In June 1945, Imperial Japan announced a mass mobilization of nearly all able-bodied Korean civilian men ages 12-65 and women ages 12-45 into Volkssturm-like 'Volunteer' Corps (義勇隊) and Suicide Squads (特攻隊) to wage last resort armed combat against Allied troops stepping into Korea

I'd like to bring to your attention a fascinating article from June 1945, which I found in the archives of the National Library of Korea in September this year. This article was published in Keijo Nippo (Gyeongseong Ilbo), the official newspaper and propaganda arm of the Imperial Japanese colonial regime, which dominated Korea from 1905 to 1945.

In June 1945, Imperial Japan was on the losing end of World War II. In a desperate attempt to bolster its fighting strength, it announced the creation of Volunteer Fighting Corps (義勇隊) in Korea. These Corps were to include nearly all able-bodied Korean men aged 12-65 and women aged 12-45. Excluded from this mass mobilization were foreigners, disabled individuals, and pregnant women.

In this announcement, these Volunteer Corps are also described as Specialized Attack Units (特攻隊), which are also known as Suicide Squads notorious for the suicide missions that their members were tasked with accomplishing.

To facilitate the creation of these Volunteer Fighting Corps, a significant reorganization of the colonial government was planned. Previously, Korea was governed by three main pillars: the Governor-General's Office, the Imperial Army, and the Party [Korean Federation of National Power (国民総力朝鮮連盟, 국민총력조선연맹)]. However, the June 1945 reorganization aimed to dissolve the Party and replace it with the Volunteer Fighting Corps, making them subordinate to the military. Interestingly, the neighborhood cell units, known as "Patriotic Groups" (JP: aikoku-han, KR: aeguk-ban, 愛國班), which were instrumental in local governance and control of the Korean populace, were to be retained as units within these new Volunteer Corps.

These Volunteer Corps were essentially a last resort, hastily organized militias that would have presumably been used as cannon fodder in bloody, fanatical last-stand battles—much like what was seen in the Battle of Okinawa—if Japan had not surrendered by August 1945.

Unfortunately, there's a gap in the historical record about what actually happened to these Volunteer Corps by August 1945, especially concerning whether or not they were used against Soviet troops entering Korea. It's a subject ripe for further research. The article also raises logistical questions, such as how children as young as 12 and old men up to 65 would have been trained for combat. It also raises questions of loyalty as to whether Korean civilians would have really cooperated to become combatants in the service of Imperial Japan. Essentially, the article poses more questions than it provides answers.

It will be noted that the age ranges of the Volunteer Corps were actually more draconian than the Volkssturm, which only conscripted males between the ages of 16 and 60 years, so this counts as one aspect where Imperial Japan was actually more extreme than Nazi Germany.

The article is surprisingly detailed and accessible as it explains things plainly in a Q-and-A format. I hope you find this historical snippet as intriguing as I did. It serves as a stark reminder of the lengths to which a colonial regime would go to maintain control, even in the face of impending defeat.

[Translation]

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) June 17, 1945

Peninsula's Volunteer Fighting Corps: Inquiring with Mr. Harada, the Planning Section Chief of the Governor-General's Office

In recent days, we are engaged in production and defense, and if an emergency arises, we will take up arms and swords to charge at the enemy. The long-awaited path for our peninsula's Volunteer Fighting Corps has been opened. Military, government, and civilians are united, and the 26 million residents are truly united in becoming Specialized Attack Units. What kind of fighting spirit will ignite among these Volunteer Fighting Corps, and what capabilities will be demonstrated? We ask Mr. Harada, the key person in the formation of the Volunteer Corps, for the full picture.

Mr. Harada, the Planning Section Chief of the Governor-General's Office.

They shall now rise up to guard the Imperial Nation: Fervent Vows for the Volunteer Corps

The homeland is now in the middle of becoming a heated battlefield. Why should we allow our precious homeland, protected since the time of our ancestors, to be conceded to the vile enemy? It is our honorable duty as Imperial subjects to fight to protect our homeland and our workplaces. Is that not our most intense desire? Now, even the Korean peninsula is embodying the basic righteousness of all citizens who are becoming soldiers befitting a divine nation to form the Volunteer Fighting Corps.

Old and young, men and women, each citizen is burning with loyalty to annihilate the American devils and protect the Imperial nation. We take pride in our steadfast national organization in the countryside, factories, and various regions. Should the enemy ever set their hideous feet on our peninsula, we, the Volunteer Corps members, will rise up under the Grand Mandate to destroy the enemy. Upon the news of the formation of the Volunteer Fighting Corps in the peninsula, a total uprising is pledged in workplaces, regions, and schools, guiding the surging fighting spirit in various areas.

Patriotic Groups to Remain But Placed Under Military Command During Combat

**Q: How is its organization different from mainland Japan?

**A: It has a centralized structure. In other words, there is a general headquarters.

**Q: What about its operational aspects?

**A: We have established a leadership section that emphasizes the unique circumstances of Korea. Responding to the needs of the Imperialization Movement, we emphasized the spirit and cultural guidance of the general populace and organized our structure accordingly. We have carefully incorporated remaining functions from the previous organizations of the Federation such as the Women's Association and Youth Groups. In the aspect of leadership, considerable consideration is given to these unique circumstances of Korea, and careful planning is done accordingly.

**Q: When will the organization be fully established?

**A: Given the urgent war situation that demands the quick establishment of defense organizations, we aim to finalize its structure from the headquarters to the grassroots level by early July. Grand and fervent founding ceremonies will be held at various levels (cities, towns, townships, team units) to invigorate the spirit.

**Q: Who will be excluded from the Volunteer Corps, which includes males from 12 to 65 years old and females from 12 to 45 years old?

**A: The Volunteer Corps is a national organization, so everyone should be included. However, those who are physically unable, or pregnant, will not be able to become Volunteer Corps members in practice.

Foreigners are excluded

**Q: What about foreigners?

**A: They are entirely excluded due to the nature of the Volunteer Corps. However, we will consider them separately for labor.

**Q: Will various groups like the boys' corps, youth corps, reserve corps, and girls' corps be organized within regions or job sectors, or separately?

**A: They will be organized within regions and job sectors, and they will be formed as the need arises. They are not permanent organizations, but rather they are emergency organizations.

**Q: So, are they optional organizations? They do not necessarily need to be established?

**A: They must be organizations where public sentiment is strong. They are not bound by any laws or regulations. Therefore, while the form of the organization is not prescribed, every citizen should join their respective corps, as they are all part of the battle line.

**Q: What about the age requirements for each member of the boys' corps?

**A: Further announcements will be made.

**Q: What will be the relationship between the Volunteer Corps and the Student Corps which will be formed in the future?

**A: Student Corps will serve under the Volunteer Corps.

**Q: What kinds of people should be chosen to be deputy commanders, advisors, and counselors of the general command and the provincial commands, and the deputy commanders of the regimental units? I think the problem lies in how these people are selected. I think it is necessary to appoint bold personnel in order to prevent the organization from becoming a bureaucracy.

**A: Those who assume these positions must be the best leaders, so their selection is extremely important. We will not let this organization become a bureaucracy. The reason for placing a government official in command or as a captain is to integrate the organization with the administrative structure, so that the execution of orders can be swift and thorough. Moreover, their personalities are to be based on the will of the people, so the commanders and captains should be able to discern public sentiment. Therefore, the selection of the deputy commanders, advisors, counselors, and others will be skillfully appointed from among the government officials and ordinary civilians. So, I hope that these mid-level people will readily assume leadership positions without hesitation.

The leaders will be government officials and ordinary civilians

**Q: Who will be selected for the leadership sections and committees? Will they be selected from government officials or ordinary civilians?

**A: Both. Especially for the leadership sections, they must be powerful, so we are selecting them from both groups. It is not just ordinary civilians like before in the Federation. This is where we aim to differ from the Federation.

**Q: Which national organizations will be disbanded for the formation of the Volunteer Corps? Just the Federation, Women's Associations, and Youth Corps?

