The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (), established on December 1, 2005, is a South Korean governmental body responsible for investigating incidents in Korean history which occurred from Japan's rule of Korea in 1910 through the end of authoritarian rule in South Korea with the election of President Kim Young-sam in 1993.

The body has investigated numerous atrocities committed by various government agencies during Japan's occupation of Korea, the Korean War, and the authoritarian governments that ruled afterwards. The commission estimates that tens of thousands of people were executed in the summer of 1950. The victims include political prisoners, civilians who were killed by US forces, and civilians who allegedly collaborated with communist North Korea or local communist groups. Each incident investigated is based on a citizen's petition, with some incidents having hundreds of petitions. The commission, staffed by 240 people with an annual budget of $19 million, was expected to release a final report on their findings in 2010.

Objective Operating under the Framework Act on Clearing up Past Incidents for Truth and Reconciliation,Framework Act on Clearing up Past Incidents for Truth and Reconciliation the purpose of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRCK) is to investigate and reveal the truth behind violence, massacres, and human rights abuses that occurred throughout the course of Japan's rule of Korea and Korea's authoritarian regimes.

Background

Korea's history during the last 60 years as it transitioned from a colony to a democracy has been filled with violence, war, and civil disputes. With Japan's defeat in World War II in 1945, Korea was divided in two at the 38th parallel, with administration of the north side given to the Soviet Union, while the south side was administered by the United States (see Gwangbokjeol). In 1948, two separate governments formed, each claiming to be the legitimate government of all of Korea.

South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea) was formally established on August 15, 1948, by Korean statesman and authoritarian dictator Syngman Rhee. The establishment of a legitimate government body in South Korea was marked by civil unrest and several instances of violence (see Jeju uprising, Yeosu–Suncheon rebellion). Two years after the establishment of the Republic of Korea, North Korean forces invaded South Korea, precipitating the Korean War.

The war ended with the Korean Armistice Agreement, signed on July 27, 1953. Syngman Rhee attempted to maintain his control of the government by pushing through constitutional amendments, declaring martial law, and jailing members of parliament who stood against him. His rule came to an end in April 1960 as protests throughout Korea forced him to resign on April 26 (see April Revolution).

After Syngman Rhee's resignation, an interim government briefly held power until Major General Park Chung-hee took control through a military coup on May 16, 1961. Amid pressure from the United States, the new military government decided to hold elections in 1963 to return power to a civilian government. Park Chung-hee ran for president in those elections and was narrowly elected. In 1967 and 1971, Park Chung-hee ran for re-election and won using a constitutional amendment that allowed a president to serve more than two terms.

During his rule, Korea saw dramatic economic growth and increased international recognition as it maintained close ties with, and received aid from, the United States. On October 17, 1972, Park Chung-hee declared martial law, dissolving the national assembly and putting forth the Yushin Constitution, which gave the president effective control of parliament, leading to civil unrest and the jailing of hundreds of dissidents.

In 1979, Park Chung-hee was assassinated by Korean NIS Director Kim Jaegyu, which led to another military coup by Major General Chun Doo-hwan. This coup led to more civil unrest and government clampdowns (see Gwangju Massacre). Public outrage over government killings led to more popular support for democracy.

In 1987, Roh Tae-woo, a colleague of Chun Doo-hwan, was elected president. During his rule, he promised a more democratic constitution, a wide program of reforms, and popular election of the president. In 1993, Kim Young-sam was elected president, becoming the first civilian president in 30 years.

Korea under Japanese rule Independence movements immediately preceding and during the Japanese occupation, and efforts by overseas Koreans to uphold Korea's sovereignty, are described below.

Abuses of governmental power against the Guro farmland owners

The TRCK verified that the government abused its power by fabricating facts concerning the owners of farmland in Guro. In 1942, the Japanese Ministry of Defense confiscated the land of 200 farmers in the Guro area. The farmers continued to use the land under the supervision of the Central Land Administration Bureau, even after Korea's liberation in 1945. Beginning in 1961, the government constructed an industrial complex and public housing on the land. In 1964, the farmers claimed rightful ownership of the land and brought several civil action lawsuits against the government. The rulings for many of these cases were not issued until after 1968.

The government began appealing the rulings in 1968, appealing three cases in 1968 and one case in 1970. The government accused the defendants of defrauding the government and launched an investigation. The prosecutor arrested the accused without warrants or explanation, and coerced them into surrendering their rights through the use of violence. However, the investigation did not uncover any evidence that supported the accusations.

