The Japanese Colonial Legacy in Korea 1910-1945

There are various views on Japanese colonial administration in Korea in 1910-1945. Most Koreans believe, "Because of Japan, Korean modernization was delayed", "Under the Japanese, many Koreans were tortured and forced into labor", or "Koreans were brainwashed and we had to change our names to Japanese names"… Many Koreans label the Japanese colonial period as the cruelest, most atrocious, and the darkest period in Korean history. But is this so? 

George Akita (Emeritus Professor at the University of Hawaii) and Brandon Palmer (Adjunct Professor at Coastal Carolina University) have researched into the issue and published Japan in Korea: Japan’s Fair and Moderate Colonial Policy (1910-1945) and Its Legacy onSouth Korea’s Developmental Miracle (Tokyo: Soshi-sha, 2013). I introduce some points from the book below.

(The English version, The Japanese Colonial Legacy in Korea, 1910-1945, will be available on amazon.com on October 30 this year.)

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Colonial policy of Japan (p.61-66, Akita & Palmer, 2013)

First of all, the basic colonial policy strongly held by the leaders of the Japanese government since the Meiji era (1868-1912) was first presented by Yamagata Aritomo, which was inherited by following leaders. Although Yamagata’s policy was originally concerned with Ryukyu, which became Okinawa in 1897, this progressive and moderate policy was later applied to Taiwan and Korea.

The principle was, first, reflecting on the reality of the fierce territorial fight among the great powers in the 19^th century, to defend Japan from foreign invasion. This corresponds to the belief of the Western leaders that, for the purpose of security and safety, their own nation and areas under their administration must be defended at all cost.

The second principle was sound economy: Yamagata believed that vibrant, productive economy was closely related to making the newly acquired territory function as Japan’s stronghold (policy of increasing wealth and military power). He further pointed out that economic power of a nation / territory depends on whether it can rely on production of goods utilizing the geographic features characteristic of the nation / territory. And he emphasized that sales of such goods should benefit both Japan and the newly acquired territory, which shows that the Japanese colonial policy was based on the principle of reciprocity. 

The policy of reciprocity was expected to additionally provide the native people with strong motivation of defending their own land and Japan, but when the native people have no tradition of military or have little sense of patriotism, this expectation would fail. The solution was to provide Japanese education; and here, Yamagata still emphasized the importance of moderation in education, as in conscription of soldiers. Yamagata’s stance was gradualism, which became the basic stance of the Meiji government regarding reform and colonial administration. The Japanese government decided not to take a radical approach for reforming its colonies. 

Education in Korea (p.174-182, Akita & Palmer, 2013)

Looking at modern education, the policy of the government of the native Yi Dynasty did not move forward. In the traditional Korean society, “Yangban” (両班), males of the patrimonially privileged class, went to Seodang (書堂), small private school, but its education was based on Confucianism and was not fit for the modern era. According to Professor Michael J. Seth at James Madison University, Virginia, in 1904, “school education was limited in the capital Seoul, which only had 7-8 primary schools”, and out of the population of 12 million in Korea, only 500 students attended modern public schools. 

However, the number of students attending public primary schools in Korea was 20,200 in 1910 when Japanese administration officially started, and increased 45-times to 911,209 in 1937. At the same time, the total number of students at all schools, excluding those at private Confucius schools, totaled 110,800 in 1910, and increased 11-times to 1,214,000 in 1937. Moreover, one fourth of the total students were female. 

These numbers show astonishing progress; yet, even with such progress, only one third of the children who reached the school age could attend school. In the middle of the Greater East Asia War / WWII, the Japanese administration had planned to introduce compulsory education system in Korea in 1946. In 1939, the number of students at colleges and teacher’s schools was 6,313, and in addition, 206 students attended Keijo Imperial University, the only university established in 1925 in Seoul (predecessor of Seoul University). Furthermore, several thousand Korean students attended schools in Japan. 

Education in Western colonies (p.174-182, Akita & Palmer, 2013)

When comparing with other colonies of the West, it can be easily seen that the educational achievement in Korea under Japanese administration belonged to the best category. Even though only one third of the children who reached the school age could attend school in Japanese-administered Korea, in Cambodia under French administration, in 1944, “less than one fifth of the male children who reached the school age could go to school”, and the percentage of female pupils was much lower than that in Korea. In Cambodia, there was no university, and by 1953, Cambodians with university diploma totaled only 144. Considering the fact that France had colonized Cambodia since 1863, we can only say that French took education for Cambodians lightly. 

