(EDITORIAL from Korea JoongAng Daily on Nov. 4)

South Korea's failure in Unesco taekwondo bid

Seoul faces criticism for lagging behind Pyongyang's Unesco bid for recognition of taekwondo as intangible cultural heritage.

Korea risks losing the initiative to North Korea in securing Unesco intangible cultural heritage recognition for taekwondo, its national martial art.

Korea Heritage Service Administrator Heo Min said Monday that North Korea's application, titled "Taekwon-Do, traditional martial art in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea," referring to North Korea by its official name, was expected to receive a recommendation for inscription. He acknowledged that efforts toward joint recognition had effectively failed.

South Korea introduced taekwondo to the world, yet North Korea is poised to secure Unesco recognition first. Is this merely something the heritage chief should describe on social media as regrettable? Such a response suggests a troubling failure to appreciate the issue's significance.

Responsibility does not rest solely with the current administration. North Korea submitted its independent application in March 2024, but the Yoon Suk Yeol administration took little action. President Lee Jae Myung's government filed Korea's separate application only in late March this year.

Earlier, the Park Geun-hye administration pursued inscription in 2016 without success. In 2018, under President Moon Jae-in, taekwondo organizations from both Koreas agreed to seek joint recognition, but no application followed.

The process stalled partly because South Korea had not designated taekwondo as national intangible cultural heritage, a step considered necessary before applying. Academic disputes over its historical origins and distinctiveness delayed that designation. Meanwhile, inter-Korean relations deteriorated.

The deeper problem is that South Korea became complacent about taekwondo's Olympic status and international popularity while neglecting to establish and promote its identity as cultural heritage.

The government hoped to replicate the successful joint Unesco inscription of traditional Korean wrestling, ssireum, in 2018. Yet even after North Korea declared the two Koreas hostile states in late 2023 and pursued its own application, Seoul failed to respond promptly with an independent bid. This reflects a serious lack of strategic judgment.

Being listed first does not grant exclusive ownership of intangible heritage. South Korea secured Unesco recognition for Korea's most famous and beloved traditional folk song "Arirang" in 2012, followed by North Korea's separate inscription in 2014. South Korea can similarly obtain independent recognition for taekwondo.

But that possibility does not excuse the government's inadequate cultural diplomacy. Unesco's committee will decide North Korea's application at its December meeting in Xiamen, China.

Seoul must now mobilize its diplomatic resources to explain taekwondo's history, cultural significance and transmission across generations to the international community. It should also examine every remaining avenue for securing South Korea's own inscription.

Cultural heritage recognition requires preparation, persistence and strategic coordination.