What is it about?

The United Nations Memorial Cemetery in Korea (UNMCK) is the only UN-designated cemetery for the 2,314 fallen UN soldiers during and after the Korean War (1950–1953). After the war, an exchange of the bodies of the deceased soldiers between the United States-led UN Command and the North Korean-Chinese coalition known as Operation Glory took place in 1954. Based upon multi-archival research involving six countries and interviews, this study examines the contrasting realms of death in the UNMCK. The article explores for the first time how Operation Glory has reconstructed the topology of the UNMCK by consolidating the “visible 2,303 UN fallen soldiers” and “invisible 11 nameless non-combatants”.

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Why is it important?

Operation Glory defined the boundaries of death of the Korean War in the UNMCK: between allies and enemies; combatants and non-combatants; inside and outside; visible and invisible; and the South and the North. I observe that incompatible domains of visible and invisible death have been blended into the UN Cemetery, creating a unique heterotopia. Most importantly, Operation Glory in the UNMCK has left room for comprehending forgotten others from a humanitarian perspective of human rights and dignity.

Perspectives

It was a great privilege for me to write this article while working as an academic advisor for the special documentary film produced by the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS), “Land of Memory, the UN Cemetery”. Particularly in the Korean Peninsula, where the conflict is technically at war, the treatment of the war dead is still a complicated matter. Given that the upcoming year 2023 marks the 70th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice, this article is expected to be a timely contribution to remembering the “forgotten war” and providing insights into re-designing peacebuilding for a better world.

Between Visible and Invisible Deaths of the Korean War Chungsun Lee
The University of Tokyo

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This page is a summary of: Between Visible and Invisible Deaths of the Korean War: Re-envisioning Operation Glory (1954) at the United Nations Memorial Cemetery in Korea, International Journal of Military History and Historiography, June 2022, Brill,
DOI: 10.1163/24683302-bja10037.
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