INTERVIEW/ Park Yu-ha: Past 150 years was an era of raw human greed

The following are excerpts from an interview with Park Yu-ha, an associate professor at Sejong University in Seoul, about the 10 biggest incidents in modern and contemporary history in East Asia. This interview is part of a series to complement the "Impact of History--150 Years in East Asia."

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I chose the following incidents:

1. The First Sino-Japanese War (1894-1895) and colonization of Taiwan

2. The Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905) and colonization of Korea (1910-1945)

3. Expansion of Japanese power in China and the Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945)

4. Japan's democratization and renouncement of war after the end of the Asia-Pacific War in 1945

5. Postwar "limitations" and conflict over interpretations of history between Japan and China and Japan and South Korea

These incidents are in random order:

・The assassinations of former Japanese Prime Minister Hirobumi Ito in 1909 and Korea's Queen Min in 1895

・The Nanking Massacre in 1937

・The Asia-Pacific War and Japan's defeat in 1945

・The founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949 and emergence of postwar Taiwan

・The division of the Korean Peninsula and the Korean War (1950-1953), including the Cheju Uprising of April 3, 1948

Why do we study history? So that we can understand the "present structure" of the times in which we are living. The 10 incidents I have chosen here are important for our understanding of the East Asian structure, which was largely defined by wars, colonialism and the Cold War.

Modern history is about imperialism and raw human greed. Cloaking this greed was the institutionalization of violence in the forms of discrimination and domination. Advances in modern transportation facilitated encounters with total strangers. Politics and money drove people to action and brought about new encounters, which in turn generated conflict.

The First Sino-Japanese War, which I put at the top of my list, was the first war in which modern Japan's imperialistic greed manifested itself and led to the colonization of Taiwan. The same greed was also behind Tokyo's domination of the Ryukyu islands and Hokkaido.

The Russo-Japanese War, the second item on my list, was a war to subjugate Korea. Korea became a Japanese colony as a result.

These two wars were accompanied by the emigration of Japanese citizens to the Asian mainland. These people headed for the continent with imperialist ambitions--cloaked by a slogan of "regional development."

However, we must also bear in mind that many of these people emigrated out of necessity. They had no future in their own country. In short, they had been effectively abandoned by the Japanese government.

The expansion of Japan's power in China and the ensuing Second Sino-Japanese War, which I listed third on my list, happened because Japan could not remain satisfied with control of Taiwan and Korea. Japan became ambitious to dominate China, too, and Japan claimed its own security was being threatened by China.

Next, I included "Japan's democratization and renunciation of war upon its defeat in the Asia-Pacific War" in my list because I want today's younger Japanese to really appreciate the fact that their country has somehow managed to uphold and protect its postwar ideal to this day.

At the same time, I must also point out Japanese people's insufficient understanding of their own recent past.

This has some connection with my fifth list. While reminding themselves of their postwar ideal, I also want the Japanese people to think about their country's insufficient awareness of its own responsibility for the war and the colonial policy. I believe this has partly to do with the fact that the Tokyo war crimes tribunal did not pursue Japan's responsibility for what it did to its colonies.

By "conflicts over history," I mean controversial issues in modern to contemporary history that have affected Japan, China and Korea--the Yasukuni issue, the so-called comfort woman issue and so on. One of the reasons for these conflicts is that each country has taught its young people only what puts itself in a favorable light. But I also want the Japanese people to think about these conflicts in the context of their country's postwar "limitations."

Of the incidents and developments I did not list in any numerical order, the assassinations of Hirobumi Ito and Queen Min of Korea in 1909 and 1895, respectively, are incidents no Japanese should plead ignorance of when discussing history with Koreans. The same goes for the Nanking Massacre, and I stress this especially to younger Japanese. As East Asians, all young Japanese ought to know things that are common knowledge in their neighboring countries.

The Asia-Pacific War is generally understood as Japan's war with the United States, but it is important to bear in mind that the background of this war was Japan's colonial domination of, and war with, its Asian neighbors. Focusing only on Japan's defeat results in Japan being seen as nothing but a victim.

Taiwan is said to be more pro-Japan than South Korea, but that is only an outcome of Taiwan's need to confront communism in China. Out of fear of becoming incorporated into mainland China, Taiwan had to maintain a positive image of colonial-era Japan.

As for the division of the Korean Peninsula leading up to the Korean War, the division was not just an internal issue. It was also a result of Japan's colonization of the peninsula. The Korean War was something of a surrogate war for superpowers the United States and the Soviet Union, who both interfered in Korean affairs. This war needs to be understood as an incident that deeply affected the Cold War structure that came after.

The Cheju uprising, which began on April 3, 1948, and was suppressed by the South Korean army, ought to be seen as a prelude to the Korean War. Many people fled the island and settled in Japan.

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Park Yu-ha, an associate professor at Sejong University, was born in 1957. She studied modern Japanese literature at Keio University and Waseda University Graduate School. Her book "Wakai no Tameni" (For reconciliation) published by Heibonsha Ltd. Publishers urges Japan and South Korea to adopt mutual tolerance and self-restraint. It won the 2007 Osaragi Jiro Prize for Commentary.(IHT/Asahi: March 10,2008)