In Vietnam under French administration, only one in ten children of school age could benefit from modern education. Children of colonizers and native people went to different schools, and schools for Vietnamese were of poorer quality than those for French. In Korea under Japanese administration, initially, the schools for Japanese and Koreans were separate due to significant difference in academic ability; yet, as Koreans increased their ability, the number of co-eds increased. At the time of 1945, the literacy rate of Koreans was slightly less than 50%. Though it was lower than the literacy rate of the Philippines under the US administration, which was over 50%, the literacy rate for Indonesia at the end of the colonial period was only 8%, and 10% in French Indochina.

Furthermore, looking at colonized Africa as one continent, the literacy rate was 15-20%. Portugal colonized Angola, Guinea, and Mozambique for over 500 years, yet there was no native doctor in Mozambique, and the average life expectancy in eastern Angola fell short of 30 years. In Congo under Belgian administration, the value of native human resources was neglected, and Belgians only focused on exploitation of local wealth. Belgians had the policy of not creating native elite groups, and neglected mid-level and university education, and as a result, at the time of Congo’s independence in 1960, the native degree holders was less than 20 out of the population of 13 million.

Japanese Investment for Korea (p.182-186, Akita & Palmer, 2013)

The Chosen Government-General, or the Japanese administration in Korea, was in constant lack of funding, and debts kept increasing; however, for development of Korea, it made huge investments on railways, industrial and agricultural development as well as on educational system, health system, police, judicial system, etc. The financial source of the Government-General was mainly borrowing, and in 1941, the debts reached over 1 billion yen. 

For 10 years between 1929 and 1938, the number of businesses in the modern industry increased from 484 to 1,203, with over 230,000 laborers. Including the industry, agricultural industry, manufacturing, and construction, 2.1 million Koreans were employed in 1938 in one or the other modern industry sector. Needless to say, the quality of life for Koreans had dramatically improved compared to that in the pre-colonization period. 

In India under British administration, for 5 years between 1874 and 1879, estimated 4 million Indians were starved to death; whereas in Korea under Japanese administration between 1905 and 1945, not one famine had occurred. 

Research by Hildi Kang – What Koreans experienced under Japanese (p.91-98, Akita & Palmer, 2013)

Hildi Kang, a white American woman married to a Korean-American, interviewed a total of 51 elderly Koreans who had lived through Japanese colonial rule before eventually moving to the United States. Ms. Kang put together details of these interviews in her book, Under the Black Umbrella: Voices from Colonial Korea, 1910-1945 (Cornell University Press; 2005). Some of the interviewees included those who were put into jail, persecuted, or discriminated against in promotion by Japanese, and thus were expected to tell the stories of suffering. 

While Ms. Kang admitted that there was a limit to use the small sample of 51 interviewees as the primary source, and that recollection of the interviewees could be accompanied by misconception or vagueness due to loss of memory, she let the interviewees tell freely their memories of the lives under the Japanese administration, without asking her prepared questions.

As the interviews continued, Ms. Kang observed that the family members of the interviewees smiled and chuckled when listening to the stories of their fathers. She then realized that the experiences that the interviewees told with a sense of nostalgia all happened “under the bitter era of Japanese administration”. Then she asked herself: “Why can’t I hear the stories of Japanese act of atrocity that I expected?”

The interviewees saw, in the Japanese-ruled Korea, complication, shadow, contradiction, as well as normality; and at times, they even accepted favorably Japanese people in general, including the police. The interviewees started their stories by saying, “I experienced nothing harsh…”. There were many who said, “Not much of bad things happened”, 

“I have not experienced anything hard”, 

“Most Koreans adapted to Japanese rules”. 

This means that quite a number of Koreans “lived normal lives”.

Furthermore, three elderly interviewees all mentioned, 

“we could live our lives more or less based on our own choice”. 

Another interviewee described the time of 3.1 movement when a significant number of Korean demonstrators clashed with the Japanese police and army. The police started to arrest the demonstrators, but “the police chief spoke politely” especially to the elderly, and “loosened the rope and allowed us to go home”. He further continued that “the most kind was the police”. 

