- March 1st Movement
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March 1st Movement Official name March 1st Movement
Samil MovementAlso called Manse Demonstrations Observed by South Koreans Type National Significance Marks one of the first public displays of Korean resistance during the Japanese occupation of Korea Date March 1 March 1st Movement Hangul 삼일 운동 Hanja 三一運動 Revised Romanization Samil Undong McCune–Reischauer Samil Undong The March 1st Movement, or Samil Movement, was one of the earliest public displays of Korean resistance during the occupation of the Korean Empire by Japan. The name refers to an event that occurred on March 1, 1919, hence the movement's name, literally meaning "Three-One Movement" or "March First Movement" in Korean. It is also sometimes referred to as the Manse Demonstrations (만세운동).
Contents
Background
The Samil Movement came as a result of the repressive nature of colonial occupation under its military rule of the Korean Empire following 1905, and the "Fourteen Points" outlining the right of national "self-determination" proclaimed by President Woodrow Wilson at the Paris Peace Conference in January 1919. After hearing news of Wilson’s speech, Korean students studying in Tokyo published a statement demanding freedom from colonial rule.
Adding to this was the death of former Emperor Gojong on January 21, 1919. There was widespread suspicion that he had been poisoned, credible since previous attempts (the "coffee plot") were well-known.
Events in Korea
The March 1st Movement monument.
At 2 P.M. on 1 March 1919, the 33 nationalists who formed the core of the Samil Movement convened at Taehwagwan Restaurant in Seoul, and read the Korean Declaration of Independence that had been drawn up by the historian Choe Nam-seon and the poet Manhae (also known as Han Yongun). The nationalists initially planned to assemble at Tapgol Park in downtown Seoul, but they chose a more private location out of fear that the gathering might turn into a riot. The leaders of the movement signed the document and sent a copy to the Governor General, with their compliments.
“ We herewith proclaim the independence of Korea and the liberty of the Korean people. We tell it to the world in witness of the equality of all nations and we pass it on to our posterity as their inherent right. We make this proclamation, having 5,000 years of history, and 20,000,000 united loyal people. We take this step to insure to our children for all time to come, personal liberty in accord with the awakening consciousness of this new era. This is the clear leading of God, the moving principle of the present age, the whole human race's just claim. It is something that cannot be stamped out, stifled, gagged, or suppressed by any means.
” The movement leaders then telephoned the central police station to inform them of their actions and were arrested afterwards.
Before the formal declaration, Korea also aired the following complaints to be heard by the Japanese people through papers and media:
- The belief that the government would discriminate when employing Koreans versus Japanese people; they claimed that no Koreans held important positions in the government.
- The existence of a disparity in education being offered to Korean and Japanese people.
- The Japanese despised and mistreated Koreans in general.
- Political officials, both Korean and Japanese, were arrogant.
- There was no special treatment for the upper class or scholars.
- The administrative processes were too complicated and laws were being made too frequently for the general public to follow.
- There was too much forced labor that was not desired by the public.
- Taxes were too heavy and the Korean people were paying more than before, while getting the same amount of services.
- Land continued to be confiscated by the Japanese people for personal reasons.
- Korean village teachers were being forced out of their jobs because the Japanese people were trying to suppress their heritage and teachings.
- The development of Korea had been for the benefit for the Japanese. They argued that while Koreans were working towards development, they did not reap the benefit of their own work.
These grievances were highly influenced by ‘‘‘Wilson’s Declaration of the Principle of Self Determination’’’.[1]
Despite the nationalists' concerns, massive crowds assembled in Pagoda Park to hear a student, Chung Jae-yong, read the declaration publicly. Afterwards, the gathering formed into a procession, which the Japanese military police attempted to suppress. Special delegates associated with the movement also read copies of the independence proclamation from appointed places throughout the country at 2 PM on that same day.
Protests continued to spread and, as the Japanese local and military police could not contain the crowds, the army and even the navy were also called in. There were several reports of atrocities. In one notable instance, Japanese police herded the inhabitants of the village of Jeam-ri into a locked church before burning it to the ground, even shooting through the burning windows to ensure that no one made it out alive.
Approximately 2,000,000 Koreans had participated in the more than 1,500 demonstrations, many who were massacred by the Japanese police force and army.[2] The frequently cited The Bloody History of the Korean Independence Movement (한국독립운동지혈사, 韓國獨立運動之血史) by Park Eunsik claims 7,509 people were killed, 15,849 wounded, and 46,303 arrested. From March 1 to April 11, Japanese officials reported that 553 people were killed with over 12,000 arrested, while 8 policemen and military policemen were killed and 158 were wounded. Many of those arrested were taken to the infamous Seodaemun Prison in Seoul where they were imprisoned without trial and tortured. Several hundred people were murdered in extrajudicial killings in the "death house" at the rear of the site.[3]
In 1920, the Battle of Chingshanli broke out in Manchuria between exiled Korean independence fighters and the Japanese Army.
Effects
The March 1st movement resulted in a major change in imperial policy towards Korea. Governor-General Hasegawa Yoshimichi accepted responsibility for the loss of control (although most of the repressive measures leading to the uprising had been put into place by his predecessors) and was replaced by Saito Makoto. Some of the aspects of Japanese rule considered most objectionable to Koreans[specify] were removed. The military police were replaced by a civilian force, and limited press freedom was permitted under what was termed the 'cultural policy'. Many of these lenient policies were reversed during the Second Sino-Japanese War and World War II.
Women also found new opportunities after the movement to express their views for the first time in Korea. Ideas of female liberation were allowed to be printed after the rebellion. Such journals as the Sin Yoja (New Woman) and Yoja Kye (Women's World) were printed.
The March 1 Movement was a catalyst for the establishment of the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai in April 1919 and also influenced nonviolent resistance in India and many other countries.[4]
On May 24, 1949, March 1st was designated a national holiday in South Korea.
International reaction
A delegation of overseas Koreans, from Japan, China, and Hawaii, sought to gain international support for independence at the ongoing Paris Peace Conference. The United States and Imperial Japan blocked the delegation's attempt to address the conference.[5]
In April 1919, the State Department told the ambassador to Japan that "the consulate [in Seoul] should be extremely careful not to encourage any belief that the United States will assist the Korean nationalists in carrying out their plans and that it should not do anything which may cause Japanese authorities to suspect [the] American Government sympathizes with the Korean nationalist movement."[6]
See also
- List of Korea-related topics
- History of Korea
- Korean independence movement
- Colonial Korea
- Yu Gwan-sun
- Gwangbokjeol
References
- Cumings, Bruce. Korea’s Place in the Sun: A Modern History. New York: W.N. Norton and Company, 1997.
- Han, Woo-keun. The History of Korea. Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press, 1988.
- ^ Eugene Kim (ed.), ed (1977). Korea’s Response to Japan. Western Michigan University. pp. 263–266.;
- ^ March First Movement - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ http://www.lifeinkorea.com/Travel2/seoul/322 Seodaemun Prison
- ^ http://www.koreafocus.or.kr/design2/layout/content_print.asp?group_id=102423
- ^ Hart-Landsberg, Martin (1998). Korea: Division, Reunification, & U.S. Foreign Policy. Monthly Review Press. p. 30.
- ^ United States Policy regarding Korea, Part I: 1834-1941. US Department of State. pp. 35–36.
External links
Categories:- Korean independence movement
- Holidays in South Korea
- 20th century in Korea
- 1919 in Korea
- 1919 in international relations
- Protests in Korea
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