**A: Only those three for now. Military Support Associations, Labor Employee Support Associations, and Education Associations, among others that rely on this, are not national organizations but special-purpose groups, so they will continue to exist. Other groups with various names like associations, youth, and patriotic organizations are optional groups and are not national organizations, so they will naturally remain and join the Volunteer Corps separately by region or job sector.

**Q: What will happen to the functions of the Korean Federation of National Power?

**A: Preparations for its dissolution are already underway from today. So, in effect, its central functions have ceased, but until the Volunteer Corps is formed, the provincial and town Federations will continue to operate, so their connections with Patriotic Groups will not be severed until then.

**Q: What will happen to the Federation staff?

**A: Appropriate measures will be taken, and we intend to assist them in finding jobs as much as possible.

**Q: What will happen to Patriotic Groups when the Federation disappears and the Volunteer Corps is formed?

**A: We will strengthen the Community Associations and Patriotic Groups as terminal administrative structures. The top-down structure will clearly be Prefecture, District, Community Association, and Patriotic Group, in this order. As this becomes the foundation for the Volunteer Corps, the administration and the Volunteer Corps will become inseparable, and the command and order system will be unified. The name 'Patriotic Group' will remain the same.

Implementation of Combat Training

**Q: What about the Civil Defense Corps?

**A: For the time being, they will be left as they are. However, when the structure and content of the Volunteer Corps are established in the future, they will be incorporated into the Volunteer Corps' security teams. The Civil Defense Corps was established by Imperial decree, so its structure cannot be arbitrarily changed. Until a new decree is issued, it will keep its previous name, but in reality, it will operate as a security team within the Volunteer Corps.

**Q: Who will give the orders for guidance?

**A: For the labor force, the prefecture, town (eup), and township (myeon) leaders will be in charge. For firefighting and air defense, the police station chiefs will take command.

**Q: What will happen to veterans?

**A: Their individual cases will be handled on a per-Volunteer Corps basis. However, the continuity of the Veterans Association itself is still uncertain.

**Q: Under whose command will they be when transitioning to a combat posture? Who will be the team leader in this case?

**A: When transitioning to a combat posture, they will, in principle, be under military command. The team leader at that time will be the original Volunteer Corps team leader.

**Q: When the Volunteer Corps enters actual combat, they will need combat skills. How will continuous training be conducted?

**A: Of course, appropriate training will be necessary. This must be done in consideration of their completion of regular job duties, so that they refrain from working into the night. Therefore, adjustments will be made for the timing and methods so that training does not interfere with production.

**Q: How will that be done?

**A: Necessary adjustments will be done, and the details will be decided by the mid-level structure.

[Translation]

京城日報 1945年6月17日

半島の国民義勇隊:原田本府企画課長に訊く

日ころは生産に防衛に、一日応急あれば銃とり剣を扭って敵に突撃せんとする。待望のわが半島の国民義勇隊の進発路が拓かれた。軍、官、民一連となり、二千六百万在住民が真に一体となって特攻隊たらんとする。この国民義勇隊は如何なる戦意が燃えたち、性能が発揮されるか。その全貌について義勇隊編成の立役者原田総督府企画課長に説いて貰う。

今ぞ起つ皇国護持：義勇隊へ沸り立つ誓意

郷土は今や酣なる決戦場と化しつつある。祖先以来護り抜いて来た尊い郷土を何で醜敵に許そうぞ。郷土を守り職場を死守して戦うことこそわれら皇国民の光栄ある実務であり、痛切なる欲望ではないか。今や半島も我国兵制の神国たる国民皆兵の根本義を具現して国民義勇隊が結成される。

老いも若きも男女を問わず国民の一人一人が米鬼撃滅、皇国護持の忠誠心に燃え立ち時いたるまでは農村に工場に各地域でその不動の国民組織を誇り、敵一度わが半島に醜足をかけんか、われら国民義勇隊員は敵撃滅の大号令の下起ちあがるのだ。半島に国民義勇隊結成の報伝わるや職場に地域に学校に全半島をゆるがし総蹶起を誓う各方面のたぎり立つ戦意を導いた。

愛国班は存続：戦闘時は軍の指揮下

問：内地と違うところは組織の上でどこか？

答：中央機構だ。つまり総司令部である。

問：運営の部面では？

答：指導部を設けた、朝鮮の特殊事情―一般民衆の精神、文化指導を強調している。これは皇民化運動の必要性に応えたものだ。次は機構を組織的にした、こうしたところに重点を置いて従来の聯盟婦人会、青年団のような残能を加入して指導の面に特殊事情の考慮を多分に然も慎重に構えている。

問：組織結成はいつごろ終るか？

答：防衛組織を一刻も急ぐ戦局なので、早急実現を期し七月初旬までには総司令部から末端まで陣容、機構共に確立させ府、邑、面、隊などでは盛大、熱烈な結成式を挙げて大いに精魂を沸らせる。

問：満十二歳から満六十五歳までの男子、満十二歳から満四十五歳までの女子とする義勇隊員中、これより除かれる者はどういう者か？

答：義勇隊は全国民の組織だから一応誰も彼も組織の中に含まれなくてはならない。しかし不具者、妊娠などは実際上は活動不可能なので、これらの者は義勇隊者になれない。

外国人は除外

問：外国人はどうするか？

答：義勇隊の性質上全然除外している。しかし勤労の場合は別途に考える。

問：少年隊、青年隊、予備隊及び少女隊など男女各部隊は地域或いは職域の中で組織されるか、または別途で組織されるか？

答：地域、職域の内部に組織するが、これは必要により編成される。即ち常時編成ではなく非常組織だ。

問：するとそれは任意の組織か、即ち設けても設けなくてもよいのか？

答：あくまでも民意の盛りあがるところの組織でなくてはならない。決して法規で縛ったものではない。だから形は任意の組織であっても、国民一人残らず戦列に加わっている以上、当然各隊にそれぞれ加入すべきである。

問：少年隊以下各隊員の年齢別はどうなるか？

答：追って更に発表する。

問：将来生れる学徒隊と義勇隊との関係はどうなるのか？

答：学徒隊として義勇隊に服することとなる。

問：機構のうち総司令部と各道司令部の次長、顧問及び参与、聯合隊の副隊長はどういう人を具体的に選ぶか？問題はこの人選如何にあると思う。官製化を防ぐためにも思い切った人材を起用する必要があると思うが如何？

答：これらの部署に就く人は最も良き指導者でなくてはならぬので、人選が余程大事である。決して官製にはさせない。司令とか隊長に官を据えることになったのは行政組織と一体化させるためだ。即ち命令の敏速徹底を期しているのだ。しかもそれは性格としてあくまでも民意に基づくものだから司令、隊長は民意の趣くところを察してやるべきである。従って次長、副隊長、顧問、参与等の人選は巧みに官民を起用する。だからこのような中堅層にどしどし指揮をして戴くことを期待する。

指導者には官民両方

問：各指導部及び指導委員会の人々にはどういう人を選ぶか？指導部の職員は官吏か？民間人か？

答：何れも官民両方だ。殊に指導部あたりは要素で強力でなければならないから両方からとることとなった。これまでの聯盟のように民からばかりでない。即ちここが狙いどころで聯盟と違うところだ。

問：義勇隊の組織のために解散する国民組織は聯盟、日婦、青年団のみか？

答：差しあたりそれだけだ。軍人援護会、勤労職員援護会、教育会その他これに頼する団体は国民組織でなく、特殊目的の団体だからそのまま存続する。なお外の団体で何々協会とか、青年、愛国団体などこれはいわば任意団体であり、国民組織でないので残るのは勿論で地域や職域に別途で義勇隊に入るようになる。

問：国民総力朝鮮聯盟の機能は今後どうなるのか？

答：今日からすでに解散準備をしている。だから事実上中枢機能はなくなったわけだが、義勇隊が結成されるときまでは道、府聯盟が執務するので、町聯盟、愛国班関係はそのときまでつながりが絶えないわけである。

