A priest in the eyes of the clergy column of the Catholic Peace Weekly introduces us to an important issue in today's world— Recording.
Records are powerful. There are times when shame comes to him just by looking at the diary he wrote when young. This may be because it confirms his immature, innocent memories. These days, SNS is used to replace a diary, For him, it is like Pandora's box which has been stored in digital format containing the stormy period of his life.
It is not just individuals who know the power of records. Without citing the example of the Presidential Archives, which often suffer attempts to change our memories by twisting yesterday's records because all know the power of records.
In a court of law, the most important factor in determining the substance of a case is visible evidence rather than memory-based testimony. If you know the smartphone password and check what is recorded you know the whereabouts of a person. Otherwise, it is difficult to reach the substantive truth of a crime.
Sometimes, human beings who have endured the storms of history are also a record. The Japanese comfort women survivors are the history books that record the horrors of war. The disappearance of separated families is a record that shows why the two Koreas need to dialogue right now. Those who survived the 1980s in Gwangju are records of democracy.
Records are also letters to the future: history textbook problems and pro-Japanese problems of the past, these records of the past bring despair to some living today and courage to others. Germany still strives to properly document the war crimes committed in World War II.
So, if only it can be undocumented, crime is encouraged. The forefront of undocumented crime these days is the Internet space. They do not reveal themselves as criminals with their names but hide behind false IDs. You can send and receive videos of sexual exploitation just by uploading and downloading without knowing each other.
Conversely, if criminals can manipulate records at will, records can become weapons. Digital sex offenders threaten victims with records. The perpetrator secretly filmed (recorded) the video of sexual intercourse with the victim and threaten the victim to upload (record) the video on the Internet. It is no coincidence that all kinds of insidious crimes, including digital sex crimes, revolve around Telegram, which records are difficult to access.
Moreover, as seen in the village where former President Moon Jae-in's private residence is located, when the writer sees those who record baseless slander and abusive language and claim that this is the truth, he seriously contemplates the harm of what is recorded.
It is said that this is the heyday of single-person media but feels the need for a media that is unwavering, truthful, and faithful is ever more necessary. Because we know the power of what is recorded by the media, the need for reflection and concern in its daily work.
So, let's reflect on the mission of the press, the recorder of history, including the Catholic Peace Broadcasting Company. We should record the lives of the poor and the little ones in the low places, not the glamorous stage of the high places. Records should save people and bring peace to the world. We need to record.
