Discussion to the Conference held on 10th, Nov. 2016 at Budapest

 

Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. I am Professor Kim Byongsun from Academy of Korean Studies. It is my great honor to attend at this conference and to discuss on Public Polish and Civil Diplomacy. I want to express my appreciation to Dr. Szego for her endeavor to organizing this conference and her passion for propelling the relationship betweeen Hungary and Korea.
I major in Korean literature and teach Korean literature to the graduate students. I am responsible for compilation for Encyclopedia of Korean Culture and The Digital Local Culture Encyclopedia of Korea, as the head of Korean Studies Knowledge Information Center and I am managing a project of collecting Korean folklore and digital compiling of it, that was the very job of Bartok Bela in Hungary.
My academy is a central institute for Korean studies, which is responsible for promoting Korean studies research all around the world. I’m grateful that my academy is welcomed to be a sponsor in this unique conference by Hungary-Korea Society. The president of the academy has asked me to thank members of the society for organizing this event and honored all the guests from many other countries for attending.
I would not engage in a discussion about the presentation by Dr. Szego Andrea. Instead, I would like to tell you about civil diplomacy between Hungary and Korea.
I define civil diplomacy into 3 categories: material, culture, and last but not least, personnel.
First of all, in the matter of materials, one branch of Hyundai Department Store which is said to be the largest department store in East Asia, opened in last August. It is near to my Academy and my home. Korean products aside, numbers of international goods retailers have opened within. And there, I found Herend, the most famous ceramic manufacturer of Hungary. This must have been a great risk for the department store, as Herend is famous and familiar around Europe, but not in Korea. Other than Herend, there are products like Inno Rheuma Krem, which is imported in small quantities by tourists. Overall, however, Hungarian goods are mostly unavailable in Korea, even its cuisine such as Gulyas and Halaszle. I believe that more and more Hungarian products, industrial, luxurious, and sometime medical, should be introduced to Korea.
In cultural aspect, although many Hungarian musical organizations have visited Korea, I would personally emphasize the event of <Treasure of Hungarian Royalty>, which was held in 2014. This exposition mainly consisted of Austro-Hungarian relics, with exception of genuine Hungarian treasure that is the crown which bears the Patriarchal Cross.
This kind of exhibition is only temporary. Much more serious method of cultural exchange is publishing of books, introducing the culture and history of both countries.
In 2012, I spent my sabbatical year in southwestern Hungarian border city of Pecs. From this experience, I wrote a book named <Treasure Hunt in Hungary>. The reason that I wrote this book from a mere one-year experience, is that there are no books introducing Hungary to Koreans, maybe except for some tourist guides. The only other “serious” approaches to Hungary in Korean books is two books by Mose Csomor, a professor of ELTE. I am not aware of kinds of Korean books that are published in Hungary. However, I do hope that my book gets published here someday.
Last but not least, I would like to say few words about personnel exchange. I believe people moving back and forth is the best way of mutual communication.
Today, demographics show that about one thousand Koreans reside in Hungary. Most of them are businessmen for Samsung, Hankook Tire, or individual companies. A Korean player plays in Hungarian professional football league.
But the most interesting fact is that the number of Korean students studying in Hungary is increasing. In the past, students like Ahn Ik-Tae came to Hungary to study classical music. Recently, however, hundreds of Korean students are waiting on the doorsteps of Hungarian medical schools.
Among the first Hungarian visitors to Korea, there was a doctor called Gaspar Ferenc. on board a vessel of Austro-Hungarian Navy, he arrived at Incheon in 1890 and treated some Korean locals. Few scores later, Hungary established a hospital in Kaesong in North Korea and sent some doctors as a part of medical aid.
Today, young Korean doctors who graduated from Hungarian medical schools are working in Hungary and abroad. This is significant, as personnel exchange between Hungary and Korea started from medical activities.
One of such people is Dr. Kim here, attending this event. Last year, he graduated from dental school in Pecs, and is now working in a clinic in Sopron, the city famous for its medical tourism. My other son is also studying in the school in Pecs. The main reason that I spent my sabbatical year in Pecs was to be with them, and to teach Korean language and culture in University of Pecs.
What I do in Academy of Korean Studies is teaching Korean Literature to students, most of who are foreigners. Around 20 students whom I taught are now working as Korean studies professor in different countries. However, I regret the fact that I’ve never instructed a Hungarian student, while there were students from Czech, Serbia, Romania, Spain, England, and so on. If there is a prospective student here, please contact me. A full scholarship will be provided.
Let us look again at this <Pangyo Hyundai Department Store>. At first, an unfortunate label saying “Rosenthal” was placed in the store which sold the Herend porcelains. However, there was a slight change recently. They began to use the name ‘Herend’ instead of ‘Rosenthal’, finally. Of course many of Koreans wear Hungarian goose down products in Winter. Tokaji wine is being sold at a maximum price in several wine retailers. There are people who ask me to buy ‘Inno Rheuma Krem’ for them. Royalties were paid twice for my book, the sales of which I was terribly worried about at the beginning. (At least 1,500 copies were sold) Asiana Airlines launched a direct flight between Seoul and Budapest last summer, despite the fact that it was temporary. Hungary-Korea Society is now gathering interest from Academy of Korean Studies. We are now at the threshold of Hungary-Korea civil diplomacy. The Hungary-Korea Society is capable of initiating this diplomacy.

Thank you. Koszonom.