問：聯盟の職員はどうするか？

答：適当にやるわけだが、出来るだけ職を世話するつもりだ。

問：聯盟がなくなり義勇隊が出来ると愛国班はどうなるのか？

答：町会、愛国班を通じて末端行政機構として強化する。即ち府―区―町会―愛国班とはっきりとその体系が画然となる。それを義勇隊の基盤とするのだから行政と義勇隊とは不離一体、指揮命令系統が一本化してくるところに愛国班のより以上の強力さがある。なお愛国班の名称はそのままにする。

戦技訓練実施

問：警防団は？

答：差しあたり置いておく。しかし将来義勇隊の機構や内容が確立のときは義勇隊の警備隊に包含するようになる。警防団は勅令によって設立されているので、勝手には機構変革が出来ないわけで勅令が出るまでは名称は以前警防団とし、実在は義勇隊として警備隊に活動する。

問：その指導命令は誰がとるのか？

答：勤労の場合は府、邑、面隊長。消防、防空の場合は警察署長が指揮をとる。

問：在郷軍人はどうなるのか？

答：個人関係は義勇隊毎になる。しかし在郷軍人会自体としての存続如何はまだ判らない。

問：戦闘態勢に移る場合はどこの指揮に入るか？この場合の隊長は誰がやるのか？

答：戦闘態勢に入ると原則として軍の指揮下に入る。このときの隊長はもとの義勇隊隊長だ。

問：義勇隊が実戦に入ると戦技を必要とするが、これの不断の訓練はどうする？

答：勿論相当の訓練を必要とする。これには平素の職任の完遂を睨み合せて夜働きなどを慎まなければならぬと思う。そこで時期、方法などに調整を保ち生産に差支えのないように訓練を施す。

問：その方法如何？

答：必要なる調節を基幹としてその要項も中堅機構が決めることとなる。

Japanese Keijo Nippo reporters interviewed Korean abductee held captive in May 1939 by Kim Il-sung’s Korean communist guerrillas in Taehongdan (대홍단, 大紅湍)-the fighters mostly conversed in Chinese, abducted young men for recruiting, beheaded comrades for breaking strict male-female conduct rules

I found these remarkable 1939 Japanese articles about Kim Il-sung and his comrades in Keijo Nippo (Gyeongseong Ilbo), the official propaganda newspaper of the Imperial Japanese colonial regime that governed Korea from 1905 to 1945. The article from June 23, 1939 takes us on an interesting journey into the aftermath of the Battle of Taehongdan of May 1939, offering a unique perspective that has long been overshadowed by the North Korean account of this historical event.

Colonial security forces standing in front of Mr. Horimoto's home, which was raided by Kim Il-sung's men in May 1939.

What sets the June 23rd article apart is its exclusive interview with a Korean abductee who spent five harrowing days in captivity with none other than Kim Il-sung's band of guerrilla fighters. While the North Korean narrative has dominated online discussions, we now have a rare opportunity to compare it with the Imperial Japanese account of what transpired during that fateful battle.

One intriguing parallel that emerges is the number of casualties. Kim Il-sung's "Reminiscences" state that there were two injuries and one fatality on his side, as documented in Volume 7, page 187. In contrast, the Korean abductee's account reveals that 2 or 3 guerrillas were injured, with one of them severely. However, the Korean abductee goes a step further by providing fascinating insights, such as the revelation that the working language of the guerrillas was predominantly Chinese. Surprisingly, they only switched to Korean when communicating with the Korean abductee, who couldn't converse in Chinese.

This revelation seems to challenge Kim Il-sung's apparent need for a member fluent in Chinese to act as a liaison with ethnic Chinese in southern Manchuria, as implied in pages 82-83 of Volume 7 of his "Reminiscences." Indeed, according to Soviet archives, when Kim arrived in Korea in August 1945, his Korean was not very good, though he was fluent in Chinese and conversant in Russian, and he had to be fed a speech to learn and practice reading aloud in Korean (Source: The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future by Victor Cha). The question arises: why did Kim Il-sung conceal the fact that his group primarily communicated in Chinese during this period?

Another eye-opening aspect of the Korean abductee's testimony is the use of abduction as a recruitment tool to bolster their ranks with young individuals. Furthermore, we have an account from a Japanese abductee featured in another newspaper article published a few days earlier than the one describing Taehongdan, though it provides fewer details and focuses mainly on Kim Il-sung's appearance.

These extraordinary articles opens up a treasure trove of historical insights and raises thought-provoking questions about the Battle of Taehongdan and Kim Il-sung's guerrilla forces. Here is a link to the English copy of the Reminiscences of Kim Il Sung on the Marxists website. Select the Volume 7 and search the PDF for 'Taehongdan' for the relevant passages.

[Translation]

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) June 23, 1939

Anti-Bandit Frontline Reconnaissance (6)

The Bandits are Mostly Young Men

We hear from the abductees about the daily lives of the bandits

The Final Course

Since the tenth was the anniversary of that incident, everyone unusually gathered at eight in the morning. Now we headed to our final destination: Taehongdan (대홍단, 大紅湍) in the innermost part of the foot of Mount Jangsan (장산령, 長山嶺). We got on a truck, and the journey began in Samjang (삼장, 三長). Diverging from the riverbank road at Samsang-dong (삼상동, 三上洞), we followed the small streams, enduring the truck's violent rolling for several hours on treacherous mountain roads. Just before noon, we arrived at Kaetak-dong (개탁동, 開拓洞). During the journey, we were guarded by several security personnel, including Deputy Police Chief Shiramizu, who had joined us from Samsang-dong, and they also pushed the truck when it stalled.

Kaetak-dong is a rafting area for Northern Korean Paper Manufacturing, where about 50 raftsmen live. On the 24th of last month, it suffered the most significant damage in the recent incident when bandits attacked and abducted head raftsman Sakamoto Tetsuji (age 35) and around twenty others, plundering 900 yen in cash. Today, Mr. Horimoto's house, one of the places attacked by the bandits, stands forlornly deserted on a corner of the riverbank.

We were welcomed here by Deputy Police Chief Shimatsu (Elite Provincial Division), and after trekking for another two Ri (7.9 km) on terrible roads, we arrived at Taehongdan. We paid a consolation visit to the Shimatsu squad, immediately turned around our vehicle, and returned to Kaetak-dong. While dwelling on the past in the vacant house of Mr. Horimoto, a victim of the vividly distressing bandit attack, we ate our "Hinomaru" bento boxes. Here, we gathered around Kim Jae-ho (김재호, 金在濠) (age 42), who was abducted by bandits for five days, underwent hardships deep in the dense forest, and recently managed to escape. We listened to his testimony, an honest eyewitness account of the bandits' daily life. Here is a summary:

Abductee's Account

Q: What were the circumstances when you were abducted?

A: The bandits stormed into my house and immediately told me to carry some things and follow them. They forced me to carry rice and chestnuts, and took me away.

Q: What kind of weapons did they have?

A: They had unusually long guns, regular rifles, short pistols, and long swords.

Q: What were they talking about?

A: Initially they spoke in Chinese, so I could not understand them.

Q: What did they look like?

A: They were mostly young men under 30. There were six women among them who wore a top that resembled a military uniform and a bottom like a Korean Chima (skirt).

Q: What happened when they encountered the security forces and engaged in combat?

A: While they were fleeing, they encountered the security forces and fought four or five times. They just kept telling us to run and pulled us along aimlessly.

Q: How many casualties did the bandits have?

A: Two or three were wounded near the Cheonwang-dang (천왕당, 天王堂) area in Taehongdan. One was severely injured, and one of the abductees had to carry him.

Q: How many bandits were there?

A: They were divided into several groups of about ten people each. When the sun set, many more gathered from all around the foot of Mount Jangsan. I did not count, but there might have been about 300. They set up 13 tents and slept there. The tents were larger than this house and had a large furnace set up in the center, and they guarded the perimeter. About thirty people were staying in each tent.

