Tag: Dokdo

It seems to me that Japanese geographers would not include Dokdo on their maps in the 1800’s because no one cared about two worthless rocks in the Sea of Japan at the time.  The two rocks only gained value in modern times when national borders and thus exclusive economic zones could be tied to them.  Using the logic this Korean researcher is using does he support Japan’s claim to the Kuril Islands based on this map?:

A scholar recently unveiled maps of a government-approved Japanese textbook which show that Japan did not perceive Dokdo as its territory in the 19th century.

The findings will give weight to Korea’s ownership of the islets off the country’s east coast, which Japan claims as its own, referring to them as Takeshima Islands.

Prof. Han Cheol-ho of Dongguk University’s history education department displayed maps of a geography textbook compiled by Okamura Matsutaro in 1886 in a presentation at a conference held at the Northeast Asian History Foundation’s Institute of Dokdo Research last week.

The textbook’s map of Asia does not mark Dokdo as its territory. On the map is a red line marking Japanese territory, but not only is Dokdo not included in the area inside the red line, Dokdo is not marked on the map at all.

The border lines are marked the same way in textbooks compiled by geologist Manziro Yamagami in 1902 and 1903.

“The textbook’s map of Asia has the Oki Islands marked, but not Ulleungdo and Dokdo,” Yonhap News Agency quoted Han as saying.

“If Japan perceived Dokdo as its territory it would have drawn the islets on the map and stretched the line to include Dokdo.”  [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest development on the Dokdo front:

An antique map from the 19th century depicting the Dokdo Islands as part of Korean territory has been discovered in Japan.

Nam Kwon-hee, a professor of library information science at Kyungpook National University, said he confirmed a Japanese collector has a hand-drawn map of “Daedongyeojido,” a Korean map made by cartographer and geologist Kim Jeong-ho in 1861 that marks Dokdo to the right of Ulleung Island in the East Sea, according to Yonhap News.

The research was co-conducted with Professor Kim Sung-soo of Cheongju University and professor emeritus Yukio Fujimoto of the University of Toyama in Japan.

The map was originally in the collection of the Pyongyang Provincial Library, but was smuggled out via an unknown route. The atlas has the library’s registration number and Aug. 30, 1932, marked as the date acquired.

Professor Nam estimates that the hand-drawn map including Dokdo was created between 1864 and 1889. The map supplements the woodblock book printed by Kim, which does not mark Dokdo.  [Korea Times]

You can read more at the link, but I look at this map and that does not look like Dokdo at all.  It makes more sense that the island to the right of Ulleongdo is actually Jukdo Island.  The island on the map looks like Jukdo and is located where Jukdo is near Ulleongdo.  Also back in the 1800’s no one would have cared about two insignificant rocks in the middle of the Sea of Japan to make them so big on a map like this.

It did not take long for President Moon to demonstrate his Dokdo cred:

President Moon Jae-in’s tie featuring Dokdo eared seals has become a huge hit and has sold out in major online malls.

Moon wore the tie during a meeting with the major party floor leaders on Friday.

The tie received further public attention the same day when it was caught on camera during a press conference where Moon announced Kim Yi-su as the new chief justice.

A designer company made the tie to celebrate Korea’s 112th anniversary of proclaiming sovereignty over the East Sea island in 2012.

The eared seal on the orange tie is a kind of sea lion that was commonly found on Dokdo in the 18th century. Japanese fishermen hunted the seals to extinction during Japan’s colonial rule of Korea.

The tie is priced at 55,000 won ($48).  [Korea Times]

Council members of South Korea’s Gyeonggi provincial government hold a rally to criticize “Takeshima Day” in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul on Feb. 22, 2017. The Shimane prefectural government enacted Takeshima Day on Feb. 22, 2005, and lays claim to South Korea’s easternmost Dokdo Islets, known as “Takeshima” in Japan. (Yonhap)

It looks like some Korean politicians needed a bump in the polls by making a Dokdo trip:

A group of South Korean lawmakers from the ruling and opposition parties visited their country’s easternmost islets of Dokdo on Monday as the nation celebrated the 71st anniversary of Korea’s liberation from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule.

The group of 10 lawmakers, led by Saenuri Party Rep. Na Kyung-won, said the trip was intended to reassert South Korea’s sovereignty of the islets and was an “inherent” part of their parliamentary activities.

It is the first such trip by South Korean lawmakers since Aug. 14, 2013, when another group of lawmakers traveled to the islets to counter Japan’s territorial claims to Dokdo.

“(I) hope that there will be more such visits in the future,” Na told Yonhap News Agency over the phone. “More attention and support (for Dokdo) on the part of the National Assembly is needed.”  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link, but I think the assemblyman is right that they need to do more to show their support for Dokdo.  First of all they should have taken picture of all them trying to eat a Japanese flag.  After that one of them should have chopped their finger off,  while another stuck a knife in their gut, followed by drinking weed killer.  Finally one of them should have covered themselves in bees while holding a sign declaring Dokdo as Korean territory.

