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)