Q: What did they feed you?

A: They gave us porridge made of chestnuts and steamed barley, which tasted terrible. But I had no choice but to eat because I was starving.

Q: Did they abuse you? And did they speak any Korean?

A: They did not beat me. When they realized I did not understand Chinese, they started speaking in Korean with an accent that seemed like it was from around Pyeonganbuk-do.

Q: What were the bandits mostly talking about?

A: There were around 30 abductees, and they were strongly encouraged to join their ranks. They did not say anything to the older ones like us, but they seemed to be brainwashing the young with communism. Every morning, everyone gathered around the tent, and someone who appeared to be the leader (or Kim Il-sung) gave some instructions in Chinese.

Strict Male-Female Relations

Q: What about the bandits' male-female relations?

A: I am not sure, but they were very strict. I heard that anyone who broke the prohibition was routinely beheaded.

◇

Although these may be superficial observations, this fragmented Q&A does seem to provide some sense of their daily lives.

[Photo = The house in Kaetak-dong of Mr. Horimoto, who was attacked by the bandits]

Gyeongseong Ilbo June 3, 1939

Astonished by Female Bandits

Kim Il-sung was a Gentleman

A Kidnap Victim Shares His Experience

[Telephone Report from Ranam] On the 22nd of last month, a person who had been kidnapped by bandits in the jurisdiction of the Samjang Police Station returned and spoke about the interesting inner workings of the bandits, based on his experiences of living with them deep in the mountains for over ten days.

One surprising thing was the presence of many female bandits among them, not just men as he had initially thought. These people are primarily ethnic Koreans from the Gando region and usually handle cooking and sewing for the bandits.

It was unique that they cook rice in a washbasin, but it was also surprising that they skillfully made Western clothes and combat hats using a proper hand-operated sewing machine. All of them uniformly expressed nostalgia for their homeland and said they wanted to return to Korea as soon as possible.

He met the leader who introduced himself as Kim Il-sung. Kim was a fair-skinned, good-looking man in his thirties, about 5 shaku and 5 or 6 sun tall (167 to 170 cm tall). He was bald, wore a combat hat, dressed in brown woolen clothes, and wore jika-tabi footwear.

[Transcription]

京城日報 1939年6月23日

討匪戦線縦走（６）

匪賊は若者揃い

被拉致者から彼等の日常を聴く

最終コースへ

十日は時の記念日だというので、一同珍しく朝の八時に勢揃いした。いよいよ最後のコース。長山山麓最奥大紅湍へ向けトラックに便乗して三長を進発。江岸道路を三上洞から分岐して小江満水に沿い、物凄い山道をトラックの激しいローリングに悩まされながら進行を続けること数時間。十二時少し前、開拓洞に到着。この間警護のため三上洞から同乗した白水警部補一行数名の警備員を煩わしてえんこしたトラックの後押しをする。

開拓洞は北鮮製紙の筏場で五十名ばかりの筏夫が住んでいるが、去る二十四日匪賊に襲撃され筏夫頭の坂本鉄治（三五）さんをはじめ二十数名の筏夫達が拉致され、現金九百円を掠奪されたという今事件中最大の被害地、江岸の一角に匪賊に襲われたという問題の堀本氏の家が今は主もなくわびしくたたずんでいる。

ここまで出迎えた、志摩津警部補（道高等課）一行と共に更に悪路を遡ること約二里、大紅湍に到着。志摩津部隊を慰問、直ちに車を返して開拓洞に戻り、匪襲事件の惨禍も生々しい被拉致者堀本氏の空き家で往時を偲びつつ日の丸弁当を頬張り、五日間匪賊に拉致されて密林の奥深く苦行を積み最近逃げ帰って来たという金在濠（四二）なる男を囲んで体験談を聴いた。これこそ真に偽らざる匪賊の日常生活の目撃談である。以下その概要：

被拉致者の話

問：拉致される時の状況はどうであったか？

答：匪賊は大挙して私の家を襲い、いきなりこれをもってついて来いてこいと、米と栗を背負わされ、無理やりに引き立てられた。

問：どんな武器を持っていたか？

答：妙に長い鉄砲と普通の小銃と短いピストルと長い刀を持っていた。

問：どんな話をしていたか？

答：初めは支那語で話していたので、何を言っているか分らなかった。

問：どんな恰好をしていたか？

答：匪賊は大概三十歳以下の若い者ばかりで、中には女が六人いた。着物は上衣は軍服のような洋服を着て、下は朝鮮のチマのようなものをはいていた。

問：警備隊と遭遇して交戦したが、その時の模様はどうであったか？

答：逃げる途中、四回か五回遭遇して交戦したが、奴らは唯逃げろ逃げろと私達を引きたくって無暗に逃げ廻るばかりだった。

問：匪賊にどの位の損害があったか？

答：大紅湍の天王堂附近で二三名負傷したが、一人は可なりな重傷で拉致者の誰かが背負わされた。

問：匪賊の数はどの位だったか？

答：十人ばかりを一団として数団体あったが、日が暮れると長山岳あたりに、あちらこちらから沢山集まって来た。数えて見なかったが、大方三百人位は居ただろうと思う。そして天幕を十三張ってみんなその中に寝泊りしていた。天幕はこの家よりも大きく中央に大きな炉を拵らえて、そのぐるりに護たか、一つの幕舎に三十人ばかり入っていた。

問：どんな物を食わしたか？

答：栗やら蒸し麥のお粥でとてもまずくて食べられなかったが、腹が空いて仕方がないのでどうにか食べられた。

問：いじめなかったか？そして、朝鮮語は全然話さなかったか？

答：別に殴りはしなかった。支那語が判らないというと、後からは朝鮮語で話していた。その朝鮮語は平北あたりのなまりがあるように思った。

問：匪賊は主としてどんな話をしていたか？

答：拉致された者がおよそ三十人ばかりいたが、一人一人に、お前はもう朝鮮に帰らずに俺達の仲間に入れと盛んにすすめていた。私共のような年寄りには何もいわなかったが、若い者には盛んに共産主義を吹き込んでいるようだった。そして毎朝、幕舎の前にみんな集って頭目らしいのが（或いは金日成が）何か盛んに支那語で訓示していた。

男女関係は厳重

問：匪賊達の男女関係はどうか？

答：よくわからないが、非常に厳重だ、ということだった。そしてその禁を破った者が度度打首にされたという話も聞いた。

◇

浅薄な観察ではあるが、この断片的な問答によって彼等の日常生活の概要が判るような気がする。

【写真＝匪賊に襲われた開拓洞の堀本氏の家】

京城日報 1939年6月3日

女匪賊に吃驚

金日成とは、やさ男

被拉致者の見聞談

【羅南電話】去る二十二日三長警察署管内で匪賊に拉致されたものが帰ってきて密林の奥深く匪賊とともに暮らした十余日間の経験に基き興味ある彼等の内幕を次の如く語っている。

匪賊は男だけかと思ったらどうして驚いたことは、沢山の女匪賊がいることである。彼等は主に間島出身の鮮人でいつもは匪賊の炊事と針仕事をやっている。

洗面器で飯を焚いているのも珍しいが、立派な手ミシンをもっていて器用に洋服や戦闘帽などを作っているのも驚かされた。彼らは皆一様に国が懐かしい、早く朝鮮に帰りたいとこぼしていた。

自分は頭目の金日成だというのに逢ったが彼はまだ三十位の色の白い優男で身長は五尺五六寸、頭は丸坊主で戦闘帽を冠り、茶色の羅紗服をきて地下足袋を穿いていた。

[Sources]

• https://archive.org/details/kjnp-1939-06-03/page/n10/mode/1up
• https://archive.org/details/kjnp-1939-06-23/page/n10/mode/1up
• https://www.marxists.org/archive/kim-il-sung/autobio/index.htm

Shamseinoor Berikova, 19-year-old blue-eyed Russian Tatar refugee woman and Seoul resident in 1938, featured in Keijo Nippo as a pro-Imperial Japan patriotic model minority speaking fluent Japanese and supporting Imperial soldiers on their way to China

This article from 1938 features Shamseinoor Berikova, a 19-year-old blue-eyed Russian Tatar woman who was a daughter of a clothing merchant in Kōgane-machi, which today forms the northern area of the present-day Myeongdong district, in the area immediately to the east of present-day Euljiro 1(il)-ga station. She was part of the Russian Tatar refugee community from the Volga-Ural region which escaped persecution during the 1917 Russian Revolution. Her family was driven out from Hailar, Manchuria in 1926, when Manchuria was still ruled by various warlords, and they settled in Seoul by way of Kumamoto.

