This February 17, 1944 Keijo Nippo article—published during Imperial Japan’s final wartime push—lays out the colonial government’s Special Ordinance for Wartime Criminal Cases as applied in Korea. Framed as a “question-and-answer” explanation of new legal provisions, it offers a rare window into the colonial regime’s obsession with internal control as the war turned against Japan.
Buried beneath the bureaucratic tone is unmistakable evidence of civil unrest in wartime Korea. The detailed sections on riots, “public disturbances,” and “obstruction of wartime industries” reveal that protests and resistance were occurring often enough to alarm the colonial authorities into ramping up criminal sentencing guidelines. The penalties were draconian: ringleaders could face death or life imprisonment, anyone taking part could receive up to fifteen years, and even bystanders risked three years in prison or a fine of up to 1,000 yen. The law also reduced the number of police warnings required before a crackdown from three to just one—a clear signal of zero tolerance for dissent.
These extreme measures underscore both the depth of Imperial Japan’s anxiety over maintaining control and the courage of Korean resistance activists who continued to defy colonial authorities despite knowing that even standing nearby at a protest could mean imprisonment—or death.
The following table summarizes the harsh punishments listed in the February 17, 1944 Keijo Nippo article explaining Japan’s “Special Ordinance for Wartime Criminal Cases” in colonial Korea.
| Category / Crime | New Wartime Penalty (1944 Ordinance) |
|---|---|
| Arson (inhabited buildings, trains, ships, coal mines) | Death, life imprisonment, or at least 10 years’ imprisonment |
| Arson (uninhabited property) | Life imprisonment or at least 3 years |
| Arson of aircraft or automobiles | Newly added category; same as above due to military importance |
| Indecent assault / rape / robbery with violence | Death penalty possible; prosecution allowed without victim’s complaint |
| Obstruction of air-defense officials | Up to 7 years’ imprisonment |
| Riot or public disturbance | Ringleader: death, life, or ≥3 years; other participants: 1–15 years or ≤1,000 yen fine; onlookers: ≤3 years or ≤1,000 yen fine; punishment after just one warning |
| Obstruction of public air defense / observation | Death, life, or ≥3 years; damage to meteorological facilities ≤10 years |
| Obstruction of communications | Life imprisonment or at least 1 year |
| Obstruction of vital industries | Up to life imprisonment, including for labor unrest |
| Hoarding or profiteering | At least 5 years’ imprisonment or ≤10,000 yen fine (or both); merchants punished most severely |
| Obstruction of wartime transport | ≥1 year; if injury or death: death, life, or ≥3 years; interfering with trains/ships: life or ≥5 years; if death occurs: death penalty |
| Unlawful home entry | ≥5 years or ≤1,000 yen fine (even if household member consents without master’s approval) |
| Corruption / bribery (including intermediaries) | Intermediaries punished the same as direct bribe-givers |
| Defense attorney limit | Maximum of two defense attorneys, must be appointed within 10 days |
| Trial system change | Appeals reduced from three tiers to two (effective March 15, 1944) |
[Translation]
Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) February 17, 1944
The Character of the Wartime Criminal Special Ordinance: Q&A
A Single Word: ‘Crackdown!’
Particularly Harsh on Black-Market Merchants
Even Intermediaries in Bribery to Be Punished
On February 15, the government simultaneously promulgated the Special Ordinance for Wartime Criminal Cases, Special Ordinance for Wartime Civil Cases, Court Ordinance Wartime Special Provisions, and other related measures, including the Wartime Special Provisions for the National Defense Security Law and Peace Preservation Law for simplifying judicial procedures in Korea, as well as revisions to the Korean Tenancy Mediation Ordinance and Korean Personnel Mediation Ordinance. These will take effect on March 15.
As the Greater East Asia War enters its decisive stage, Imperial Japan’s one hundred million people must mobilize all their strength to achieve a dramatic increase in war power. The decisive strengthening and reorganization of the Korean judicial system has been completed to ensure domestic peace and the stability of the citizens’ duties and rights, which form the basic conditions for the maximum exertion of the nation’s total war power. Henceforth, citizens must live by the principle of “365 days of law observance.”
