Chinju natives attempting to identify relatives slain by the North Koreans. Photo: US Army Graves Registration Company.

Reveals the legacy of a dark period in the country’s history

Sung Soo Kim

Reveals the legacy of a dark period in the country’s history

by Quaker former head of the International Cooperation Team at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Republic of Korea, 6th January 2011

When was the Truth and Reconciliation Commission established and what is its brief?

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was established by the government of South Korea in December 2005. The scope of the TRC’s investigations covers the following five areas: the anti-Japanese movement during the colonial period and the history of the Korean Diaspora; the massacre of civilians after 1945; human rights abuses by the state; incidents of dubious conviction and suspicious death; reinvestigation of the above categories and other incidents as determined by the Commission.