Sungshin Women’s University professor Seo Kyoung-duk has been appointed the first principal of “Dokdo School” to be opened in the Independence Hall of Korea on March 1 next year.

The Independence Hall in Cheonan, South Chungcheong Province, announced the school’s operation plan Wednesday, a day before Dokdo Day. It also said that it had named the well-known publicist in Korea the first headmaster of the school Sunday.

Dokdo is the easternmost group of Korean islets, which Japan also claims, stirring sovereignty disputes. March 1 is the anniversary of Koreans’ independence movement against Japanese colonial rulers in 1919.

The school plans to teach the nature and history of the islands to foreigners as well as Koreans and also invite outside experts and celebrities to give lectures. It is working on “Dokdo camp” in which foreign students in Korea are invited to a study tour of both Ulleungdo and Dokdo. Ulleungdo is the nearest island to Dokdo.

“It is important to raise global awareness of our Dokdo, but we should first know the islets well,” said Seo. “In running the school, I will emphasize a rational and logical rather than an emotional approach to the Japanese government’s claim on Dokdo so that they can realize for themselves that they are wrong.”

The hall has distributed free pamphlets on Korea’s sovereignty on Dokdo to visitors and schools across the country.

By Chun Sung-woo (swchun@heraldcorp.com)