Special Team Established Against Japanese Distortion of History

South Korea Wednesday morning launched a special team to deal with the distorted parts of Japanese middle school history textbooks.

South Korean Deputy Prime Minister for Education Han Wan-sang told a news conference that the team will operate until the distortions of history are corrected to meet South Korean people's demands.

The team consists of senior officials from the Presidential Office, the Foreign Affairs Ministry and Culture-Tourism Ministry, the Office for Government Policy Coordination and the National Information Agency and 10 history and Japan experts.

Vice Education Minister Kim Sang-kwon and Deputy Foreign Minister Yim Sung-joon have been named chief and vice chief of the team.

The first meeting of the team is set to open Thursday and will specifically address how the team will operate. The examination of the Japanese textbooks will be completed around April 20, said Han at the press conference.

Last week, the Japanese government approved eight distorting history textbooks for use in Japanese middle schools next year.

South Korea has condemned the Japanese approval of the textbooks whitewashing or beautifying Japanese wartime atrocities last century and has recalled its ambassador to Japan.






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