Voluntary Agency Network of Korea

Template:Short description Template:Infobox Korean name The Voluntary Agency Network of Korea (Template:Langx), abbreviated VANK (Template:Korean), is an Internet-based South Korean organization established by Park Ki-Tae in 1999, consisting of 120,000 South Korean members and 30,000 international members. VANK's membership consists mainly of junior high and high school students, although university students also participate.<ref name=":3">Template:Cite web</ref>

Activities

Examples of campaigns they have conducted include organizing a protests movement to pressure Google and Apple to label the Liancourt rocks as Dokto on their maps<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and spreading the story of the ancient kingdom of Goguryeo, and about Jikji, the world's oldest extant book printed using movable metal type.<ref>Template:Citation</ref>

VANK publishes reading materials, postcards, maps, and videos. VANK's self-built online database and published books with information about Korea are acknowledged by overseas universities as recommended learning resources about Korea.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Korean studies for Global Understanding George Mason University</ref><ref>Center for Korean Studies UCLA</ref> As a way to exchange cultures and connect with foreigners, VANK also conducts surveys about their opinions of Korea, such as a notable survey about what aspects of Korea interest foreigners the most.<ref>Korean cooking classes available for expats October 26, 2010 Korea Herald</ref><ref name="Korea’s Cyber Vigilantes">Korea’s Cyber Vigilantes foreignpolicy</ref><ref name=friendship>About VANK VANK</ref>

VANK disputes certain terms and information regarding Asian geographic names or about East Asian history.<ref>Template:Citation</ref><ref>Northeast Asia's intra-mural mural wars By David Scofield Dec 23, 2003, Asiatimes</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The head of the Voluntary Agency Network of Korea said the organization has corrected hundreds of mistaken statements by foreign governments about South Korea.<ref>Organization corrects South Korea errors UPI, 15-DEC-06</ref> VANK also raises awareness for Japanese war crimes<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and promotes the banning and removal of symbolism they associate with Imperial Japan.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2013, VANK launched a campaign against the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. The campaign included a letter to the International Olympic Committee (IOC) opposing the games because "Japan has no remorse for war crimes.”, the letter was also sent to major foreign media such as CNN and the New York Times. On January 6, 2020, a poster was put on a temporary fence on the site of the new Japanese embassy in Jong Chiyo Road, Nono District. In the posters, the Tokyo Games are contaminated by nuclear radiation, in one scene the Olympic Torch Relay is depicted with a man in a hazmat suit transporting radioactive material.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Stamps and coins bearing similar imagery were also produced.<ref name=":1" />

In 2019, VANK launched a campaign against the expression Chinese New Year, recommending the term "lunar new year" instead.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

In 2020, VANK urged Chinese netizens to stop cyberbullying Korean celebrity singer Lee Hyo-ri after her Instagram account received several complaints and criticisms. VANK posted an online petition titled "Stop China's cyber chauvinism which lynched a Korean celebrity!". It justified the petition on the basis "We oppose the chauvinistic attitude of attacking others in the name of nationalism, which includes interpreting even the smallest part of an expression in the most vicious and offensive way".<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Funding

VANK is a non-governmental and private organization. According to VANK, they do not receive money from any organization or corporation, and are run by donations.<ref name=intv>History Distortion, Do not Move! hanyangian.com</ref>

Political position

Template:Liberalism in South Korea VANK does not represent an official political position, but the organization is believed to be politically closer to a liberal-to-progressive camp than to a conservative camp one.

In South Korea, liberals and leftists tend to show more anti-imperialist and left-wing nationalist based diplomatic views than conservatives in diplomacy involving powerful countries, including China and Japan. Because of this tendency, conservatives support reducing VANK's government subsidies, while liberals and leftists support increasing VANK's government subsidies.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Criticism

VANK organizes young Korean students as "cyber diplomats" to lobby foreign organizations and webmasters about what it perceives as errors in matters related to Korea.<ref name ="CMB">Template:Cite journal</ref> The Government of Korea endorses such "cyber vigilantism", subsidising a competition in which participants try to censor foreign websites for "incorrect" content about Korea. Park Jung-yul, an official of The Korean Information Service (KOIS) said "KOIS is resolved to monitor the contents of Korea-related Web sites and provide correct information on the Net in order to help generate an accurate image of the country." In Asia Times Online, it was reported that the South Korean government is offering rewards to students who participate in the activities of VANK, most of which are centered on the issues of the Sea of Japan.<ref name=":0" />

VANK lists current targets for "correction" on its website for members to send a form letter of protest.<ref name="CMB" /><ref name="MNM">Template:Cite book</ref> Some of its requests for correction are justifiable, such as referring to a simple mistake mixing up North and South Korea. However, in relation to more highly contentious issues it does not accept any non-Korean interpretations.<ref name ="CRD">Template:Cite web</ref> In a Foreign Policy article, VANK was described as being seen as "self-styled cyber fact-checkers" to those favourable to their cause but for others they are seen as "hyper-nationalistic spammers".<ref name="CRD" />

Although official foreign government agencies tend to endure its cyber harassment, numerous private organisations and websites surrender to silence VANK's clamour.<ref name="CMB" /><ref name="MNM" /> An About.com spokesman, relating his company's decision to use the name "East Sea" to refer to the body of water otherwise known as the Sea of Japan, stated that they chose to use the name "not necessarily because it agreed with the South Korean geography activists but because the e-mail bombardment was annoying." In the About.com case, it received more than 20 e-mails per day for more than a year before it finally changed the name.<ref>Sea of Japan vs. East Sea, About.com: Geography, February 24, 2002</ref><ref name=":0">Template:Citation</ref> Likewise, the National Geographic Society and other websites have changed their naming policies as a result of similar "e-mail and letter writing campaigns".<ref name="MNM" /><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

VANK has been accused of promoting Korea while attacking Japan. Critics claim that VANK has attempted to bully and discount Japan and Japanese culture, manipulate history during and after World War II and have other countries believe in distorted perspectives related to Japanese-Korean history that have a bias favoring Korea.<ref name=":2">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name=":1">Template:Cite web</ref> VANK has also been accused of attacking China and Chinese culture.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Awards

2010: Hong Jin-Ki Creator Award

References

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External links