Among the new wartime judicial decrees, the Special Ordinance for Wartime Criminal Cases strengthens and systematizes substantive criminal penalties to address various crimes arising under wartime conditions. It prepares for any emergencies that may occur under continuous air-raid blackouts as enemy attacks become inevitable. Even apart from such emergencies, it is the most important criminal provision for domestic security under wartime conditions, designed to preserve social tranquility, accomplish the national defense economy, and ensure an ironclad defense against malicious crimes in wartime governance.
The following is a Q&A interview conducted with Mr. Miyazaki Yasuoki, an official of the Criminal Affairs Division, Legal Affairs Bureau, Office of the Governor-General of Korea, to clarify the full scope and character of this Korean Special Ordinance for Wartime Criminal Cases.
 |
| Mr. Miyazaki, Legal Affairs Officer |
(Photo: Mr. Miyazaki, Legal Affairs Officer)
Q: How does the punishment for arson differ from before?
A: Under Article 108 of the Penal Code, arson against an inhabited building, train, locomotive, ship, or coal mine carried a sentence of death, life imprisonment, or at least five years’ imprisonment. Now, this has been raised to death, life imprisonment, or at least ten years’ imprisonment.
Arson against uninhabited properties has previously been punished by at least two years’ imprisonment, but the sentence has now been raised to life imprisonment or at least three years. Aircraft and automobiles are now added as new categories, reflecting their wartime importance as weapons.
Q: What about crimes of indecent assault and robbery accompanied by violence?
A: In Germany, these already carry the death penalty. In particular, this provision aims to impose resolute punishment for lawless acts committed during preparations for air-defense operations or under blackout conditions. All such offenses are now classified as non-complaint crimes: whereas previously crimes such as rape could only be prosecuted upon a formal accusation by the victim or her husband, under wartime conditions arrests may be made immediately upon discovery of the criminal act, without waiting for any such complaint.
Furthermore, the offense of indecent assault and sexual misconduct, which had previously been handled under a special decree concerning wartime criminal punishment, has now been consolidated together with robbery accompanied by violence.
Q: What is “obstruction of official duty against air-defense public officials”?
A: This provision, newly established alongside the crime of treason and insurrection, underscores the critical importance of the air-defense system in this stage of decisive warfare. Any act of violence or intimidation against air-defense personnel in the performance of their duties will incur harsher penalties, punishable by imprisonment for up to seven years.
Q: Who are considered “air-defense public officials”?
A: It naturally includes all government officials involved in air defense. In mainland Japan, air-defense rescue workers are also considered to be public officials.
Q: In wartime riots, how many people constitute a “group”?
A: The number is not fixed; it will be determined by common sense and circumstances.
Q: What punishments apply to rioting?
A: The ringleader shall be punished by death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than three years (formerly one to ten years). Even if there is no ringleader, those who direct the disturbance or take the lead in aiding its momentum shall now face imprisonment of one to fifteen years (formerly six months to seven years). Followers and onlookers who join in are also to be strictly punished: what was once a fine of up to fifty yen has been raised to a fine of up to one thousand yen or imprisonment for up to three years.
When a crowd gathers and the police order it to disperse, the previous rule was that punishment applied only after the order had been given three times and still not obeyed. Under the new provision, punishment now applies after a single order. In such cases, the ringleader may be sentenced to up to ten years’ imprisonment (formerly three years), and others, who were previously subject only to fines, now face imprisonment of up to three years or fines of up to one thousand yen. The public is therefore cautioned to take care not to become entangled in such disturbances.
Q: What is “obstruction of public air defense or observation”?
A: Like the offense of obstructing air-defense officials, this too is a provision newly established under the Special Ordinance for Wartime Criminal Cases in recognition of the critical importance of air defense during wartime. Anyone who destroys an air-raid shelter, public shelter, evacuation site, observation post, or signaling device, or who—even without destroying them—renders an air-raid siren unable to sound, shall be punished by death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than three years. Those who damage meteorological observation buildings or facilities shall be punished by imprisonment for up to ten years
Q: What constitutes “obstruction of public communications”?
A: Cutting postal or telecommunication facilities or wires. Formerly lightly punished under telegraph law, now punishable by life imprisonment or at least one year’s imprisonment.
Q: How about “obstruction of vital industries”?
A: Especially in Korea, where heavy industry is developed, citizens must take great care. This provision has been newly established to ensure the continued execution of industries essential to national defense during wartime. Not only does it apply to aircraft, weapons, and other vital munitions industries, but even when workers cause disturbances over treatment or wages, the maximum penalty prescribed is life imprisonment.
