'To the President': Publishing Industry Calls for Globalization of Korean Literature and "Support with Minimal Interference"

"Support with Minimal Interference"
Support Needed to Sustain Nobel Prize Achievements
Calls for Regulatory Easing and Guarantees of Autonomy

The publishing industry has called on President Lee Jaemyung for special support and attention to showcase Korea's status as a cultural powerhouse, represented by K-content, to the world. The industry requested regulatory easing and guarantees of freedom of activity in line with the principle of "support with minimal interference."

Photo by Kang Jinhyung

Yoon Chulho, President of the Korean Publishers Association, urged the resolution of governance issues at support organizations such as the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea, under the principle of "support with minimal interference." This is interpreted as referring to ongoing tensions with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism over issues such as the Seoul International Book Fair and the integrated publication information system service. He also called for responses to the publishing industry's expectations regarding issues such as e-book duplication and amendments to the Copyright Act. In addition, he announced plans to present a roadmap for publishing promotion aimed at making Korea one of the world's top five knowledge and culture powerhouses. He stated, "We are preparing strategies to foster the publishing industry as a knowledge-based industry in the era of artificial intelligence (AI), as well as development strategies for the integrated publishing industry that combines analog books and digital content," and requested special support from the government.

Kang Hyungcheol, President of the Writers Association of Korea, emphasized the importance of guaranteeing freedom of expression and the autonomy of literature. He stated, "Literature has the power to restore communities that have been damaged by hatred and conflict among their members. To make this possible, freedom of expression and the autonomy of literature must be guaranteed," and stressed, "We must ensure that the unfortunate history of the cultural and artistic blacklist is never repeated." He also asked for special attention to ensure that the remarkable achievements of Korean literature, highlighted by author Han Kang's Nobel Prize in Literature, can continue, and requested that inter-Korean cultural exchanges also be given consideration.