The 35 years of Japanese colonization of Korea between 1910 to 1945 reveals two polarizing perspectives on Korea’s colonial history. While the Japanese government insists that Japan established the backbone of Korea’s economic foundations, the Korean government holds that the colonial era was a national humiliation.

When we take into account the Japanese government’s intention to exploit Korea’s economy in order to develop their own economy, the unintended benefits that had resulted from the colonial period cannot be considered a huge gain for Korea. Although the Japanese government during the colonial times may have contributed to Korea’s economic growth by reforming and opening up the conservative Korean society, it was none other than Japan themselves who had benefited the most from this time period. Most of all, these small gains should not be used to justify Japan’s invasion of Korea and to offset all the pain, agony, and sufferings that the Korean civilians had to live through during the colonial period.

There has been an endless debate about whether Korea should accept the unintentional economic development as a positive outcome of the colonial period. The Japanese government or the supporters of Japan argue that the Japanese colonization of Korea not only built an effective foundation for Korea’s economy but also expanded the Korean education system.

According to the book “Korea’s Twentieth-Century Odyssey: A Short History,” Robinson states that “the Japanese invested millions of yen in the bricks and mortar of colonial rule. Cumulatively the government buildings, shrines, railroads, motor roads, power and telephone lines, hydroelectric dams, barrages, and irrigation works transformed Korea’s visual geography.” Moreover, in regards to Korea’s educational progress, only 3.7 percent of eligible children had been allowed to attend primary school in 1919, but this rate increased to about 40 percent by 1944. Considering the economic growth and increased educational rates among Korean children that followed the colonial period, it seems plausible that Korea has had some benefits that had resulted from the Japanese colonization.

Yet, Japans’ intentions behind civilizing Korea was a perfect pretext for their invasion and plunder of Korea. Robinson states that “the [Japanese government]’s initial economic policy focused on under-developing Korea, that is, restricting investment to raw materials extraction and increasing rice production for the Japanese market.” In essence, the Japanese government’s main intention seems to have been authority over the Korean economy rather than contribution to Korea’s economic growth. In fact, Japan intended to undermine Korea’s domestic economy by enforcing restrictions over the movement and consumption of goods produced in Korea. Robinson asserts that although the price and needs of Korean goods had risen due to the local product consumption campaigns, such development eventually declined and halted due to Japan’s political and economic manipulation. Those in support of the Japanese government failed to consider the original motive behind the Japanese government’s economic decisions during the colonization period.

The debate over whether Korea benefited from Japanese colonization also discusses the expansion of educational opportunities in Korea. Even though the school attendance rate of children had increased and women were allowed to attend school, Japan still heavily monitored and regulated the Korean educational curriculum.

As Robinson also mentioned in his book, “education was a prime means of social and cultural control,” and “the Korean school’s avowed purpose was to create good and loyal subjects of the [Japanese] Emperor.” Because Japan had the control over what the children were being taught, it was easy for them to censor information that the students would learn. This, then, could be utilized to stamp out the Korean students’ patriotic spirit and to place further pressure on the Korean society. Japan did not provide education for Korea with the intention to simply educate the people and to provide new opportunities; rather, their main purpose was to annihilate Korean culture and spirit.

If we were to straightforwardly measure whether Korea has had any benefits from the Japanese colonization, we could concede to the Japanese government’s adamant assertion to a certain degree.

However, the motive of the Japanese government was only to make Japan more affluent and powerful while looting resources and suppressing Korea’s rights in the peninsula. And because of these true intentions, ultimately it was Japan who gained that affluence and power through violence and oppression, and any unintentional benefits that Korea had from this is incomparable to the 35 years of deep anguish that Korea had to live through. Therefore, the Japanese colonization period still remains a deeply detrimental segment to Korea’s history, and any unintentional benefits from this time should never be praised and accepted.

<Soyoung Jung Columbia University>