Q: A decisive crackdown is now to be rendered against those engaged in hoarding and withholding goods for profit—acts that most directly concern us ordinary citizens in wartime. In what ways does this differ from the previous provisions?
A: The purpose of this provision is to ensure the smooth balance of supply and demand for daily necessities. Accordingly, anyone who hoards or withholds essential goods with the intent of obtaining illicit business profits shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than five years or a fine of up to ten thousand yen, and, depending on the circumstances, may be subjected to both imprisonment and a fine.
Previously, acts of hoarding or withholding were punishable under Article 105 of the Penal Code, which prescribed imprisonment of at least one year or up to life imprisonment for acts that ‘seriously disrupt the operation of the national economy through disturbances in the financial markets, interference with the production or distribution of essential goods, or other such means.’ However, since not all cases of hoarding or withholding reached that level of economic disruption, this new special decree targets a narrower but more malicious class of offenders—those who hoard or withhold goods with the intent of obtaining illegitimate business profits—who are deemed more blameworthy than those merely violating the earlier regulations on profiteering acts.
Put more plainly, whereas under the previous system both merchants and ordinary individuals were punished equally for hoarding or withholding goods, under the new ordinance merchants are subject to far harsher penalties. In effect, the law’s loopholes have been completely closed.
Q: “Obstruction of wartime traffic” sounds broad—what does it cover?
A: This category includes roads, bridges, railways, signs, and harbor buoys. The provision applies to cases in which these are damaged in a manner that obstructs the operation of trains, streetcars, or ships.
For example, anyone who damages a road, waterway, or bridge and thereby interferes with transportation shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one year (formerly by a fine of not less than two hundred yen or imprisonment for up to two years). If, as a result, a person is killed or injured, the penalty shall be death, life imprisonment, or imprisonment for not less than three years. If the act obstructs the operation of trains, streetcars, or ships, the punishment shall be life imprisonment or imprisonment for not less than five years. If the obstruction concerns a train, streetcar, or ship carrying passengers and results in death, the death penalty shall be imposed — a singularly severe punishment applied without exception. These measures underscore how vital transportation is during wartime.
Q: Home invasions have recently caused serious social concern.
A: The maintenance of social order on the home front during wartime must be upheld without fail. Even if one obtains the consent of the wife or other members of the household, entering another person’s residence without the consent of the master of the house constitutes unlawful entry, punishable by imprisonment for not less than five years or a fine of up to one thousand yen (formerly punishable by imprisonment for not less than three years or a fine of up to fifty yen).
Q: Disciplinary enforcement among government officials is becoming ever more stringent, but where does the focus lie in the present wartime offense of official misconduct?”
A: Officials, who ought to take the lead in guiding the people, must, in accordance with the spirit of the recently promulgated Wartime Public Officials Service Ordinance, convert every aspect of their conduct to a wartime footing. Acts of dereliction in office can by no means be tolerated in the present day. Under this new special ordinance, even those aspects that previously escaped punishment are now comprehensively brought within the scope of the law.
Of particular note for the general public is the newly established crime of ‘the giving and receiving of wartime bribery funds.’ Under the previous bribery statute, no offense was constituted unless the act of bribery was actually carried out. Under the new provisions, however, even a person who, for example, is induced by a corrupt broker to take custody of a bribe for delivery to a third party shall be punished by the same penalties as for the act of bribery itself.
Q: In the criminal procedure provisions, the number of defense attorneys has been limited to two. What is the purpose of this restriction?
A: The aim is to simplify court proceedings. Under the pressing conditions of the present situation, it is only natural to eliminate anything unnecessary. Along with limiting the number of defense attorneys, the period for their appointment has also been set at within ten days, so that the power of the courts may be exercised with greater speed.
Q: Under the new special ordinance, the judicial system will be reduced to two instances of trial, to take effect from March 15. What will happen to cases that are already pending before the courts prior to enforcement?
A: Cases in which arguments before the court of first instance have been concluded before March 15 will continue under the existing three-tier system. Cases that are currently in trial before the first-instance court, or have been filed but not yet heard by that date, will be handled under the new two-tier system.
