Mr. Park, a physical anthropologist by training, has excavated ancient human bones all his adult life to study the origins of the Korean people. But by recovering more recent human remains in this and other towns in recent years, he is cracking open one of the most tragic chapters of modern Korean history — and becoming a lightning rod for criticism from conservative nationalist groups. “Colleagues ask why I do this work, which is not exactly my academic specialty, paleoanthropology,” said Mr. Park, 71, in an interview. His father was running a transportation company in Seoul when the war broke out. The police came and tortured him, demanding the whereabouts of his brother, a publishing company official who was accused of being a Communist sympathizer.

Source: International New York Times July 05, 2019 09:00 UTC