A Korean War historian says the exhibit is akin to displaying "lederhosen and insisting they are popular French garments in a World War II museum". (ABC News: Jarrod Fankhauser)
In short:
The Australian War Memorial is under pressure to remove a garment from a Korean War display that appears to be of Chinese origin.
Korean Australians told the ABC they want the garment moved or removed altogether to avoid being misleading to the public.
What's next?
A memorial spokesperson told the ABC it had fixed an erroneous reference to the item as "Korean traditional dress" and that positive engagement with the South Korean embassy was ongoing.
Korean Australian community members want the Australian War Memorial to remove a piece resembling traditional Chinese clothing in a display cabinet about the Korean War.
More than 900 people have signed a petition arguing that the exhibit misrepresents the traditional hanbok outfit, "a cherished part of Korean identity".
The petition says the display — which is part of the memorial's Cold War gallery that opened in June last year — represents "a grave issue that should not be overlooked".
A memorial spokesperson confirmed to the ABC that the label had erroneously identified the child's dress as a "Korean traditional dress", but said this was rectified in November 2024 "after full consultation" with the South Korean embassy.
A Korean hanbok versus the item on display at the Australian War Memorial. (ABC News: Jarrod Fankhauser)
The garment remains displayed in front of a South Korean flag and next to a cigarette lighter also bearing the flag.
"It was likely abandoned by retreating communist forces and later sold by the South Koreans left impoverished by the war," the accompanying label now states.
But members of the Korean community have told the ABC they want the garment to be moved or removed altogether.
Korean Association of Canberra president Myo Soon Kwon said she was worried visitors unfamiliar with her culture would assume the garment was traditional Korean attire.
Members of her community were frustrated, Ms Kwon said, because the Australian War Memorial had not agreed to move the garment to another part of the gallery.
"They won't listen to us," she said.
A Change.org petition calling for the Australian War Memorial to remove a Chinese garment from its Korean War exhibit. (Supplied)
The memorial's spokesperson said the child's dress was purchased by Private R.N. Mann of 1RAR during his 1954-55 service.
"Its inclusion in the showcase on the Australian experience, illustrates the resourcefulness of impoverished South Koreans who were selling items, any items they could find, to survive," they said.
"Private R.N. Mann (now deceased) obtained the dress during his service in South Korea and donated it to the Memorial with little additional information."
Demands for 'proper hanbok' in Cold War gallery
Su-kyoung Hwang, a senior lecturer in Korean studies at the University of Sydney, said the display was "historically and culturally misleading" and "shows a lack of cultural awareness on the part of the curator".
"It's like displaying German-style dirndls and lederhosen and insisting they are popular French garments in a World War II museum," she said.
"They should contact the Korean Cultural Centre in Sydney and request a proper hanbok for the exhibit."
Young men wear the hanbok during a traditional coming-of-age day ceremony. (Reuters: Kim Hong-Ji/File)
When contacted by the ABC, the South Korean embassy's second secretary Jisu Yun said "we sincerely appreciate your interest in this matter".
"We are not in a position to share further information at this time while the discussions remain ongoing," Ms Yun said.
The memorial's spokesperson said the institution was "continuing our positive engagement with the embassy of the Republic of Korea regarding further concerns regarding the display".
More than 17,000 Australians served during the Korean War, 340 of whom were killed and over 1,200 wounded.
When its Cold War gallery opened in June 2024, the Australian War Memorial noted that up to 4 million people died during the Korean War, including 2 million civilians.
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Photo shows Reg Saunders
The Korean embassy's defence attaché, Colonel Jinbu Kim, was quoted in the memorial's press release at the time as saying his country had "never forgotten the support of Australia and its allies during the Korean War".
"I hope the new gallery will give visitors to the memorial a greater understanding of the friendship between our two countries," he said.
But petition organiser Daniel Kwuen, a Sydney man of Korean heritage, said as the exhibition at the memorial stands, "many Australian students and visitors may be misled".
The Korean community wanted the clothing to be "completely disassociated" from the Korean flag, Mr Kwuen said.
The University of Sydney's Dr Hwang, whose research expertise is Korean War history, said that "war museums are publicly funded institutions that should convey factually and historically accurate information and artefacts to the public".
"The garment should be removed," she said.
China and Korea have shared millennia of cultural, religious and linguistic exchange but have a fraught history, not least due to China's involvement in the Korean War in support of the communist north.
South Korea only established relations with Beijing in 1992 — well after most nations in Asia.
The issue of Korean cultural heritage in relation to China remains highly sensitive and has led to a slew of diplomatic spats between the two countries.
A Pew Research poll in 2024 found 71 per cent of South Koreans surveyed held an unfavourable view of China.
