Intergenerational Memory and Pursuit of Justice for South Korean Prisoners of War and Abduction Victims to North Korea .......... 57

This article examines the interplay between South Korean memory politics and the experiences of individuals victimized by the North Korean regime, focusing on civilians subjected to enforced disappearances and imprisonment of prisoners of war during and after the Korean War. It addresses the challenges of documenting North Korean atrocities and how the Republic of Korea’s policies have hindered the transmission of these narratives within families, thereby perpetuating trauma and exclusion. The article emphasizes the role of civil society organizations and activists in memory activism, especially following South Korea’s democratization, and their efforts to achieve recognition, justice, and accountability for North Korean human rights violations. Additionally, it accentuates the transnational memory activism of South Korean civil society, which has engaged international bodies like the United Nations, to acknowledge enforced disappearances and war crimes perpetrated by the North Korean government. The article critiques the absence of cohesive policies on North Korean human rights violations and underscores how memory activism, primarily driven by postmemory generations, challenges state-centric narratives. By leveraging their collective identity alongside transnational human rights frameworks, these activists advocate for the inclusion of marginalized histories in national and global narratives.