Original caption: Photo: Shamseinoor, the blue-eyed member of the National Women's Defense Association

This article may have also had a propaganda purpose to put this Tatar teenager on a pedestal as a 'model minority' to encourage the Korean people to follow her example by embracing Japanese language and culture and supporting the Imperial Japanese military.

Here is an excellent academic paper about the history of the Russian Tatar refugee community in Imperial Japan from their origins in the Volga-Ural region through the Russian Revolution in 1917, migration to Imperial Japan, and later emigration to the United States and Turkey after the war: [Link]

Imperial Japan's support of Islam and Muslim communities has a fascinating historical background. For those interested in delving deeper, here's a link to an academic paper on the topic: [Link] 

Here, you can also find links to other articles about the Tatar people in Seoul during the colonial period that I've found in the Keijo Nippo newspaper so far:

• The Sulemans were a Russian Tatar refugee family in Seoul who gained acceptance as assimilated Imperial Japanese people while holding strong to their Muslim faith, and left for Turkey amid warm farewells in 1939 [Link]
• Spotlight on 1943 Seoul: A Glimpse into the Russian Tatar Refugee Community, Marja Ibrahim's Poetry Tribute to Tatar National Poet Ğabdulla Tuqay on the 30-year anniversary of his death [Link]
• Small community of ~100 Russian Tatars in Seoul featured in 1942-1944 propaganda articles: a young 19-year-old Tatar girl is praised for filling out immigration forms for her neighbors, a Tatar woman is commended for scolding her friends with red fingernails for wearing 'British-American' cosmetics [Link]
• In 1942 Busan, Korean pastors and foreign residents (Russian Tatar family, English woman, Chinese consul) praise Imperial Japan as British POWs captured in Malaysia start arriving in the city [Link]

As is my norm, I've included links throughout the translation to cultural and historical references that might be unfamiliar.

[Translation]

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) June 7, 1938

Strengthening the Korean Peninsula on the Home Front: The Blue-Eyed Girl with Sen'ninbari Amulets

Wearing a Lovely White Sash of the National Women's Defense Association

The blue-eyed young woman who has fled from demonic persecution offers her thanks and consolation to the valiant Imperial Army fighting on the front lines by sending gifts like Sen'ninbari amulets. As a foreigner finding refuge, she is deeply grateful for the boundless benevolence bestowed upon her. Though her arms may be weak, she has resolved to repay this kindness and has joined the National Women's Defense Association, bringing an inspiring story to life.

The girl in question is Shamseinoor Berikova (age 19), the only daughter of Mr. Shah Berikov, a clothing merchant in Seoul in the district of Kōgane-machi 2-70. As the Imperial Army set out for a punitive expedition against China, she was at the station waving the Japanese Hinomaru flag to send off the soldiers. She received astonished looks and words of thanks from the soldiers who said, "Oh, young foreign lady, thank you!" for the care packages that she gave. Alongside these farewells at the station, she has followed the tradition of Sen'ninbari, creating them with diligence and sending them along with care packages. She has already sent six to the warriors on the battlefield and has received several letters of gratitude in return.

Impressed by her actions, the caring people of the district encouraged her to join the National Women's Defense Association. "I would be so happy if someone like me could join the National Women's Defense Association and work alongside you," she happily responded, joining the Kōgane-machi-2 sub-chapter of the association on the 29th of last month, painting a beautiful picture of support from the home front. As Shamseinoor stood at the storefront in place of her parents, working diligently, she said the following:

"I am very happy that, even as a child, I am entrusted with work that can contribute even a little for Japan. I have sent Sen'ninbari and care packages. However, I'll feel uncomfortable if my acts are reported in the newspaper, since it may be perceived as bragging. Now that I have been accepted into the National Women's Defense Association, I wish to be of service," she spoke in fluent Japanese.

Shamseinoor fled from Hailar with her parents when she was seven years old, and sought asylum in Japan. She studied for about half a year at Kasuga Elementary School in Kumamoto. She has been in Seoul for eleven years now, and she mentioned that she would like to get married there.

Additionally, a few days ago, a letter of thanks for a care package arrived from Mr. Watanabe Kyōichi, a brave soldier of the Kimura Unit on the Northern China front. It read: "Flowers like dandelions bloom innocently among graves, only to be trampled in the dust of war. Why have the Chinese not opened their eyes? I never dreamed of receiving a care package from a person of a different nation like yourself. I am truly grateful. To put your mind at ease, I will strive to accomplish great deeds in this punitive expedition against China."

[Transcription]

京城日報 1938年6月7日

銃後半島の固め

千人針の碧眼娘

可憐国婦の白襷姿で

悪魔の迫害に追われた碧眼の少女が皇軍の奮戦に蔭ながら感謝を捧げ慰問。千人針などを贈り異邦人として安住の地を得るのも一重に君恩の無辺な御慈悲と感激。か弱い女の腕ではあるが報恩の誠を尽くしたいと意を決し国防婦人会に入会して甲斐甲斐しく立働き麗しい佳話を投げかけている。

話題の少女は京城黄金町二の七〇洋服商シャ・ベリコフ氏の一人娘シャムセイヌル・ベリコフ娘（一九）で、暴支膺懲の征戦に皇軍が進発するや駅頭に日の丸の旗を打ちふって勇士を歓送し勇士達から『お、外国人のお嬢さん、有難う』と贈った慰問品に奇異な眼と感謝のこもった言葉を受けていた。こうした駅頭の歓送のかたわら、街頭に立って教えられた千人針のいわれを汲み、懸命になって千人針を作り慰問袋と共に既に六枚を戦地の勇士に贈り、戦地の勇士から数通の感謝の手紙を貰っている。

この篤行に同町の心ある人達は感心し国防婦人会に加入を勧誘。『私のような者でも国防婦人会に入れて貰って一緒にお仕事をさせて戴ければ、これほど嬉しいことはありません』と喜んで去る二十九日黄金町二の国防婦人会分会に加入。銃後の固めに麗しい情景を描いている。シャムセイヌル嬢は両親に代って店頭に立ち甲斐甲斐しい姿で立働いているが、

『私のような子供でも日本のために少しでもお役に立つ仕事をさせて貰えるのはとても嬉しいです。千人針や慰問袋も贈りました。それでもこんなことを新聞に書いて貰うといばるように見えて困るです。国防婦人会にいれて貰ったので、その方のお役に立ちたいと思います』と達者な日本語で語った。

シャムセイヌル嬢は七歳の時、両親と共にハイラルから追われて日本に亡命。熊本の春日小学校で半歳ほど勉強。京城へ移って既に十一年になり、京城で結婚したいと語っていた。

なお数日前、北支戦線木村部隊の勇士渡辺恭一氏から届いた慰問袋の礼状には、『墓タンポポの草花が無心に咲き揃ったのが戦塵に踏みにじられています。支那は何故目覚めぬのでしょう。国のちがったあなた方から慰問品を受けようとは夢にも思いませんでした。本当に感謝します。そしてあなた方に安心して貰うよう、うんと手柄をたて支那膺懲に努めます』とあった。（写真は碧眼の国婦会員シャムセイヌル嬢）

Source: https://archive.org/details/kjnp-1938-06-07/page/1/mode/1up

In Dec. 1945, an ethnic Japanese Keijo Nippo journalist wrote a heartfelt personal essay to the Korean people asking for forgiveness for not understanding their desire for independence, and predicted that Korea will "become the birthplace of a new world culture in literature and in the arts"

This is another interesting article that I found at the National Library of Korea last month. The article is from Keijo Nippo (Gyeongseong Ilbo), a propaganda newspaper under the Imperial Japanese colonial regime that governed Korea from 1905 until 1945. Following Korea's liberation in August 1945, Korean staff assumed control of the newspaper in November of the same year. This transition led to a significant change in the paper's editorial direction, shifting towards a pro-independence Korean viewpoint. The publication of Keijo Nippo continued in Japanese until Korean typesets became available; its final edition was published on December 11, 1945.

