In August 2022, 77 years had passed since the end of Japanese colonial rule over the Korean peninsula, but there remains a lack of resilience to make a new relationship between the countries.
Today, the Republic of Korea has achieved democratic reforms and economic development, and it is a member of the OECD, like Japan. On various occasions, Koreans have claimed damages from Japanese colonial rule, such as for forced labor or being forced to become “comfort women.” These claims are based on the assumption that Japan’s rule over Korea was illegal, because Japan forced the Korean Empire (1897–1910) to conclude treaties that led to its annexation. Since the 2000s, Japanese and Korean scholars have discussed whether these treaties were, in fact, illegal. Despite conferences and the unveiling of new documents that raise new points, they reject each other’s positions. Today, Japanese–Korean relations are delicate and lack mutual trust. It is difficult to discuss the treaties’ legitimacy, because the historical documents are not uniform. While Japan only sued to become a modern country that Westerners recognize, Korea not only sued to become a modern independent country, but also to be the successor to the Sino-centrism. Therefore, Japanese documents match Western documents, which are readable, but the Korean documents require a knowledge of Chinese history to understand them properly. This study aims to rethink the road to Japan’s annexation of Korea, focusing on the differences in the political cultures of Japan and the Korean Empire.

Authors:
Mayuko Mori, Tokyo Woman's Christian University, Japan

About the Presenter(s)
Dr. Mayuko Mori is an associate professor of School of Arts and Sciences, Tokyo Woman’s Christian University in Japan. Her research is mainly Korean Modern History from the viewpoints of Area Studies.

Additional website of interest
https://researchmap.jp/mayukomori?lang=en

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