The Korean War and Koreans in Japan: An Actor Analysis

Abstract

This study aims to investigate the following three questions: (1) how did the Koreans and the Korean organizations in Japan react to the Korean War, and what were their positions to the conflict?; (2) how did the South Korean government, the General Headquarters (GHQ), the Japanese government and the Japanese Communist Party respond to the Korean organizations in Japan, and what were their political goals vis-a-vis the organizations?; and (3) what were the impacts of the Korean War on the Korean residents in Japan? When the Korean War broke out, the activities of right-wing Mindan were stagnant, and the left-wing camp was yet to form an alternative organization since the dissolution of Jo-ryeon. While the officials of these organizations were showing a wide variety of reactions to the conflict that broke out on their homeland, the Mindan supported the capitalist South while the former officials of Joryeon actively supported the communist North. The fratricidal war instilled deep division and mutual hatred not only in the Korean Peninsula, but also among the Koreans in Japan. Until now, many of Korean population in Japan do not interact with each other without lingering animosities even though no borders are dividing them. The Korean Government, the GHQ, the Japanese government, and the Japanese Communist Party prioritized their own political interests over the rights and welfare of Korean residents in Japan. In order to advance their political agendas, various actors interfered with the Korean organizations and mobilized the Korean residents to their respective advantage. In order to control the Korean population, they installed various surveillance systems which violated the ethnic minority’s human rights. The devastating legacies of that era continue even today. Most of the control and surveillance systems invented by the GHQ and Japanese government more than 60 decades ago are still in operation which further violates the political, economic, and citizenship rights of Korean residents of Japan.