Although the Korean employees were the editors and writers for the most part, the Korean editors did allow some Japanese guest writers to share their viewpoints on this liberated version of Keijo Nippo, as this article illustrates. This is an extremely rare instance of a Japanese writer discussing and criticizing "Japanese-Korean Unification (内鮮一體)" ideology, which was responsible for so much of the abuses that were perpetrated against the Korean people by the colonial regime in Korea. It is unfortunate that there is minimal discussion about 内鮮一體 in both Japan and online spaces, when it was so central to colonial policies that touched so many areas, including comfort women and forced labor. I hope that this changes eventually.

The Japanese writer also offers a fascinating prediction that Korea will eventually "become the birthplace of a new world culture in literature and the arts." This prediction has, to some extent, materialized with the global popularity of K-Pop. However, it is worth noting that such a prediction would have seemed quite improbable in 1945, at a time when many Japanese doubted that Koreans could govern their own nation without Japanese assistance.

The Japanese writer asks the Korean people for forgiveness for not understanding their desire for independence. Would Korean readers have forgiven him at the time of publication in December 1945? If modern Koreans read this essay today, would they forgive him? 

[Translation]

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) December 8, 1945

The Illusion of Japanese-Korean Unification: The Path to Salvation for Japan Lies in a Life of Repentance

By Sakamoto Yoshichika, a personal account

I was born in Korea and spent my childhood days there. However, I have only lived in Korea as an adult for the last year and a half. When I finally acquired my adult intellect for the first time and saw the towns in Korea, everything appeared strange. Signs promoting "Japanese-Korean Unification" were everywhere, intimidating me. Could a delicate endeavor like "Japanese-Korean Unification" truly be accomplished through mere signs? These were not signs celebrating the completion of Japanese-Korean Unification. Rather, they were signs that constantly undermined the political and economic situation throughout the towns, perpetuating Japanese-Korean Disunity.

I was troubled. For the sake of human culture, what form should a true union between both nations take, one that aligns with reason and fairness? This was my sole and deeply serious contemplation day and night. For my Korean friends, there was only one clear answer: "National Independence". I wonder whether the Koreans will forgive me for having thoughts that were too convoluted to arrive at this answer?

There were two answers that I initially arrived at. I wonder whether the Koreans will forgive me for wavering between my two answers like a pendulum? My two answers were: "Complete Union, with immediate implementation of non-discriminatory governance and maximum expression of local culture," and a "Complete National Federation on the basis of independent ethnic groups that have gained complete freedom".

I yearned for a confidant with whom I could discuss this issue deeply and honestly. I wanted to have a Korean friend to whom I could ask, which of these two options would seem more realistic? However, I was never able to find such a close friend. Then came August 15th (the day Japan surrendered in World War II). I felt that, if I had such a friend, no matter how close that friend was to me, there would always be a thin wall between us that could never be broken. Only when I finally understood the true feelings of my friends and broke through that thin wall did I realize that it was a historic turning point, a moment of parting.

I can say for certain that I am one of those in the world who wished the most for the revival of Korean culture. I envisioned a future where Korea, a land of ancient civilization that gave the world its first movable type and elegant customs reminiscent of the Heian period of Japan, would one day lead the world in science and become the birthplace of a new world culture in literature and in the arts. That is because I believed that the path for Japan to survive lay together with the path for Korea to survive.

Let's strive to build one culture. National Liberation. The thought that was most active in the depths of my heart was just this. The great principle that could truly save both Japan and Korea, and humanity itself, was National Liberation. End

*Note: The contributor of this article was previously a reporter for the Asahi Shimbun, Shanghai Continental News, and Keijo Nippo.

[Transcription]

京城日報 1945年12月8日

内鮮一体は偽装の看板

日本を救う道は懺悔の生活

（完） 坂本嘉親 手記

私は朝鮮生れであり、幼き日を朝鮮で過ごした。しかし私は成人として生活したのは最近の一年半に過ぎない。久しぶりと言ってより成人としての知性に初めふれる朝鮮の町は見るものすべてが異様であった。内鮮一体の看板が至る所に立って私を威嚇した。看板で内鮮一体のような微妙な事業が出来るであろうか。それは内鮮一体の完成と祝典の看板ではなく、街の間に常に政治に経済に内攻する内鮮非一体の看板であった。

私は悩んだ。そして、人類文化のため、真に正理に叶えた両民族の真の聯合は一体如何なる型を執るべきであろう。この問題は白夜真剣な唯一の私の思索であった。朝鮮人諸君にとっては明瞭であった。たった一つの答えも『民族独立』も私にとっては中々廻りくどい思索を興した事を許して呉れるだろうか。

私が最初到達した答えは二つあった。そして二つの答えの間を振り子のように彷徨した私を許して呉れるだろうか。二つの答えとは、『完全なる聯合、一切差別待遇なき政治の即時実行、文化の地方色の最大限の発揮』と『完全なる独立、一切の自由を得たる民族の独立を得たる上での完全なる聯邦国家』

この二つであった。私はこの問題について真に語りうる、胸を焦がす友が欲しかった。私は朝鮮人の友自身からこの二つのうちのいずれが誠に現実的な方向であるかを聞きたかった。しかし遂にそこまで語って呉れるほど親しい友を得ずして八月十五日を迎えたのである。私と友との間にはどんな親しくても永遠の薄い壁があるように思われた。そして友の真の気持ちを解し薄い壁が打ち破れたときは、それは歴史の転換点しき別れの時であった。

私は朝鮮文化の独自の再生を世界で一番望んだ者の一人である事を断言する。あの平安朝を思い出す雅やかな風俗、そして世界最初の活字を生んだ古文明国朝鮮がやがて世界最初の科学を享有して文学に、美術に、世界新文化の発祥地となる姿を真実に心に描いたのである。日本が生きる道は朝鮮が生きる道と共にあると思ったからである。

一つの文化を築くため努力しよう。民族解放。私の心の奥で最も主動的であった思想はどこまでもこれであった。真に日本と朝鮮を救う道、そして人類自身をも救う大原理は民族解放であった【終わり】

註：本文の寄稿者は前、朝日新聞、上海大陸新報、京城日報記者であった。

This is the only known bilingual Japanese-Korean wartime propaganda poster that Imperial Japan is known to have published on Keijo Nippo (October 7, 1944)

This rare Korean-Japanese bilingual wartime propaganda poster, published in Keijo Nippo (Gyeongseong Ilbo) on October 7, 1944, was extremely interesting, since it was the only bilingual propaganda poster that I could find in the Keijo Nippo newspaper, which was the official propaganda mouthpiece of the Imperial Japanese colonial regime which ruled Korea from 1905 to 1945. That is significant, since I've been browsing this newspaper and posting content from it for two years now, and this is the only bilingual poster that I've encountered so far.

Copy of the poster from the Internet Archive.

Copy of the poster from the National Library of Korea.

The copy of the poster from the Internet Archive was too faded to be decipherable, but the quality of the copy that I found at the National Library of Korea, which I visited last month, was marginally better, so I deciphered the Japanese part of the text with a relatively high level of confidence. Unfortunately, I still cannot figure out most of the Korean portion of the poster.

