Reconstructing Identities amid Cold War and Postcolonial Politics: Zainichi Korean Scientists and Engineers in South Korea Available to Purchase

This article examines the role Zainichi Korean (literally, “Koreans in Japan”) scientists and engineers played in the social and political dynamics of scientific collaboration between South Korea and Japan from the early 1950s to the early 1970s. It argues that the contributions of Zainichi researchers have often been overlooked in the history of South Korean science due to the complexity of their identity politics for South Korea, as they sought to navigate the political risks caused by the Cold War and postcolonial context. Facing ethnic discrimination in the Japanese labor market from the late 1950s onward, many Zainichi Koreans with science and engineering degrees sought jobs in South Korea. However, their ties to pro–North Korean organizations raised suspicions about their loyalty. Further, they were often seen as representatives of new Japanese economic and cultural imperialism, particularly after the normalization of relations between Japan and South Korea in 1965. To navigate these challenges, Zainichi researchers often downplayed their “Zainichi” identity, presenting themselves as “Korean students abroad.” Those lacking the necessary cultural capital to do so faced greater difficulties adapting to South Korea, with their contributions frequently ignored due to fears of potential links to North Korea. By highlighting the New Korea Academic Research Society and two Zainichi researchers, Park Bong-ryol (1926–2001) and Kim Chul-woo (1926–2013), this article sheds light on the self-fashioning strategies used by Zainichi scientists and the political factors that led to their marginalization in the history of scientific interactions between Japan and South Korea.