Another interviewee told Ms. Kang that his father received higher education than that of Japanese leaders, thus, “the Japanese police chief who was the highest authority in town always bowed his head deeply whenever he met my father”.

Another said, “I have no memory of having been harassed by the Japanese police or government officer”. 

Ms. Kang’s research shows that the Koreans who lived under Japanese rules themselves deny “the worst colony in the history”. 

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From the objective facts as well as the hearings from the Koreans who lived the time, we can see that the Japanese administration in Korea was basically fair, and that, even with huge debts, Japan dramatically developed Korea which had been suffering from the misrule of the native Yi Dynasty government. 

The Koreans who never cease to believe that Japan did the worst things to Korea should accept these facts in a matter-of-fact manner. 

How did Japan decide Korean annexation in what kind of the world? 

What was the situations in Korea before having been annexed by Japan? 

What was happening in other colonies around the world? 

By answering these questions, one can start to see the real picture of the Japanese-administered Korea. Koreans must have the courage to “know”. Emotional anti-Japan theory only increases hatred and leads their own country to a wrong direction. Japanese should also realize this, and should have enough knowledge and courage to raise voice to correct misunderstanding. Then, only then, we can start cooperating for the respective future.

If you want to have the objective knowledge on the issue, I strongly recommend you to read Japanese Colonial Legacy in Korea, 1910-1945 by George Akita and Brandon Palmer, available on amazon.com on Oct 30, 2014.

Japanese and Koreans: we fought together in the war

I received the following comment on the previous posting "Japanese war crimes: I'm sorry? by Adrian Salbuchi" (thanks a lot for commenting). I felt that it was again somehow based on the common misunderstanding on "what Japan did to Korea", to which I wanted to clarify a few issues in response. I of course cannot comment anything on individual experiences, but would like to describe the overall picture.

Comment received: 

"To rest of the world, those in shrine are war criminals because Japan lost the World War II. But to many Koreans, they are war criminals because they killed their own grand parents, destroyed life of many and tried to deny existence of Koreans by destroying their cultural and historical elements. Talk to any Koreans if you know any. Ask them if they think they have won World War II against Japan. I can assure you none of them will say yes. To Koreans, it is not about whether they have won the war or not. I have Korean grandmother who passed away last year at age 98. I remember hearing from her about what Japanese did to Koreans. To many Koreans, what Abe Shinzo did is equivalent of Angela Merkel putting flowers in Adolf Hitler's grave. Regardless of how many times the apologies were given in the past, it's going to hurt many Koreans and the reaction of Koreans are only natural."

Japanese and Koreans fought together against the allies in the WWII, because Korea had been annexed by Japan since 1910 and Koreans were treated as Japanese. Unlike the West who only exploited people and resources in their colonies, Japan developed Korea and improved the welfare of people dramatically. These advancements occurred in all spheres including education, health, economy, safety, judicial system, infrastructure and local administration, benefits of which were enjoyed by Koreans both in urban and rural areas. Keijo (Seoul) became more modern than Tokyo, which itself is an incredible fact. Up to the annexation, due to the misrule of the Yi Dynasty, general people in Korea were extremely poor, subject to exploitation and mistreatment in the authoritarian system, with no proper basic services. This is clearly documented by a British scholar Alleyne Ireland, the then authority on colonial administration, who analyzed the Japanese administration in Korea and published “The New Korea” in 1926 after 3 years of field research (available at Amazon.co.jp).

You mention that Japanese destroyed Korean culture, but it was the Yi Dynasty who destroyed the good of Korea and made Korean people suffer. Alleyne writes as follows:

“I met many Japanese who were eager to enlarge upon the admirable features of the early Korean culture and to express their appreciation of the contribution which Koreans had made to the art, religion, and philosophy of Japan itself, in the centuries preceding the accession of the Yi Dynasty, which after more than five hundred years of misrule had reduced the Korean people to a cultural and economic condition deplorable in the extreme, and which came to an end when Japan annexed the country in 1910” (p.72-73).

