Mun-sun Kim’s Petition Written in Blood
The late Mun-sun Kim (b.1925-d.unknown) wrote this petition with his own blood in October 1986, addressed to the President of the Republic of Korea, Doo-hwan Chun. It was written in blood to express the strength of his convictions.
The petition had two intentions. First, it was a direct appeal to the president of the Republic of Korea about the human rights violation of forcibly fingerprinting Zainichi Koreans for Japan’s Alien Registration Cards, which felt like they were akin to dog tags. Second, Mr. Kim was giving voice to the accumulated anger of Zainichi Koreans against this registration system. One poet described this anger as “black ink / seeping into cilia all over the body.” Fingerprinting was mandatory from the age of fourteen. In 1982, the age was changed to sixteen. What did children think of the nation of Japan as they were forced to be fingerprinted at the government office? The human rights of Zainichi Koreans were considered insignificant.
