Local text books give wrong information on South Korea
Local text books give wrong information on South Korea
JAKARTA (JP): South Korea is often wrongly perceived in
Indonesia because many books on literature, including school
books, have factual mistakes, South Korea's Deputy Ambassador to
Indonesia Hangjohng Yo said yesterday.
The mistakes occurred usually because authors used old books
as reference, Yo said.
Most geography books in Indonesian schools, for example, still
describe the Korea Strait as Japan Sea, he said.
"The name was used during the Japanese occupation (in
Indonesia), but now things have changed, so has the name of the
waters," he said after a press conference to announce an essay
competition on South Korea for high school and university
students.
The contest, jointly organized by the South Korean Embassy and
the Ministry of Education and Culture, aims at correcting these
misperceptions, he said.
Essays are to be written in Indonesian and based on either
"the Difference between what I know of South Korea from schools
and from other sources" or "How to obtain accurate information on
South Korea".
A study conducted by the director of Center for Korean Studies
at Nasional University Jakarta, Park Jin Ryeo, discovered that
many inaccurate descriptions on South Korea were found in text
books on geography and social sciences, Yo said.
Any essays suggesting how to obtain accurate information as
well as citing examples of incorrect descriptions of Korea found
in Indonesian literature would receive extra points.
Muchlis Dasuki, the head of international cooperation at the
Ministry of Education and Culture admitted the flaws.
The government endorsed the essay contest as it encouraged
young Indonesians to get a more accurate picture of South Korea,
he said.
Ten winners from each of the two categories -- high school and
university students -- will be invited to visit South Korea for
one week and receive cash prizes ranging from Rp 300,000 to Rp 1
million.
All entries for the contest must reach the organizers by Aug.
15. The winners will be announced on Sept. 25. (11)