You should also know that Koreans wanted to fight together with Japanese against the allies during the WWII. Some Koreans played active part in the Japanese army as senior military officers, such as 洪思翊, 金錫源, and 朴正熙 (Park Chung-hee, subsequent President of Korea and the father of the current Korean President Park Geun-hye 朴槿惠). Stimulated by their bravery and success, over 300,000 young Koreans voluntarily responded to the call for voluntary services with the Japanese army in 1943, which only had 6,300 seats. Several hundreds of them wrote their plea in their blood, which surprised the Government-General of Japan in Seoul. This fact proves that Japanese administration in Korea was going extremely well and it gained trust of Koreans. Korean soldiers who fought along with the Japanese army totaled 240,000, out of which 21,000 died on the battleground and are enshrined at Yasukuni. Japanese soldiers who died in the WWII were 2,300,000 in total.

Unfortunately, none of these facts are taught in Korea due to extreme anti-Japanese education that it has been promoting for the past decades. This only creates hatred among Koreans, makes them blind, depriving them of facing their own history. Koreans should realize that Japanese Prime Minister visiting  Yasukuni has nothing to hurt their feelings. Japanese and Koreans stood up and fought together to defend the united countries from the dominant White supremacy back then. It was a difficult choice for Korea, but all things considered, the annexation played a critical role in the history of Korea and its people for better.

Truth Uncovered: THE NEW KOREA - When Korea Became Dramatically Prosperous

"THE NEW KOREA: 朝鮮が劇的に豊かになった時代 (When Korea Became Dramatically Prosperous)" has been recently published in Japan by Sakuranohana Publications Inc.

The New Korea by Alleyne Ireland  [700 pages in English and Japanese]

The book was originally written by British Scholar Alleyne Ireland in 1926 to examine, with the vast amount of data, the Japanese administration in Korea (Chosen) in the early 20th century (note: Korea became the protectorate of Japan after the Japanese-Russo war in 1905, then it was annexed by Japan in 1910 till 1945). 

Alleyne was a leading authority on colonial administration and was appointed the head commissioner by the University of Chicago to study colonial administration in the Far East, and spent three years in the region studying the British, French, Dutch and Japanese systems. The book covers ranges of issues from the reform of the central and local governments, justice and police system, to development of economy, education, health and sanitation. (I found parts of English text introduced in the Korean blog).

The newly published book include the original English text and the Japanese translation, as well as supplementary chapters on the history of Korea and many photos of then Korea before and after the annexation, and appendixes. 

We often hear from Koreans that "Japan invaded and destroyed us, and committed so much atrocities", but reading the book, you immediately see that that is not true. In fact, the very opposite.

In the preface, Alleyne says the cause of centuries of Korean suffering was due to the Korean dynasty:

"It is true that at the time Japan annexed Korea in 1910, the actual conditions of life in the Peninsula were extremely bad. This was not due, however, to any lack of inherent intelligence and ability in the Korean race, but to the stupidity and corruption which for five hundred years had, almost continuously, characterized the government of the Korean dynasty, and to the existence during that period of a royal court which maintained throughout Korea a system of licensed cruelty and corruption."

"Such was the misrule under which the Koreans had suffered for generation after generation that all incentive to industry, thrift, and social progress had been destroyed, because none of the common people had been allowed to enjoy the fruits of their own efforts." 

Left - Front view of Seoul Namdaemun, 1892. Even Namdaemun, the symbol of the capital,
had an aura of dilapidation; Right - Japanese administration completely changed the Namdaemun area by constructing roads, running trams, and building many tall buildings.

In the chapter on economic development, Alleyne praises the revolutionary progress that Japan brought to Korea:

"The Japanese administration in Korea has done more to advance the interests of Korea than any other government has done to advance the interests of any country in the world... That Korean agricultural exports should have increased in little more than a decade by more than a thousand per cent; industrial exports by more than three thousand per cent, fishery exports by nearly three thousand per cent...would, if Korea were a self-governing country instead of a Japanese colonial dependency, be hailed throughout the Western world as an astounding example of national progress."

Alleyne recognizes many of the then Japanese administrators in Korea as kind and sincerely wanting to bring about development for the good of Korean people:

"... the credit is due chiefly to the humane and conciliatory attitude of Governor-General Saito toward the Korean people, and to the wise measures which, for more than six years, have been the fruit of an unstinting employment of his unusual energy and of his still more unusual administrative talents."

