[Jeon Chan-il's Cultural Talk] Heo Seonsaeng's Hangul Arirang

Published 14 Jul.2022 11:00(KST)

After attending the 75th Cannes Film Festival (May 17-28, local time) and visiting France in early May, I traveled to Uzbekistan (hereafter referred to as Uzbek) about a month later. The journey lasted 7 nights and 8 days from June 20. The main purpose of this trip was to deliver a special congratulatory speech at the publication celebration of "Heo Seon-haeng's Hangul Arirang" (written by Jo Cheol-hyun, published by Roundabout) released on May 15. However, that was merely a pretext. Having been close friends for over 30 years, the author and I had pledged several years ago to promote various content planning and projects related to Uzbekistan, and feeling that "the time has come," I decided to execute it decisively.

Jo Cheol-hyun, who rarely puts himself forward, is in fact a veteran in the publishing and film industries. In 1994, he founded a company called "Yeosan Communication," pioneering book delivery. From 2003, he served as the chief PD of the internet broadcast "Onbook TV." For several years starting in 2013, he also managed the cable channel "BOOK-TV," specializing in book introductions. Calling himself a "documentary writer" and "documentary PD," he said, "In 2005, I made a documentary recording of the Pyongyang National Writers' Conference. Since then, I have covered various reports related to the native language community, including the joint compilation project of the Great Korean Dictionary for North and South Koreans (2006-2010) and the Sejong Institute project during my time at the National Institute of the Korean Language (2007-2009). From the 2005 Frankfurt International Book Fair until 2016, I worked as part of the video recording team for events that invited Korea as the guest of honor at major international book fairs worldwide." Since 2017, he has taken a great and deep interest in the Koryo-saram (ethnic Koreans in Central Asia) and has been intensively reporting on the region.

"Heo Seon-haeng's Hangul Arirang" is the fruit of three years of his "blood, sweat, and tears." The subtitle, "A 30-Year Record of Korean Language Education in Uzbekistan by the First Head of the Sejong Institute in Tashkent: 1992-2022," aptly describes the nature of the book. Heo Seon-haeng arrived at Tashkent International Airport, the capital of Uzbekistan, on the early morning of March 8, less than 40 days after the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Uzbekistan (January 29, 1992). "Right after graduating from the College of Education at Chonnam National University, he came to teach the mother tongue to the Koryo-saram in Central Asia at the recommendation of his mentor." This book weaves the process of "Hangul globalization" in a documentary format through the 30-year personal history of this individual.

"(Heo Seon-haeng) is now a middle-aged man of 57. During this time, Korean, once a peripheral language on the global stage, has rapidly approached the center of the world and expanded as the language of the 'Korean dream'... Among the approximately 8,000 students he taught over 30 years, many have become Korean language teachers, laying the foundation for the 'globalization of Hangul.'"

This is no exaggeration. "(This book) centers on the figure of 'Teacher Heo,' densely covering the diaspora history of the Koryo-saram, the 30-year development of Korea-Uzbek diplomatic relations, and the formation of the local Korean community, while also detailing the Korean Wave fever in Central Asia and the enthusiasm of local youth learning Korean, deeply inspiring young people dreaming of becoming the 'second Heo Seon-haeng.'"

Regarding the unforgettable emotions presented at the publication celebration held on the afternoon of June 21 at the Korean Culture and Arts House in Tashkent, I will refrain from elaborating due to space constraints. I will also skip over the impressions brought by Samarkand, the former major Silk Road hub and second city and former capital of Uzbekistan, and the famous mountain Chimgan. However, I cannot help but speak about the schedule of June 23, which will be recorded as the most rewarding day in my 61 years of life.

That day around noon, I visited the "Arirang Nursing Home" with Jo Cheol-hyun, where we met and greeted fewer than 30 first-generation Koryo-saram elders, including Director Kim Na-young and other staff. This was the nursing home featured in my friend's non-commercially published 2020 March work, "Koryo-saram Diaspora, 10 Years of Records at the Arirang Nursing Home in Uzbekistan." Afterwards, we headed to the Sejong Institute.

Including the students of the institute, I gave a special lecture to about 30 people on the topic "Why the World is Captivated by K-Content ? Focusing on 'Squid Game,' 'Parasite,' and BTS." I still vividly remember the bright faces, gestures, and words of the elders who were very grateful to the two of us visiting the nursing home with humble gifts like snack scraps, and the passionate attitudes of the young students who attentively listened to the not-so-short 90-minute lecture with curiosity.

The third schedule was also special. It was a dinner with a family including a young woman in her early 30s aspiring to be a writer who has lived with the so-called Lou Gehrig's disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) since she was about 7 years old. I had already heard about this future writer from my friend, so the joy was indescribable. She was delighted to have a second teacher following the first. The series of writings she sent after that meeting sufficiently proved her potential and talent as a writer. At that moment, I decided to support her as much as I could to become a "good writer," without considering her disability as a condition, but by absolute standards.

Two weeks have passed since I returned from Tashkent via Almaty, Kazakhstan. I am still living my days within the Uzbek, or rather "Central Asia mode," not just in thought or words but accompanied by actions. Even amidst busy affairs, I downloaded and watched the crime drama "Three: Not Yet Over" (2020) directed by fourth-generation Koryo-saram Korean director Park Ruslan, born in Uzbekistan, and strongly recommended it on the podcast program "Maebul Show" segment "Cinema Hell," where I have been a regular guest for two years and five months. This was all in that context.

The film is a Kazakh-Korean-Uzbek co-production that dramatizes a real serial murder case that occurred in Kazakhstan during the Soviet Union era in 1979 with top-notch skill, a Park Ruslan version of "Memories of Murder." It jointly won the New Currents Award at the 2020 Busan International Film Festival and was released to the public in April this year.

I will meet Director Park with other companions two days later. On Maebul Show, I boldly predicted that he would become a world-class director within 10 years, and this meeting is a practical first step to realize that promise as soon as possible. As a self-proclaimed "glocal culture planner & connector," I firmly declare that the rest of my life will continue with the "Uzbek Project," including the future vision of Heo Seon-haeng.