This bilingual poster was part of a recruitment drive to conscript more Koreans for military-related labor. This is the song on the poster in Japanese and Korean:

おうちょう（應徵）戦士
お父さん 萬歳
兄ちゃん 萬歳
うれしいな 白紙應召
大進撃 勝って下さい
送れ 送れ
がっちり しっかり
憎い米英 やっつける

응중전사
…
우리아버지 만세
우리형 만세
…

[Translation]
Conscription Soldier
Father, may you live long!
Elder brother, may you live long!
How joyful it is, White Paper Conscription!
Please win the great offensive!
Send them, send them!
Firmly, steadfastly,
Defeat the hated Britain and America!
[End of translation]

In Imperial Japan, there were different types of conscription orders differentiated by the color of the paper that they were printed on: red (赤紙, Akagami), white (白紙, Hakushi), blue (青紙, Aogami), and also pink paper (紅紙, Kōgami).

The White Paper conscription mentioned in this song was used for "educational conscription" and training-related activities, such as "教育召集" (educational conscription), "演習召集" (training mobilization), and "簡閲点呼" (roll-call inspection). Both the Army and Navy could issue white paper orders.

In practice, that probably meant that young students were mobilized for military-related labor, being shipped out to the factories of mainland Japan or to augment farm labor shortages, for example.

Red and pink papers were generally used for calling people into active military service, and blue papers were used for short-term homeland defense, particularly against events like air raids. The issuing of these orders was a way to manage the different needs and urgencies of military and homeland activities during the war period.

If you are fluent in Korean, I could really use your expertise and keen eyes to decipher the rest of the Korean text based on the two copies of the poster, the original Japanese text, and my English translation. The text is incredibly faded, to the point where even someone well-versed in the language might find it challenging to decipher. The odds of deciphering the Korean text might be long, but even some tentative guesses would be of immense help in reconstructing this extremely rare historical artifact.

More Reading about White Paper Conscription (in Japanese): https://adeac.jp/minato-city/texthtml/d110050/mp100010-110050/ht000750

Internet Archive Copy of Poster: https://archive.org/details/kjnp-1944-10-07/page/n2/mode/1up

Edit: Corrected 만새 to 만세

Japanese abductee escaped Korean Communist guerrillas in 1939 and told police about meeting Kim Il-sung and his comrades, many of whom were women

This is a short article from 1939 where a Japanese abductee escaped captivity from Korean Communist Guerrillas to tell the Japanese police in Ranam, Korea about meeting Kim Il-sung and his comrades, many of whom were women.

[Translation]

Gyeongseong Ilbo June 3, 1939

Astonished by Female Bandits

Kim Il-sung was a Gentleman

A Kidnap Victim Shares His Experience

[Telephone Report from Ranam] On the 22nd of last month, a person who had been kidnapped by bandits in the jurisdiction of the Samjang Police Station returned and spoke about the interesting inner workings of the bandits, based on his experiences of living with them deep in the mountains for over ten days.

One surprising thing was the presence of many female bandits among them, not just men as he had initially thought. These people are primarily ethnic Koreans from the Gando region and usually handle cooking and sewing for the bandits.

It was unique that they cook rice in a washbasin, but it was also surprising that they skillfully made Western clothes and combat hats using a proper hand-operated sewing machine. All of them uniformly expressed nostalgia for their homeland and said they wanted to return to Korea as soon as possible.

He met the leader who introduced himself as Kim Il-sung. Kim was a fair-skinned, good-looking man in his thirties, about 5 shaku and 5 or 6 sun tall (167 to 170 cm tall). He was bald, wore a combat hat, dressed in brown woolen clothes, and wore jika-tabi footwear.

[Transcription]

京城日報 1939年6月3日

女匪賊に吃驚

金日成とは、やさ男

被拉致者の見聞談

【羅南電話】去る二十二日三長警察署管内で匪賊に拉致されたものが帰ってきて密林の奥深く匪賊とともに暮らした十余日間の経験に基き興味ある彼等の内幕を次の如く語っている。

匪賊は男だけかと思ったらどうして驚いたことは、沢山の女匪賊がいることである。彼等は主に間島出身の鮮人でいつもは匪賊の炊事と針仕事をやっている。

洗面器で飯を焚いているのも珍しいが、立派な手ミシンをもっていて器用に洋服や戦闘帽などを作っているのも驚かされた。彼らは皆一様に国が懐かしい、早く朝鮮に帰りたいとこぼしていた。

自分は頭目の金日成だというのに逢ったが彼はまだ三十位の色の白い優男で身長は五尺五六寸、頭は丸坊主で戦闘帽を冠り、茶色の羅紗服をきて地下足袋を穿いていた。

Source: https://archive.org/details/kjnp-1939-06-03/page/n10/mode/1up

Copy of news article at the Internet Archive.

Note: I also photographed a copy of the article in the National Library of Korea. Since the newspaper copies from the Internet Archive and the National Library of Korea were different, comparing and contrasting the smudged and blurred newsprint in both copies helped me decipher the text.

Copy of news article photographed at the National Library of Korea.

Korea in November 1945 was beset by rampant inflation, which the Koreans editors of newly liberated Keijo Nippo blamed on ‘Korean traitors’ and departing Japanese who liquidated their property and spent cash ‘indulging in lavish eating and wastefulness’

In my recent trip to Seoul, I visited the National Library of Korea and took many photos of pages from the Keijo Nippo newspaper, which was originally established as the official propaganda mouthpiece for the Imperial Japanese colonial regime, which ruled Korea from 1905 to 1945. Around November 1, 1945, a transformative change occurred: the newspaper was taken over by pro-independence Korean employees, shifting its editorial stance drastically and turning it into a platform for Korean liberation.

One of my interesting finds was this editorial article from November 5, 1945, written by Korean writers describing the rampant inflation that was occurring in Korea at the time under U.S. military occupation, newly liberated from Imperial Japanese colonial rule. The Korean editors appeared to blame the inflation squarely on departing Japanese residents who were liquidating their property into cash and lavishly spending it before returning to Japan, and also certain ethnic Koreans who were helping the Japanese residents by buying their property from them. It seems that, like in post-war Japan, there was a sort of euphoric atmosphere in post-war Korea for certain affluent people who had the means to party and have fun, anxious to forget the suffering and privations of war.

The Korean anger and resentment against the colonial regime and the Japanese people are very palpable in the article, as well as the writers' hostility against 'ethnic Korean traitors', or pro-Japanese Koreans who are described as only interested in personal profit as they shift their allegiance from the Japanese to the Americans. We can also see the reverence that the writers held for the 'sacred U.S. military'.

We can also see the Koreanized Japanese that the writers use, writing '日人' instead of '日本人' for Japanese, and writing '親美' instead of '親米' for pro-American, but they don't seem to be consistent with this shift, since both forms are used in the article.

[Translation]

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) November 5, 1945

The Villains Behind the Inflation

The Japanese Must Leave

The Removal of Ethnic Korean Traitors Pretending to be Pro-American is Also an Urgent Priority

During the era of Japanese Imperialism when corrupt governance was the norm, our 30 million compatriots were exploited through coercive collections and transactions by the Governor-General's Office and other institutions, leading to economic controls and fixed pricing systems. These measures were said to be abolished after October 20th of this year. When the U.S. Military Government issued General Directive No. 2, it encouraged trade and production, aiming for a free market economy in Korea to decrease commodity prices, and it put its efforts into bringing previously sidelined goods back into the marketplace. As evidence of the Korean people's own trust in the U.S. Military Government, it was stated the previous day by the U.S. Military Government that bank deposits and postal savings had increased by several million yen, and that various commodity prices were expected to fall below standard levels. This directive had been definitively worded to rely on the laws of supply and demand, as was well-known among those in the economic sphere. However, when we actually observe the subsequent state of Korea's economy, we see that commodity prices continue to rise day by day. With the harsh winter looming, the public sentiment is enveloped in anxiety, and the future direction of the country is uncertain. What is the cause of this?

