Seo emphasized that Dokdo is unequivocally Korean territory by historical, geographical, and international legal standards. (Photo: a screenshot from Prof. Seo’s social account)
SEOUL, Feb. 22 (Korea Bizwire) – Recent findings have revealed that using Microsoft’s Bing search engine to look up “Dokdo” in English from the United States and Japan yields terms predominantly used by Japan to undermine South Korea’s sovereignty over the Dokdo islets.
According to Professor Seo Kyoung-duk of Sungshin Women’s University, a search conducted in the U.S. brings up the term “Liancourt Rocks,” a name derived from a French whaling ship that discovered the islets, which the Japanese government frequently uses in its claims against Korea’s territorial rights.
Furthermore, when “Dokdo” is searched in English from Japan, the results prominently feature “Takeshima”, the name Japan uses for Dokdo, accompanied by descriptions that suggest the islets are a point of contention located in the Sea of Japan, contested by both Korea and Japan.
Seo emphasized that Dokdo is unequivocally Korean territory by historical, geographical, and international legal standards, and it should not be portrayed as a disputed or contentious area.
Contrary to the results in the U.S. and Japan, a search for “Dokdo” in English on Bing within South Korea returns the Korean term “독도,” with descriptions identifying it as a reef in the East Sea.
Highlighting a recent corrective action where the Russian version of Wikipedia, “RuWiki,” amended its description of Dokdo from a disputed region to rightfully belonging to Korea, Seo announced plans to send a formal complaint to Microsoft.
He urged the tech giant to rectify the search results to ensure accurate information about Dokdo is accessible to the global online community.
Kevin Lee (kevinlee@koreabizwire.com)