"... Vice-Governor-General Ariyoshi, one of Japan's most expert and highly regarded civil administrators, a man whom, from my own observation, I know to be a tireless worker and sympathetic toward the Korean people."

Furthermore, Alleyne calls the Resident-General Ito Hirobumi "a sincere friend and well-wisher of Korea".  The Resident-General Ito was assassinated by a Korean nationalist An Jung-geun (安重根) in 1909, who is today praised by Koreans as a national hero (you might have seen his face on the enlarged banner held up by Koreans at a soccer game - texas daddy explains.)

Prince Ito Hirobumi, the First Resident-General of Korea and the first Prime Minister of Japan (center), wearing the traditional Korean attire Hanbok, and his wife (front row, second left). Hoping for Korea's independence, Prince Ito respected Korean culture and tried to blend in with the Korean society. He was assassinated by a Korean nationalist.

Then Alleyne says that Korean sentiment was getting less anti-Japanese, recognizing the prosperity that Japan brought to Koreans:

"Discussing Korean affairs with a good many people - Korean, Japanese, and foreign, official and non-official - I found almost unanimous agreement on two points: one, that native sentiment had, in recent years, shown a continuing tendency to become less anti-Japanese; the other, that the remarkable increase in the country's prosperity had been accompanied by a striking improvement in the living conditions of the Korean people at large."

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It is highly unfortunate that none of these is taught in Korea today. Instead, Korea has turned into the most anti-Japan country in the world, firmly believing that they are the victims of cruelty and misrule by the Japanese government, due to decades of the country's anti-Japan education policy. However, this is not so.

In the concluding remarks, the Sakuranohana Publications Inc. states as follows:

"...Koreans and Japanese are neighbors. It is necessary to get along with each other. To do so, the Koreans must first gain the courage and confidence to directly confront their own history. The information that Alleyne Ireland wrote down in his book is historical truth. An Englishman, and an expert of public administration, no less, has analyzed and recorded that Korea modernized due to Japan and that the Korean people became much more well-off due to the annexation. It is time for Koreans to calm down and stop their unwarranted accusations. As Korea has become a praiseworthy nation, its people should begin to tolerate Japan, no matter how much unacceptable the country at first seem."

"Such is how a mature country would act. At least, that the 'unacceptable' Japan brought the once destitute Korea out of poverty and improved it to the great country it is today is a historical fact acknowledged by historians and experts of public administration the world over. By realizing the reality of the history of Korea and Japan, both parties can acknowledge, respect, and develop together, hand in hand. It is time people of both countries choose the path of cooperation."

"To the people in Korea, we hope that you will be willing to lend an ear to the historical records and analyses of an Englishman with a perspective of an unbiased outsider. The Japanese must understand history as well, and instead of irresponsibly showing pity and apologizing with a facade of righteousness, must learn and reveal the truth of their country's past." 

Japan's Contribution to Korea

When you hear the word “colonization”, of course, it is bad, you’d say. You’d associate it with exploitation of local people and resources to the benefit of the colonizer. Even killings, as in the infamous case of Belgian-colonized Congo where one fifth of the population died under the colonizer. Then the loss of dignity – every nation should enjoy its sovereign autonomy.

However, not all colonizers had the same objectives nor did the same things.

Alleyne Ireland, a British administrative scholar, examined Japanese colonial administration in Korea, and published a book titled "The New Korea", in 1926. (Japan annexed Korea in 1910 not to allow Russian invasion, and governed the country until 1945. Korea had been a dependency of China over 500 years up to 1897 when Japan defeated China in the Japanese-Sino war and demanded its independence).

In his 300-page book, covering all aspects from government structures and judicial system, to education, health and economic development, Alleyne describes in detail how Japan transformed Korea, and says as follows:

“Whether or not Korea has on the whole been well governed can be determined only from a study of the available data. From such a study, which has occupied me for more than three years, … I have formed the opinion that Korea is today infinitely better governed than it ever was under its own native rulers, that it is better governed than most self-governing countries, that it is as well governed as any of the British, American, French, Dutch, and Portuguese dependencies which I have visited, and is better governed than most of them, having in view as well the cultural and economic development of the people as the technique of administration.” (p.17)

He also describes the situations in Korea before the Japanese annexation:

“It is true that at the time Japan annexed Korea, in 1910, the actual conditions of life in the Peninsula were extremely bad. This was not due, however, to any lack of inherent intelligence and ability in the Korean race, but to the stupidity and corruption which for five hundred years had, almost continuously, characterized the government of the Korean dynasty, and to the existence during that period of a royal court which maintained throughout Korea a system of licensed cruelty and corruption.