The lack of evidence and the fact that the civil action suit rulings were already passed did not deter the government from demanding that the defendants surrender their rights. After 40 of the defendants refused to obey the demand, several lawsuits were brought against them. The prosecution accused them of fraud and attempted to punish the defendants by holding criminal trials.

Official documents verify that the defendants were eligible for farmland distributed by the government under the Farming Land Reform Act and, therefore, did not defraud the government as alleged. Although most of the defendants were cleared of suspicion, the government conducted a second investigation to punish them.

The Commission recommended that the government officially apologize, hold a retrial, and implement relevant measures for the defendants.

Korean nurses and miners in Germany contributed to Korea's economic growth According to the commission's findings, Korean miners were recruited and dispatched to West Germany. The Korean government was involved in both their recruitment and dispatch. A total of 7,936 Korean miners were relocated to Germany between 1963 and 1977. In addition, a total of 10,723 registered Korean nurses were dispatched to West Germany beginning in the late 1950s until 1976. The Korean government also played roles in the later stage of this period.

Between 1965 and 1975, the Korean miners and registered nurses in West Germany wired a total of USD 101,530,000 back to Korea, which comprised 1.6%, 1.9%, and 1.8% of Korea's total export amount in 1965, 1966, and 1967, respectively. Considering that the foreign exchange rate was 100% and the earned dollars in the past were valued much higher than today, the Korean miners and nurses in West Germany were estimated to have greatly contributed to Korea's economic growth. The commission found the allegations false that the Korean government received commercial loans successfully from West Germany in return for forcibly depositing the Korean miners and registered nurses’ income in Commerzbank in West Germany.

From Korea's total commercial loan of DM 150,000,000 from West Germany, the West German government issued DM 75,000,000 under the "protocol concerning economic and technical cooperation between the government of the Republic of Korea and Germany" to guarantee the invoice payments of imported German industrial facilities. It was also found that approximately 60% of the dispatched Korean miners and nurses have resided in West Germany and other nations, and contributed greatly to forming and developing Korean communities in their respective residing nations.

The commission's findings report that the dispatch of Korean miners and nurses to West Germany was considered to be the Korean government's first attempt to relocate Korea's workforce overseas. Its impact on Korea's economic growth has been greatly underestimated and inadequately documented. A significant finding reveals that the commercial loan from West Germany was not a result of the German Commerzbank forcefully holding wages of the dispatched Korean miners and nurses.

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended that the Korean government collect relevant documents and make full use of them for educational purposes, as well as to take adequate actions to prevent the spread of false information.

Allied occupation

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission recommended that the reputations should be cleared and compensation paid to the families of those who had been unlawfully victimized by authorities in the Daegu October Incident.

Dictatorship periods

The commission's scope included political killings, torture, forced disappearances, unfair trials, and other human rights abuses committed through the illegal exercise of state power. This period begins on August 15, 1945, and lasts until the end of military rule following the June Democratic Uprising in 1987.

Sometimes, the commission deals with cases that have already been ruled on in court, but qualify for new trials and need to be reinvestigated for truth, as well as cases that the Presidential Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths investigated inconclusively and requested the TRCK to reinvestigate.

Fabricated case against Seo Chang-deok

Seo Chang-deok, a fisherman, was kidnapped to North Korea in 1967 while on a regular fishing trip and returned home to the South. Seventeen years later, security forces in Jeonju arrested Seo without charges using a falsified confession, which was the result of illegal confinement and torture. Seo was sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment and his human rights were violated.

Fabricated espionage case against five fishermen kidnapped by North Korea

The TRCK's investigation into North Korea's kidnapping of the five fishermen found that the organization overseeing investigations illegally detained and interrogated the returning men and their families. Based on the fabrications, the detainees were falsely accused and punished for espionage.

On July 22, 1967, the crew of the fishing vessel Song-yang, operating off the coast of the island of Soyeonpyeongdo, were kidnapped by a North Korean coastal defense ship. After a month of captivity, the North Koreans released the fishermen on the west coast. They were met by police officers, who promptly questioned them before releasing them without charges.

In December 1968, a year after the kidnapping, a special investigation organization interrogated, without a warrant, five of the fishermen regarding their work at the time of the incident. While it was determined that sea currents carried the Song-yang within range of the North Korean coastal defense ship, the organization accused the men of escaping to North Korea and then infiltrating South Korea for propaganda purposes. The organization illegally detained the men and one of their wives for 88 days. The wife was accused of receiving counterfeit money and coded messages from three unidentified men thought to be spies, as well as failing to notify the authorities.