ADRN

 

South Korean President Park Geun-hye, left, and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, right,

attend a trilateral meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama in March 2014. —Associated Press

 

A survey conducted in Japan and South Korea has revealed that mutual dislike remains high between the neighboring countries, dragged down by both historical and territorial disputes.

 

The survey, which took place in April in Japan by Genron NPO, asked 1,000 people 18 years old or older about their impression of South Korea. In South Korea the study was organized the local East Asia Institute, which conducted the survey in April and May with 1,010 people aged 19 years old and over.

 

Here are some findings from the annual survey. 

 

An activist burns a poster depicting Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a rally in front of the Japanese embassy in Seoul in April. —Reuters

Bad Feelings Still Run High

 

The percentage of Japanese who have a negative view towards South Korea dropped slightly to 52% from 54% in 2014. The rest were divided between those who have a positive view of the neighbor country and those who are neutral.

 

In South Korea, the percentage of people who have a negative view of Japan went up to 73% from last year’s 71%. Only 16% said they have a positive view of Japan, a decrease from 18% last year.

 

Why Can’t We Be Friends?

 

Of the Japanese who said that they have a negative image of South Korea, 75% said that it was because of the continuous criticism over Japan’s wartime history. In contrast, 74% of South Koreans who expressed dislike toward Japan said it was because Japan hasn’t reflected and apologized properly for its aggression towards South Korea during the war.

 

South Korean students shout slogans during a rally against Japan’s Takeshima Day in front of Japanese Embassy in Seoul in February 2014. —Associated Press

On the Rocks

 

Over 88% of South Koreans and 62% of Japanese picked the territorial spat over the Liancourt Rocks, which are claimed by Tokyo but administered by Seoul, as the top reason the two states can’t get along. The islands are called Dokdo in South Korea and Takeshima in Japan.

 

Debate over the “comfort women” issue came second, with 64% of South Koreans and 58% of Japanese saying it was hampering bilateral ties.

 

 

A Japanese protester holds aloft a sign which reads “Takeshima is Japanese territory”, during a rally outside South Korean Embassy in Tokyo in February 2013. —Associated Press

Public Enemy Number Two

 

About 72% of Japanese and 83% of South Koreans answered that North Korea was the largest militaristic threat in the region. China was seen as the second largest threat for Japanese with 64%. For South Koreans, Japan was the second biggest militaristic threat in the region, with 58%.

 

There is Still Some Hope

 

The percentage of people who answered that ties between Japan and South Korea are important increased in both countries, up to 65% in Japan from 60% and up to 87% in South Korea from 73%. About 41% of Japanese and 59% of South Koreans said they’d like to visit the other country in the future.