Contacts between the countries have been increasing. China's Presidential Secretary General Chang Chun visited Korea in August and Premier Yen Chia-kan in December, 1964. Korean Premier Chung Il Kwon came to Taipei in October of the same year.
Relationships between the two countries have been cordial in modern times. They have helped each other in international politics, and will continue to help each other in the fight against Communism.