Such was the misrule under which the Koreans had suffered for generation after generation that all incentive to industry, thrift, and social progress had been destroyed, because none of the common people had been allowed to enjoy the fruits of their own efforts.” (p.vi)

Alleyne’s book clearly gives an objective and accurate view on the issue: One, he was British, and two, he lived in the time when it happened and saw it with his own eyes.

Most Hated Country - Japan

Guess which country is the most hated in the Top Tens' list of most hated country ? -- Japan

Guess which country voted the most for the list? -- South Korea (64%)

According to the admin of The Top Tens, the votes for the list are from the following countries:
1) South Korea: 64.00%
2) Japan: 28.30%
3) United States: 3.66%
4) Canada: 0.51%
5) China: 0.48%
6) Australia: 0.44%
7) United Kingdom: 0.27%
8) Philippines: 0.19%
9) Unknown: 0.15%
10) New Zealand: 0.13%

What does this tell you?

It's not the world's top ten, but it's Korea's top ten list !

It also tells you how anti-Japan propaganda is spread in Korea.

This kind of emotional reaction is harmful in general, but especially so when it's politically used, which has been the case for years. And it is based on Korea's biased view on the history.
Sadly, decades of anti-Japan education by South Korea has spread in the country to the extent that the majority doesn't even know their own history.

For such a long time in the history, Korea was often a vassal state of China, paying annual tribute to and getting protection from China when needed. Yet when the western countries came to colonize the last few remaining un-colonized countries in Asia, namely Japan, Korea and China in the late 19th century, Korea was not modernized enough to be able to fight against the West. Seeing the threat of Western colonization, Japan did its best to modernize itself, and tried to convince Korea to do the same. Yet, looking up at China, down on Japan, Korea did not take the path of modernization.

When Donghak Peasant Revolution happened in 1894, China, regarding Korea as its tributary nation, intervened militarily, and Japan also sent army, which led to Japanese-Sino War. The aim of Japan was to maintain Korea’s independence, and the first thing Japan demanded to China after winning the war was Korea’s autonomy, which it gained. However, the situation of Korea remained vulnerable, and with the end of Japanese-Russo war, the Empire of Korea became a protectorate of Japan in 1905. In 1910, with the strong support of Korea’s major party “Il-Ching Fe”and of over one million Korean people, Korea was annexed by Japan. Roosevelt publicly stated “Korean Peninsula is Japanese”, and British also said “We’ve wanted annexation”.  At that time, no major countries was against the annexation. British newspaper used the term annexation, not colonization.

Japan took the assimilation policy which aimed at bringing up the living standard and culture of Korea to the level of Japan, and this contrasted sharply with the western colonization policy which only pursued its own benefits. Japan prioritized the improvement of the infrastructure of Korea, and invested hugely, even having deficit balance.

Alleyne Ireland, a British administrative scholar, published a book called "The New Korea" in 1926, describing the policies and measures taken by the Japanese occupational government in Korea at the time of annexation between 1910-1945. In his 300-page book, Ireland described that Japanese administration in Korea ensured education for all Koreans, dramatically improved public health eradicating epidemics, and brought about significant economic development.

Ireland wrote: "The Japanese administration in Korea has done more to advance the interests of Korea than any other government has done to advance the interests of any country in the world within the period... That Korean agricultural exports should have increased in little more than a decade by more than 1,000%, industrial exports by more than 3,000%, fishery exports by nearly 3,000%..... would, if Korea were a self-governing country instead of a Japanese colonial dependency, be hailed throughout the Western world as an astounding example of national progress" (page 288).  

  

I suspect none of the above is known in Korea, since the only thing they learn is “Japan was evil and did horrible things to Korea”, and the voice of Koreans who lived during those periods is silenced.