Eighty percent of Korea's assets were owned by Japanese people, and it was not just in the form of real estate, but also cash holdings. Furthermore, as Japanese people, they were allowed to freely buy and sell their private property, adding 'icing on the cake,' so to speak. In collusion with ethnic Korean traitors, they made an internal agreement to deposit only a portion of the proceeds into Korean banks, following the directives of the malicious government, while the majority of the funds were set aside to be received separately. That is how, while they cannot freely withdraw cash from the bank (no more than 1000 yen can be withdrawn at a time), they can still indulge in lavish eating and wastefulness while in Korea. This is the final malevolence of people leading the country to ruin. Furthermore, because they purchase goods at high prices, they end up possessing only about 20% [of their original assets]. As Korean compatriots, how can we fight against this? The economic impact is significant on lower-level laborers as well as the general public who live month-to-month maintaining households on monthly salaries.

There are only two solutions. One is to expel the Japanese from our country as soon as possible, and the other is to remove the ethnic Koreans traitors who collude with them. These ethnic Korean traitors (pro-Japanese individuals) aim to cheaply acquire or manage property owned by the Japanese. They put on the facade of being pro-American, and with advanced techniques previously used to curry favor with the Japanese, they try to deceive the sacred U.S. military, which came to save us, in order to gain personal profit. If the U.S. military thinks that these traitors are the leaders of Korea, we believe that they will repeat a grave mistake. We heard that the U.S. Military Government has set up an investigative committee regarding the selling of property, so we hope that the Military Government will thoroughly investigate these ethnic Korean traitors and be fully prepared for the establishment of a new Korea.

Who Is to Blame for Price Inflation?

Wipe Out the Destructive Mentality

Know the Righteousness of Building the Korean Nation

Why has the price of a bundle of green onions skyrocketed from one yen to three? It's not just green onions. The same thing is happening to sugar and daikon radish. As rampant inflation is threatening our daily life, we should definitely denounce the ones responsible for this malicious inflation. Who can deny that the majority of Japanese, who are limited to carrying cash when going back to Japan, are the main culprits? When considering that they can take lots of cash with them when they go back to Japan, it is no wonder why, these days, the Japanese can continue to lead prosperous lives without any discomfort as long as they have cash.

Take a look at the markets in the city. Is it not true that the ones hoarding the most essential food items and goods are exclusively Japanese women? We hear of outrageous stories like green onions, which were said to be too expensive at one yen a bundle, jumping to three yen a bundle before you knew it, and sugar now selling at 60 yen a kilogram. When you tell a vegetable seller that "Three yen for a bundle of green onions is too expensive," they reply, "You must be joking. Japanese people will buy it no matter how expensive it is."

Those immoral merchants who take advantage of the Japanese people's psychology to inflate prices must also be expelled, but whatever happens to the economic order of Korea in the future, these destructive scoundrels who are indifferent to how they threaten the lives of the Korean people must be removed as soon as possible. For 40 years, they squeezed as much blood from the Korean people as they could, and now they are returning to the ruins of their homeland while wiping their tears in defeat, but these are the underhanded means by which they leave economic chaos behind in Korea. Particularly in the southern part of the city and near the areas where Japanese residents live, due to the economic chaos caused by the Japanese, prices are increasing day-by-day. Thus, we must be determined to quickly implement the complete removal of the malicious residents who do not know the "Righteousness of Building the Korean Nation".

[Transcription]

京城日報 1945年11月5日

インフレを造る悪党

日人は退去せよ

にせ親美の民族反逆者除去も急先務

悪政が継続された日本帝国主義時代に総督府或いは総ゆる機関に対し強制的に供出、売買をさせ我等三千万同胞の血を吸い出し手足金しばりにした謂商業統制令と公定価格制度を今年十月二十日以後から廃止すると、軍政庁で総指令第二号を布告すると同時に我等朝鮮の経済界を自由市場へと指導する立場にて売買を奨励、生産を増加させ物価を低下させると同時に各自が死蔵した物品を市場へ送るべく総力を注いでいるから、朝鮮民族自体も軍政庁を信頼する証拠として銀行預金と郵便貯金が数百万円と増加して各種の物価が水準以下に低落するものと軍政庁では前日に言明して曰く、此の法令は経済界者達が周知している如く需要と供給の法則に依る決定的に言明されたが、以後の朝鮮の経済界を一観する時、それと反比例に日々物価は上がる一方で厳冬を前に控えて民心は不安に包まれ、その行方を知らずに居るのである。其の原因は何に起因するか。

朝鮮の八割の財産が日本人の所有であったから、その財産は不動産のみではない。勿論、それに正比例して現金も偏在してあった。その外に日本人としては、錦上に花を添える形で私有財産を自由に売買することを許されたのを寄貨として、朝鮮の民族反逆者と共謀して、その代価の一部分を朝鮮銀行に（悪政庁の命令にて）預金することを内約し、大部分は現今を別途に受け取って置き、思うがままに現金を銀行から引き出さられぬから（千円以上不能）朝鮮に居る間に好く食うてくい散らかす亡国人の最後の発悪を致し、かつてに高価にて物を買い入れるから二割程度しか持たない。我等朝鮮同胞は此れにどうして対抗出来るであろうか。尚さら下層労働者と月給にて月々の世帯を持つ大衆に及ぼす経済的影響は大きなものであるのである。

その解決方針としては二つしかない。その一つはすべからく日本人をして一日も早く我が国より追い出すことであり、もう一つは日本人と共謀する民族反逆者を除去することである。この民族反逆者（親日輩）達は日本人の財産を手安く自分の手に入るべく又は管理すべく親米家の仮面をかぶって過去に日本人におべっかを使った高等技術にて我等を救うために来た神聖なる米軍を瞞して私利を獲得しようとする者をまず先に除去すると同時に、米軍も彼輩達を朝鮮の指導者と思っては大きな過失をくり返すものと思われるが、軍政庁でも財産売買に関する審査委員会が設置されたと聞いているから民族反逆者達を徹底的に調査して朝鮮の建国の為に万全を期することを願うところである。

物価騰貴の罪は誰？

一掃せよ亡国根性

建国朝鮮の大義を知れ

一束一円の葱が一躍三円に値あげられた理由は一体どこにあるのか？葱ばかりでない。砂糖にしても大根にしてもそうだ。昨今の如く漬物価の暴騰がわれわれの生活の全面を脅かす時、悪性インフレーの造作輩の跋扈は断じて排撃すべきものである。現金持参（帰国のとき）を限定されを日本人の大多数がこの悪党輩の張本人であることを誰が否認しようか。帰国は出来ても多額の現金は止められている実状に照して彼等日本人このごろの生活は現金のある限り何等不自由なく裕かな生活をつづけている訳だ。

市内の各市場をのぞいて見よ。主要食糧をはじめ諸物貨の買い漁りは日本人婦女子に限られてはいないか。一円でも高過ぎるといった葱一束が何時の間に三円となり、砂糖一斤六十円というベラボウな話。野菜屋をのかぞいて『葱一束三円はあまり高いじゃないか』といえば『ご冗談でしょう。日本人はいくら高くても買ってくれますよ』。

いくら高くても買う日本人の心理を衝いて物価をベラボウに上げる悪徳商人も断じて駆逐すべきであるが、朝鮮の経済秩序が今後どうなろうが、朝鮮民族の生活が如何に威脅されようが構わぬという亡国的根性をもつ悪党を早く駆逐すべきである。四十年の長き間、朝鮮人の膏血を絞るだけ絞って今敗戦の涙をぐんで廃墟の里へ帰らんとする日本人の朝鮮に残す経済攪乱の卑劣な手段は即ちこれだ。殊に市内南部その外日本人居留部落の近くにある市場等の諸物価はこれら日本人の経済攪乱によって...日に日に沸騰する覚悟で建国朝鮮の大義を知らない悪性居留民の完全撤退が速に実施されなければならない。