In February 1904, Japan forced the Korean feudal government to conclude the “Korea-Japan Protocol” in a bid to create conditions for colonializing it.

In order to conclude the aggressive treaty, Hayashi, the then Japanese diplomatic minister in Korea, visited Emperor Kojong to urge him to give up all relations with other countries and discuss at a ministerial meeting the measures for promoting “friendship and cooperation” only with Japan.

Kojong made clear his refusal by giving no answer to the gangster-like demand.

As the attempt failed, Japan dispatched huge armed forces to Korea to put it under its military occupation.

Maechonyarok (a diary about historical facts from 1864 to 1910 by Hwang Hyon, a feudal Confucian) revealed the Japanese occupation of Hansong (capital of the then feudal government of Korea) as follows: The Japanese army that arrived in Hansong from Inchon consisted of 50 000 soldiers with over 10 000 horses, and they stationed in 18 places. As a result, the whole country was turned into a theatre swarming with Japanese troops.

With an eye to fabricating the “Korea-Japan Protocol” at any cost, Hayashi concluded a “secret agreement” with traitor Ri Ji Yong on January 23, 1904.

The “agreement” was aimed at embroiling Korea in the supposed Japanese war of aggression against Russia and using it as a theatre of war and completely subjugating it in the future.

As its content was run through with a gangster-like demand that totally violated the sovereignty of a nation and the “agreement” itself was illegally concluded by bribing an individual in disregard of the government, the Korean feudal government totally rejected it and declared “strict neutrality.”

Some Korean ministers opposed the conclusion of the protocol against Japan’s schemes for subjugation of their country.

Much upset by this, Japan railroaded the “Korea-Japan Protocol” on February 23, 1904, thus creating a condition for military occupation of Korea and paving the way to more thoroughly control its internal affairs.

Later, it fabricated the “Korea-Japan Agreement” in 1905 and the “Korea-Japan Annexation Treaty” in 1910, thus reducing Korea into its complete colony.

The courses of cooking up those criminal treaties lay bare the crafty and vicious moves of Japan to occupy Korea.

After occupying Korea, the Japanese imperialists imposed untold misfortunes and pains upon the Korean people for decades, forcing them into the destiny of colonial slavery.

It is a legitimate moral obligation for Japan to make an apology and reparation for its crime-woven history as it plunged the destiny of a nation into misery for nearly half a century.

However, Japan is going impudent, denying and distorting the historical truth, far from honestly apologizing, repenting and thoroughly liquidating its crime-woven history.

Every sin brings its punishment with it.

Japan’s trick to beautify and justify its dirty past can never work.

Han Kyong Ho