That is how real defenders of Dokdo show their patriotism!  This group of National Assemblymen are just amateurs with much to learn.

We haven’t had any Dokdo nonsense in a while here on the ROK Drop so here is the latest issue on this front:

Lizzy from K-pop girl group After School has been facing criticism from Japanese netizens after posting several photos of Dokdo Island on Instagram.

The photos showed Lizzy holding the Korean flag and cheering for the Korean guards on the island off Korea’s east coast. In some photos she said: “Dokdo is a Korean territory.”

Japanese netizens responded with fury, with some attacking her personally. They said “Lizzy should not come to Japan, ever,” “Dokdo is Japanese territory,” “You are not very considerate of your Japanese fans” and “Your caption is very offensive to Japanese fans.”

But Korean fans embraced the singer, whose real name is Park Soo-young. They said “We are proud of you,” “Dokdo definitely belongs to Korea” and “You are a patriot! Don’t mind the malicious comments.” [Korea Times]

She must have sagging sales because it seems like these Dokdo promotional events by politicians and celebrities always seem to get them the spotlight they are looking for. I would have been more impressed if she would have ate a Japanese flag, chopped her finger off, stuck a knife her gut, drank weed killer, or covered herself in bees. That is how real defenders of Dokdo show their patriotism.

Here is the latest on the Dokdo front:

The Dokdo Foundation on Monday released four maps of Shimane Prefecture produced by Japan after the 1905 treaty that forcibly sealed Japan’s colonial occupation of Korea.

All four maps marked Oki Island, which is located 50 kilometers off the prefecture but not Dokdo.

Japan has claimed that it incorporated the Dokdo Islets into Shimane Prefecture with the prefectural notice of February 22, 1905.

The maps, however, prove that Dokdo was not marked on the maps of the prefecture even after the 1905 notice.

An official at the Dokdo Foundation said that maps showing Dokdo in the jurisdiction of the prefecture have yet to be found, not even in Japan.

Given that the maps were produced by the Japanese government, a leading newspaper and a publisher, the official suspects that the 1905 notice of Shimane Prefecture was never officially issued in Japan and must have been an instrument of propaganda to enhance its claims to Dokdo.   [KBS World Radio]

The yearly Takeshima Day nonsense has concluded with nothing much of interest occurring.  I miss the good old days of the Great Dokdo War.  I can still remember the hard days when those of us in Korea had to stock up on food and supplies to survive the initial declaration of war from President Roh.  We made it through multiple cease fires, close calls, and even the failure of the Daemado campaign.  Times had been so desperate that even talk about recruiting North Korea to fight off the evil Japanese Imperialists was announced.  Though the casualties on the Korean side have been heavy at times, through it all the brave defenders of Dokdo have continued thwart the massive Japanese armada descending on Dokdo.  We were also treated back then to such Korean patriots like Flag Eater Man, Chung Dong-young, the Finger Chopping Lady, the Knife in the Gut Man, Weed Killer Man, the Dokdo Riders, and most importantly that great general of all things Dokdo, Bee-Man.  Now all we have is this:

South Korea condemned Japan’s dispatch of a senior government official Monday to a local event aimed at publicizing its claim to Dokdo, a pair of outcroppings in the East Sea.

In a statement, the Foreign Ministry stressed that Dokdo is South Korea’s territory historically, geographically, and under international law.

It called on Japan to immediately stop such a territorial provocation and “humbly face up to its history” of aggression and imperialism.

The ministry called in Hideo Suzuki, a minister at the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, to deliver a message of protest. Lee Sang-deok, director-general handling Northeast Asian affairs at the ministry, had a closed-door meeting with Suzuki.

Earlier in the day, the Shinzo Abe administration sent Yasuyuki Sakai, parliamentary vice minister of the Cabinet Office, to the controversial yearly event hosted by the Shimane Prefecture.

In 2005, the western prefecture, which claims administrative sovereignty over the islets, designated Feb. 22 as “Takeshima Day.” Takeshima is the Japanese name for Dokdo.  [Yonhap]

You can read more at the link.

The photo dated 1966 shows then home minister, Uhm Min-young, awarding guards of Dokdo, South Korea’s eastern islets. Despite South Korea effectively controlling Dokdo, Japan repeatedly claims the outcroppings as its territory. The National Archives of Korea on Nov. 11, 2015 released a series of old photos to show South Korea’s past 70 years. (Yonhap)

Members of an amateur swimming association jump into the sea at a port in the southeastern port city of Ulsan on July 20, 2015. The 88 swimmers plan to swim about 400 kilometers to reach South Korea’s easternmost islets of Dokdo on July 25, as part of festivities to mark the 70th anniversary on Aug. 15 of Korea’s liberation from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule. (Yonhap)