Kim Dae-jung Refuses to Meet Japan Envoys

President Kim Dae-jung of South Korea refused to meet a high-level Japanese delegation Monday in a show of anger over Tokyo's refusal to revise history textbooks that critics say whitewash Japan's wartime atrocities.

Kim's move was highly unusual and highlighted a widening schism in relations between the two neighboring countries, which until recently had been trying to put their thorny history behind them.

Japan angered Asian neighbors by approving eight controversial middle school history textbooks in April, including one titled ``New History and Civics Textbook,'' written by nationalist scholars who deny Japan committed historically documented atrocities during World War II. They say teaching youngsters about Japanese war crimes is ``masochistic.''

In June, South Korea formally asked Japan to revise 35 passages that it believes gloss over atrocities allegedly committed during Japan's colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula from 1910-1945.

South Korea was particularly upset by the textbooks' failure to mention that tens of thousands of Korean and other Asian women were forced to serve as sexual slaves for Japanese soldiers during World War II.

Japan responded Monday by informing Seoul that it can revise only two of the 35 passages, ones concerning historical relations between the two countries. South Korea rejected the offer as ``deceptive.''

Japan's Education Ministry said it rejected other revisions because ``no clear-cur errors'' were found, said ministry official Daisuke Saito.

A special delegation from Japan's three-party ruling coalition ¡ª comprised of the secretaries-general of the Liberal Democratic Party, the New Komeito party and the New Conservative Party ¡ª flew to Seoul on Sunday, hoping to meet Kim and seek his understanding about the textbook decision.

But Kim turned down a request for a meeting, a departure from past practice. The presidential Blue House said Kim could not meet the visitors due to a ``conflicting schedule,'' a diplomatic term often used to reject an unwanted meeting.




















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