[Transcription]
京城日報 1944年2月17日
あるは”断”の一字
戦時刑事特別令の性格：一問一答
特に厳しい商人の闇
贈賄はその取次ぎ者も処罰
裁判所令戦時特例、民事特別令、刑事特別令、更に半島における裁判手続簡素化のための国防保安法及び治安維持法の戦時特例に関する法律もこれに付随する朝鮮小作調停令及び朝鮮人事調停令の改正が去る十五日一斉に公布され、三月十五日から実施することとなった。
大東亜戦争が決戦の段階に突入、いまや一億は総力をあげて戦力の飛躍的増強に結集。国家の総合戦力を最高度に発揮するための基礎条件である国内治安の確保と国民権義の安定を期した半島司法体制の決戦的整備強化陣は成った。これにより愈愈国民が”遵法三百六十五日”で行かなければならない。この戦時司法令のうち刑事特別令は戦時下における各種犯罪に対処する為の実体的刑罰規定を整備強化して、今や敵襲必至の情勢下、連続実施する灯火管制下に生ずるかも知れない各種非常事態に備えたのは勿論、それまでならなくとも苟も戦時下、社会の安寧、国防経済の完遂、将又戦時運用に鉄壁を期して悪質犯罪を防がんとする国内治安上最も重要な刑罰規定である。
以下は総督府法務局刑事課事務官宮崎保興氏に一問一答を試みた”朝鮮戦時刑事特別令”の全貌とその性格である。【写真＝宮崎事務官】
問：放火罪は従来と如何に違うか？
答：刑法百八条によると、人の現に住まっている建造物及び電車、汽車、汽船、炭坑に放火した者は死刑、或は無期、五年以上の懲役に処せられていたが、これからは刑罰が重くひきあげられ死刑、無期十年以上の懲役となった。また放火場所が人の居ないところでは従来二年以上の懲役であったが、これまた無期或は三年以上の懲役に引き上げた。また放火対象物で右の外に新しく航空機、自動車が戦時下、兵器の重要性によって新しく加わった。
問：猥褻姦淫罪及び強窃盗罪は？
答：ドイツではすでに極刑をもってのぞんでいる。特にこれは防空態勢下の準備及び灯火管制における不逞な行為に対し断乎たる処罰を期するもので、その中総てが非親告罪となったことは、これまで強姦などは被害者とその夫の告訴によって成立したのが、戦時においては親告をまたなくとも犯罪事実発覚次第いくらでも検挙が出来る。
なお猥褻姦淫罪は戦時犯罪処罰の特令に関する件だったのがこんどは強窃盗罪と一緒に纏めている。
問：防空公務員に対する公務執行妨害罪とは？
答：国政変乱罪と共にこの方は新しく設けたものである。勿論決戦下の防空体制の重要性を現わしている。防空公務員の職務遂行に対する暴行、脅迫も刑罰が過重され、何れも七年以下の懲役に処せられる。
問：防空公務員とは如何なる範囲のものか？
答：防空関係の官公吏をいうのはいうまでもないが、内地では防空救護員も公務員としている。
問：戦時騒擾では、幾名をもって集団と看做すのか？
答：その数は一定していないといっても常識をもって判断する。
問：その刑罰はどんなものか？
答：首魁は死刑、無期及び三年以上の懲役（従来は一年以上十年以下の懲役）首魁がなくても指揮者及び率先して勢を助けたものは、これまで六月以上七年以下が一年以上十五年以下、それに雷同者、野次馬も厳重に処罰することとなり、従来五十円以下の罰金が千円以下の罰金または三年以下の懲役。
多数の者が集って警察官から解散を命ぜられた場合、いままではその命令が三回発せられてなおこれに服従しないときは罰せられたが、こんどはそれが一回となり、その中首魁は十年以下（従来は三年）その他も罰金のみだったのが三年以下の懲役及び千円以下の罰金と刑罰を過重した。若しもの場合、民衆はこのような騒擾に巻き込まれないように注意すべきである。
問：公共防空、観測妨害とは？
答：防空公務の執行妨害と同様にこれも戦時下、防空の重要性によって設けられた戦時刑事特別令であって、防空壕、公共待避壕、避難所、監視所、信号器などを破壊した者、壊さないまでも防空サイレンを鳴らないようにした者も死刑または無期、若しくは三年以上の懲役に処せられる。気象観測の建造物、施設を損壊した者は十年以下の懲役である。
問：公共通信妨害とは何をいうのか？
