Korean edict of annexation pact lacked state seal
By Lee Tae-hoon
A Korean scholar has unveiled evidence proving that the Japan-Korea annexation treaty of 1910 was invalid under international law.
Lee Tae-jin, professor emeritus at Seoul National University, released historical documents that show the century-old annexation pact was void because Korea’s proclamation of the treaty lacked the nation’s state seal.
According to Lee, the original copy of the Korean proclamation contained only King Sunjong’s private seal, which was used solely for administrative approval. The Korean edict lacked his signature and the required state seal
In contrast, the Japanese edict of the treaty had Japan’s state seal and the signature of Emperor Meiji, who signed it with his personal name Mutsuhito.
The discrepancies in the format of the two royal documents counter Japan’s assertion that the annexation took effect legally with the approval of King Sunjong.
The controversial treaty was signed on Aug. 22, 1910, between pro-Japanese Prime Minister Lee Wan-yong and Japanese Governor General of Korea Terauchi Masatake.
The pact claims that Korea’s king “makes complete and permanent cession” to Japan over Korea.
“The documents show that the annexation treaty didn’t meet legal requirements,” Lee said. “When you compare the two edicts, it’s obvious that King Sunjong never agreed to the treaty.”
For years, activists from both Korea and Japan have demanded that Japan admit the treaty was illegal because it was forced upon the Korean people. On Tuesday, Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan expressed deep regret over the suffering inflicted during Japan’s colonial rule from 1910 to 1945.
However, experts said his remarks fell short of expectations as they imply that Japan’s forced annexation of Korea was legitimate, though morally wrong.
“Kan’s remarks appear to be a repeat of Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama’s apology in 1995, through which the Japanese government admitted for the first time that annexation was unjust, though it still maintained that it was valid,” Doh See-hwan, a research fellow at the Northeast Asian History Foundation said.
He claimed that all remarks by Japanese prime ministers, including Junichiro Koizumi in 2005, were empty words because they ignored the fact that the treaty failed to meet legal requirements.
The two nations normalized diplomatic relations in 1965 with the Treaty of Basic Relations, which declared that all treaties or agreements signed before Aug. 22, 1910, were “already null and void.”
However, Japan continues to claim that the annexation was valid at that time and was later nullified by Korea’s liberation in 1945.
The copies of the edict will be displayed at an upcoming historic exhibition on modern history of Korea-Japan relations to be held Aug. 20 to 30 at the National Assembly Library.
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