Born to defend Korea`s Dokdo claim

Among the few Japanese who take interest in the issue of Dokdo, even fewer would devote themselves to defending Korea against Japan`s claims to the islets.

Yuji Hosaka, professor in the College of Liberal Arts and Graduate School of Policies Studies, Sejong University, is known for his unique passion for the subject.

As head of the Dokdo Research Institute, he recently published a book entitled "Dokdo, Our History," the first in his three-phased Dokdo series.

Hosaka, who acquired Korean nationality in 2003, first came to Korea in 1988 to study Korean history.

"Influenced by some of my friends who were second-generation Koreans living in Japan, I became interested in Korean history," he said.

He was especially intrigued by the death of Empress Myung-sung of the Joseon Dynasty and the division of the Korean Peninsula.



"Very few Japanese are aware that the Japanese empire is held responsible for the death of the empress or for the division of the North and South," he said. "Korea`s division was in fact largely because many Koreans turned either to the United States or to the Soviet Union for help to escape the Japanese colonial rule."

As a student, he started to learn Korean to dig deeper into the neighboring country`s history, but soon discovered the limitations of doing so in Japan.

"This is why I came to Korea, to have access to a wider range of historical data and listen to what the Korean people have to say about their past," he said. "I had no idea back then that I might end up here for such a long time."

The Dokdo issue, however, did not catch his attention until later on, he said.

"After finishing my master`s degree in history, in 1996, I took a post in a college to teach Japanese," he said. "During my classes, students often asked me questions on what I thought about Japan`s Dokdo policies."

The students` interest came to him as a cultural shock as the Japanese, except for a few right-wing activists, have next to no background knowledge of Dokdo which is, for Koreans, one of the most highly discussed historical issues.

"I felt that it was my responsibility, as a historian, to illuminate the truth about this ever-unsolved historical issue between the two countries, so I turned my focus to Dokdo-related research," he said.

In 2001, after some years of teaching Japanese language and history, he became a political science professor specializing in Japanese history at Sejong University. He also acquired Korean citizenship in 2003.

"I nationalized partly because I came to love Korea after so many years, but also because of my historical viewpoint about the Korea-Japan relationship," he said.

In ancient times, Korea passed on its culture to Japan, which was located at the outskirts of Northeast Asia, and many Koreans also moved to Japan, thus making the two countries the closest blood relations, he said.

"I think that the Japanese - many of who are descendants of the royal people of Baekje or Gaya, the ancient collapsed dynasties of the Korean Peninsula - have a certain homing instinct for Korea," he said. "When I came to Korea, I felt that I had come back to my historical roots."

Though it was not his intention to dodge the Japanese government`s influence, he admitted that his Korean nationality offered him freedom to research and publish on a politically delicate issue between the two countries.

"As my research led me to defend Korea when it comes to Dokdo issues, the Japanese government may naturally not appreciate my work," he said. "However, I am officially a Korean national, though I have kept my Japanese name, so there is not much they can do about it."

Despite the Japanese government`s efforts to hide historical data, Japanese scholars have recently started to regard the Dokdo issue more objectively, he said.

"Most Japanese people have not been told the right facts about their country`s invasion of Korea, much less about Dokdo," he said. "Once they are offered objective data to judge, many are likely to denounce their government`s policies on the issue."

The professor is planning to have his works translated into Japanese in the near future to convey his messages.

"Of course, a great part of the Japanese online community stands against me, accusing me of turning my back to my own country," he said. "However, many of them are extreme right-wing activists who would not take in the fact that I intend to correct the Japanese government`s historically incorrect attitude."

Also, a small but significant group would acknowledge him as being consistent in his academic studies and support his passion, he said.

Hosaka, though passionate in refuting Japan`s theories and policies on Dokdo, refuses to be moved by nationalism or emotions.

"Korea has also made many mistakes throughout history and has failed to keep what should rightfully belong to Korea," he said. "In many parts, we really are not entitled to sit back and blame the Japanese."

During the late Joseon Dynasty, Koreans neglected Ulleungdo, a large island neighboring Dokdo, and made no protests to the Japanese` de facto occupation of the area, he said.

Also, back in 1951, the Korean ambassador`s imprecise answers about Dokdo influenced the United States to leave it out of Korea`s territory in the San Francisco Peace Treaty, he said.

"Japan`s logic on Dokdo is largely based on the historical fact that the 1951 treaty excluded Dokdo," Hosaka said. "History will repeat itself unless we look back on our past and learn to defend what we claim as ours."

He also pointed out that the Korean government should not take the Dokdo issue lightly as Japan has been rather successful in the international community with its "quiet diplomacy."

"Japan has been quietly but actively promoting lobbies to international experts, without Korea knowing much about it," he said.

The professor claimed that Japan`s efforts presumably influenced the U.S. Board on Geographic Names to change last year Dokdo`s status from Korean territory to undesignated sovereignty, though temporarily.

"What we need to do in order to set history right is to educate the Japanese people, defend ourselves against Japan`s diplomatic moves, and to let the world know about the truth," he said. "Above all, we, the Korean people, need to really know about Dokdo before claiming it."

(tellme@heraldm.com)



By Bae Hyun-jung