答：郵便、電気通信建物、工作物及び電線を切断した場合をいうものであって、従来は単なる電信法によって刑は軽かったが、これからは無期または一年以上の体刑となった。
問：重要産業妨害の場合はどうなるか？
答：半島は特に重工業が発達しているので、余程民衆は注意すべきである。
戦時下の国防重要産業の遂行を確保せんがために新しく規定されたものである。航空機その他兵器、軍需関係の重要工業は勿論、その建造物、施設を損壊し待遇や賃銀の問題で労務者が騒動を起した場合でも最高無期懲役まで規定せられている。
問：戦時下われわれ庶民大衆に最も問題になる買溜め、売惜しみの輩に対し”断”が下されるが従来と異なる点は？
答：目的とするところは生活必需品の円滑なる需給関係を確保するにある。従って今回の対象は業務上不正の利益を得る目的をもって生活必需品を買占め、または売惜しんだ者に対しては五年以上の懲役または一万円以下の罰金に処せられ、情によっては罰金の上に体刑を併せ科せられることになっている。
従来この種買溜め、売惜しみに対しては刑法百五条の”金融界の擾乱、重要物資の生産および配給の阻害その他の方法によって国民経済の運行を著しく阻害し”に対して一年以上無期懲役が科せられているが、この程度まで国民経済を深く阻害するに到らずといって単に”暴利を得て物品の売惜しみ、買占めをなす者”に対する暴利行為等取締規則に抵触する者より悪辣なる”業務上不正の利益を得る目的をもつ者”に対し今回の特令が下ったものである。
もっと解り易くいえば今までの買占め買惜しみに対する処罰は商売人でも普通の個人でも同じであったものが商売人の場合は厳罰をもって臨むことになったもので、法の穴を全面的に地均らしたのである。
問：戦時往来妨害というと非常に範囲が大きいが具体的にはどうなっているか？
答：道路、橋梁、鉄道、標識、港湾浮標などがこれに入る。これらを損壊し汽車、電車、船舶の運行を阻害する場合に適用される。
例えば道路、水路、橋梁を破損し交通を邪魔した者は一年以上の懲役（従来は二百円以上の罰金または二年以下の懲役）そのために、たまたま人が死傷した場合は死刑、無期または三年以上の懲役。そのため、汽車、電車、船舶の運行を妨害した場合は無期または五年以上の懲役、人が乗っている汽車、電車、船舶を妨害し、そのため人が死んだ場合は死刑ただ一本をもって臨むという厳刑である。
戦時下交通運輸を如何に重大視しているかが証明されよう。
問：家宅侵入も最近しばしば深刻な問題を生んでいるが。
答：決戦下銃後の社会治安は断じて護らねばならぬ。たとい主婦、家人の承諾を得ても主人の承諾を得ずして他人の住居に入ると不法侵入になり五年以上の懲役または千円以下の罰金である（従前は三年以上の懲役または五十円以下の罰金）
問：官公吏の綱紀粛正はますます峻厳になって行くが今回の戦時涜職罪の重点はどこにあるか？
答：民衆に率先、指導の任にあるべき官公吏はさきに公布された戦時官吏服務令の心構えで総てを戦時に切り換えねばならぬ。今日職を涜すが如き断じてあってはならぬ。今回の特令により今までは処罰出来なかった面をも漏れなく把握することになった。
特に一般が注意すべきは『戦時贈賄資金の授受』の罪である。従来の贈賄罪は事実において贈賄しなければ罪を構成しなかったが、今回より例えば悪ブローカーに乗ぜられ贈賄物を第三者に伝達すべく預かっても贈賄の罪と同じ刑に処せられる。
問：刑事手続関係中、弁護人が二名以内に制限されたが主旨は如何？
答：裁判の簡捷化にある、喫緊の現時局下必要以上のものは排除するのが当然である。弁護人の数を制限すると共に選任の時期を十日以内としたのも裁判の力を迅速に発揮しようとするにある。
問：新特別令にすれば二審別となり三月十五日から実施されるが実施前に裁判所に繋属中の事件はどうなるか？
答：三月十五日以前に第一審裁判所の弁論を終結した事件は従来通り三審制で続ける。第一審において現に公判中のものまたは公判前の受付をなしたものは二審制になる。
Source: National Library of Korea, Digital Newspaper Archive
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