Korea-Vietnam Relations: The Impact of International Lotus Village on Post-Conflict Development

One of the most tragic events of the twentieth century, the Vietnam War had far-reaching impacts on the country, causing extensive damage to both its internal and external aspects. Despite the current amicable relationship between South Korea and Vietnam, the discussion of the Vietnam War was often excluded at the state level. In response to war crimes committed by the U.S. and its allied forces including South Korean soldiers during the Vietnam War, a Korean international NGO called International Lotus Village (ILV) was designed to improve the quality of people’s lives and reconciliation in Quang Nam province by providing three major areas of social welfare. The assessment of this particular organization will provide an analysis of what and how the impact of ILV’s three social welfare activities has improved and brought changes to the community. Using mostly Korean sources from the ILV archive, the study reviews a qualitative assessment of the perspectives of both ILV program providers and recipients. Despite encountering difficulties in contextualizing and connecting ILV’s involvement in three NGO activities with its reconciliation process, the findings suggest not only the increasing presence and contribution of ILV at the community level but also the importance of the democratization of assessment which considers both aid facilitator and donor sides.