The Star. THURSDAY, MAY 22. 1919. THE STATUS OF KOREA.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 12636, 22 May 1919, Page 4

The Star. THURSDAY, MAY 22. 1919. THE STATUS OF KOREA.

Tho Korean delegation lias presented its pleas for independence to tho Peace Conference. It claims liberation from Japan and tire reconstruction of Korea, as ,an independent State, and declares that tho Treaty of Seoul in 1910 was dictated under circumstances of force, which vitiated its validity. The story of how Korea came under the control of Japan, and what Japan has done in the Hermit Kingdom since she entered into possession is not very pleasant reading for those who uphold national freedom. It must ,be particularly unpleasant to Britishers when they remember Britain’s alliance with Japan. Tho seizure of Korea by Japan was a brutal act of might over right, and though there have been conflicting reports as to tho nature of Japanese rule in tho country there is ample evidence to show that the Japanese were there for tho advantage of Japan, and were utterlynndifferent to the feelings of the native population. A Britisher residing in northern Korea quite recently supplied some Very enlightening particulars concerning Japanese methods and rule, and remarked: "The bondage ia so hard that insurrection must break out continually. Bitterness between the two' peoples is daily growing more pronounced. Passive revolution, if continued long, must develop into forceful resistance." For ten years Korea has suffered under the Japanese yoke, and during that period Koreans who quitted their country for foreign lands have kept up a constant agitation against Japanese occupation. Early in the present year a number of these men, seeing in the Peace Conference the opportunity to press Korea’s claims for independence, particularly in view of President Wilson's principle of selfdetermination, returned secretly to Korea and organised committees for establishing independence. It was from the work of these men that the recent revolution arose, together with the determination of the people to approach the Peace Conference with a plea for support to their claim for independence. The resident previously mentioned, in correspondence, referred to many of the injustices imposed upon tho Koreans. "Thera are vast Crown lands here," he said, "and during the Korean rule they were rented to Koreans, the rent going toward the expenses of the State- They are now being taken over as Government lands, but the sale or lease is almost always to Japanese. Koreans to a large extent have been denied the privilege of travelling to foreign countries;--. Where passports have been granted, they have been so tardily issued as to make it a matter of prohibition. The Japanese claim that the Koreans are .treated just the same as the Japanese, but Koreans are unable to study in the same schools ns .the Japanese. Koreans are discriminated against in all official business. A few important offices have been given to Koreans, but there is always a Japanese underling who has power to veto his chief’s acts- There is no representative council of State and no means whereby tho people can have aj voice in the Government. There is no way by which they can obtain a hearing from the Parliament in Tokio except through tho Governor-General, who reports everything from his own point of view. The country is ruled by tho most autocratic military government in the world. There is no appeal from its decisions. For the -smallest offences people are imprisoned for long terms, and in some cases are ruthlessly shot down. The very act of discussing an appeal has constituted treason. Hired spies listen to conversations and indiscreet expressions have caused many men toi.be sent to prison for years. The Japanese deny tho right of the Koreans to use their own language. On the one hand they have tried to assimilate the Korean people, while on the other they have not shown a ray of real love to draw the peoples together." There is a similarity between Japanese methods in Korea and German methods in Poland, AlsaceLorraine and Schleswig-Holstein. After all, this is not a matter for wonderment, considering that tho Japanese constitution is founded on that of Germany, and that Germany’s autocratic ideas have long been the admiration of the Japanese governing class.