Mindan


Mindan, or the Republic of Korean Residents Union in Japan, is one of two main organizations for Koreans living in Japan, the other being Chongryon. Mindan has ties to South Korea and was established in 1946 in Tokyo, Japan. Currently, among 610,000 Korean residents in Japan who have not become naturalized Japanese citizens, 65% are members of Mindan, and another 25% are members of Chongryon.
Mindan members prefer the modern South Korean term Kankoku to be used when discussing Korea. Chongryon members, some of whom are North Korean fellow travellers, prefer the older term Chōsen. Because Chōsen was the term used during the Japanese rule of Korea and North Korea does not recognize Kankoku, this causes enmity between the groups.

History

Mindan was established in 1946 as the Zai-Nihon Chōsen Kyoryū Mindan. With the founding of South Korea in 1948 the name Chōsen was dropped, and the organization was reincorporated as Zai-Nihon Daikanminkoku Kyoryū Mindan. The Korean War brought about a sharp division between members of Chongryon and Mindan, with each organization strongly supporting the North or South respectively. Mindan members went to Korea as volunteer soldiers in the conflict.
As the term kyoryū, meaning "resident", became a politically sensitive term, the organization adopted its present name in 1994 by simply dropping the term kyoryū. Despite the formal renaming of the organization, it has been consistently known as Kankoku Mindan or simply Mindan in Japan.

Activities

Mindan provided food supplies for the victims of the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami.