News Sado gold mines: Japan's controversial UNESCO World Heritage bid

[thomas]

Last January, the Japanese government decided to push ahead with a plan to nominate a gold and silver mine site on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture for the 2023 UNESCO World Heritage list against the fierce opposition of South Korea in the light of the 1,500 Koreans who were subject to forced labour during Japan's 1910-45 colonization of the Korean Peninsula. Back then, Japan's Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said:

"We are not giving any diplomatic consideration to South Korea," Hayashi said. "We are comprehensively considering within the government what would be most effective" in seeking the U.N. Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization's World Heritage designation, he added. In the same session, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said, "We place emphasis on issues pertaining to historic understanding," apparently referring to South Korean media reports about the issue. "Japan will firmly respond to unjust slanders," he added.

And Sanae Takaichi, known for her flirtations with the extreme right:

"This is a situation that relates to the state's honour. We should nominate the site in fiscal 2021."

By the end of January, the government had, in fact, nominated the Sado gold mines. More here.

Last Monday, the NYT published a piece shedding some light on the issue and on the fact that even inhabitants of Sado are not aware of the darker side of the mines.

The mines supplied precious metals to the shoguns who ruled Japan during the two and a half centuries when the country was all but cut off from the rest of the world. Yet there is a darker part of Sado's history that Mr. Iwasaki, 50, knows little about: the period during World War II when about 1,500 Koreans were conscripted to work in the mines as subjects of Japan's colonial rule. "People in my generation don't know about those workers in the mines," Mr. Iwasaki said. In Japan, such history is often viewed as best forgotten, or at least consigned to a settled past. But in South Korea, the wounds of Japan's 35-year occupation remain raw, and that has made Sado the latest flash point between these two Asian neighbors that seem irrevocably divided.

It's not so much about preventing the nomination, but telling the whole story:

"When you tell the whole story of the history, you respect the history of that country," said David Palmer, an associate professor at the University of Melbourne in Australia who has studied Japanese mining. Even activists in South Korea say they would support the nomination if Japan acknowledged the complete history. "If you actually go to Sado Island, it's beautiful, and I think it's worth sharing with the world, as long as the full history behind it is included," said Jung Hye-gyung, a historian who works with the Foundation for Victims of Forced Mobilization by Imperial Japan in Seoul. Records kept by the Japanese government and Mitsubishi, which purchased one of the Sado mines from the government in 1896, show that at least 1,500 workers were brought from the Korean Peninsula to toil in the mines between 1940 and 1945, according to Yasuto Takeuchi, a Japanese historian who has published several books on wartime Korean labor.

Japan Wants to Showcase Gold Mines’ History. Just Not All of It. (Published 2022)

A bid for a UNESCO World Heritage designation is the latest flash point between Japan and South Korea over Japanese colonial abuses during World War II.

www.nytimes.com

This is a rehashed debate of the Gunkanshima issue, when the coal mine of the island was formally approved as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2015, as part of Japan's Sites of Japan's "Meiji Industrial Revolution: Iron and Steel, Shipbuilding and Coal Mining". After approval, Japan faced immediate criticism for omitting the issue of forced labour. A UNESCO committee had concluded that Japan's effort and progress in implementing appropriate measures to commemorate the victims and acknowledge the whole history of the island were unsatisfactory and requested Japan to keep its promises. Back then, Foreign Minister Kishida, the current PM, promised "to incorporate appropriate measures into the interpretive strategy to remember the victims, such as establishing an information centre".

Hashima Island - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Petaris]

I feel that any site is likely to have a jaded history depending on who is asked. The site should be protected so that a part of history isn't destroyed/forgotten however that history, all of it, should be there for inspection.

I honestly get a bit tired of the same old rhetoric reoccurring all the time. Its just a merry-go-round of countries yelling at each other because of things that happened in the past. I wish everyone would just realize that at some point or other every country has been a right bastard and there are no "innocents", as far as countries are concerned, to be found anywhere.

I also get tired of "modern" morals/ideals being applied to things that happened in the distant past and that somehow making whatever it was a "new" atrocity that needs to be corrected/apologized for.

Sorry for the rant!

 

[thomas]

Yes, it is sad to see how things play out between the two neighbours. It's a vicious circle none of them seems intent to break. However, for the sake of historical truth and rapprochement, I hope those responsible have learned from Gunkanshima.

 

[johnnyG]

When it's china and korea becoming involved with each other:

 

[Lothor]

I feel that any site is likely to have a jaded history depending on who is asked. The site should be protected so that a part of history isn't destroyed/forgotten however that history, all of it, should be there for inspection.

I honestly get a bit tired of the same old rhetoric reoccurring all the time. Its just a merry-go-round of countries yelling at each other because of things that happened in the past. I wish everyone would just realize that at some point or other every country has been a right bastard and there are no "innocents", as far as countries are concerned, to be found anywhere.

I also get tired of "modern" morals/ideals being applied to things that happened in the distant past and that somehow making whatever it was a "new" atrocity that needs to be corrected/apologized for.

Sorry for the rant!

How countries come to terms with their bastard (I like your word so I'll use it) history is a key factor. Nobody yells at Germany or South Africa for their Nazi and apartheid pasts because both countries made an honest attempt to come to terms with them. Japan has swept its dark side under the carpet, often by giving money with the tacit understanding that the victim shuts up and ideally forgets. An important part of Jungian psychology is shining a light on the shadow (which I believe both people and countries have) and argues that the process is beneficial for healing. Japan always squirms and furiously denies when a light comes near, and I'd love to have the capacity to analyze how that has affected the psyche of the country (I suspect quite a lot) but unfortunately lack the education to do it.

I share your concern about applying modern standards to people of past generations. For example, I have a number of vintage British comedy books written in the 60s and 70s, which are embarrassingly racist and homophobic by today's standards. Should the authors now be posthumously vilified for reflecting the language and attitudes that were normal at the time? Should I throw away the books? However, whereas views on some things may change over time, forced labour has always been a no-no!

 

[mdchachi]

Should I throw away the books?

No, you should display them on a prominent shelf along with your little black sambo figurines.

However, whereas views on some things may change over time, forced labour has always been a no-no!

Not in America. Slavery was legal until 1865.

 

[johnnyG]

Not in America. Slavery was legal until 1865.

I've sometimes been puzzled by how the US 13th amendment is worded. It's quite simple, and it abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, so I'd very much assume that they got it right. But...

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

So it's okay as a punishment for crime. I guess this effectively means that you can be put in prison, but to me, incarceration is something different to slavery or involuntary servitude. Maybe it's that some prison sentences might include reference to 'hard labor'? (Edit--this last bit is discussed in the Learn More section of the link.)

The 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

SECTION. 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

constitutioncenter.org

 

[Petaris]

Not in America. Slavery was legal until 1865.

And not anywhere else either if you go back different amounts of time frames.

However, whereas views on some things may change over time, forced labour has always been a no-no!

If the positions had been reversed, would Korea have done any different? Maybe, maybe not. That does not justify it or defend it though .

 

[mdchachi]

I've sometimes been puzzled by how the US 13th amendment is worded. It's quite simple, and it abolished slavery and involuntary servitude, so I'd very much assume that they got it right. But...

"Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction."

So it's okay as a punishment for crime. I guess this effectively means that you can be put in prison, but to me, incarceration is something different to slavery or involuntary servitude. Maybe it's that some prison sentences might include reference to 'hard labor'? (Edit--this last bit is discussed in the Learn More section of the link.)

The 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

SECTION. 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction.

constitutioncenter.org

That little loophole regarding incarceration is the root of the prison pipeline we still have vestiges of today.

How a 13th Amendment Loophole Created America’s Carceral State | Prison Legal News

 

[日本語 Class]

I feel that any site is likely to have a jaded history depending on who is asked. The site should be protected so that a part of history isn't destroyed/forgotten however that history, all of it, should be there for inspection.

I honestly get a bit tired of the same old rhetoric reoccurring all the time. Its just a merry-go-round of countries yelling at each other because of things that happened in the past. I wish everyone would just realize that at some point or other every country has been a right bastard and there are no "innocents", as far as countries are concerned, to be found anywhere.

I also get tired of "modern" morals/ideals being applied to things that happened in the distant past and that somehow making whatever it was a "new" atrocity that needs to be corrected/apologized for.

Sorry for the rant!

Totally agree

How countries come to terms with their bastard (I like your word so I'll use it) history is a key factor. Nobody yells at Germany or South Africa for their Nazi and apartheid pasts because both countries made an honest attempt to come to terms with them. Japan has swept its dark side under the carpet, often by giving money with the tacit understanding that the victim shuts up and ideally forgets. An important part of Jungian psychology is shining a light on the shadow (which I believe both people and countries have) and argues that the process is beneficial for healing. Japan always squirms and furiously denies when a light comes near, and I'd love to have the capacity to analyze how that has affected the psyche of the country (I suspect quite a lot) but unfortunately lack the education to do it.

I share your concern about applying modern standards to people of past generations. For example, I have a number of vintage British comedy books written in the 60s and 70s, which are embarrassingly racist and homophobic by today's standards. Should the authors now be posthumously vilified for reflecting the language and attitudes that were normal at the time? Should I throw away the books? However, whereas views on some things may change over time, forced labour has always been a no-no!

True, seems Japan avoids to fully address important issues in the country, and I do think it affects people psych, I would like to know more about the topic too

 

[thomas]

How convenient: UNESCO officials have found part of the recommendation document submitted for the nomination insufficient and said a revised version would be submitted in September. Consequently, it would be difficult to have the ancient gold and silver mines on Sado island in Niigata Prefecture included next year on UNESCO's World Heritage List, education minister Shinsuke Suematsu said today.

While Suematsu insisted there was nothing wrong with the original document, he said a new one would be sent in as not doing so would delay the recommendation process. South Korea had called for the withdrawal of the nomination on the grounds the Sado complex is strongly associated with Japan using forced Korean labor during its 1910-1945 colonization of the Korean Peninsula. The government submitted the recommendation in February, claiming the Sado complex continued to use traditional manual mining techniques between the 16th and 19th centuries even as the rest of the world was mechanizing the mining process. Ordinarily, an advisory panel to UNESCO assesses whether to grant World Heritage status to a candidate site. An evaluation of the Sado mine complex was expected to have been made at a World Heritage Committee meeting in summer 2023.

That should give Japan enough time to amend the recommendation and present a more accurate picture of what happened at the Sado mines.

Including Sado gold mine site on World Heritage List is ‘difficult’ | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

 

[thomas]

UNESCO played the ball back to Japan: according to the Cultural Affairs Agency, a UNESCO advisory group has asked Japan to submit more details about its proposal to list the Sado Island gold and silver mine complex as a World Heritage site. The U.N. body recommended that the nomination for the Niigata Prefecture mine be returned to Japan for additional information. Sometimes, the World Heritage Committee, responsible for the final decision, chooses to register a site even if the advisory body suggests otherwise. This situation arose after Japan reapplied last year to register the mine complex, despite objections from South Korea, which argues the site is associated with the forced labour of Koreans during wartime.

The committee, which consists of representatives from 21 state parties, will make a formal decision at its meeting in New Delhi, India, in July. Both Japan and South Korea sit on the rotating committee this year. The committee evaluates site nominations based on the advisory body's decision and categorizes them into the same four categories -- inscription, referral, deferral, or denial. If the committee also decides to refer the nomination back to Japan, the inscription of the site will be postponed until next year or later. [...] If the inscription of Sado mine is approved, Japan will have a total of 26 World Heritage sites.

UNESCO seeks more details on Japan's Sado mine for heritage listing

A UNESCO advisory body has recommended that Japan provide additional details regarding its submission of a gold and silver mine complex on Sado Island for World Heritage list registration, Japan's cultural affairs agency says.

english.kyodonews.net

 

[thomas]

South Korea and Japan seemed to have reached an understanding.

Japan has agreed to recognize the history of wartime Korean labour at the Sado gold and silver mine in Niigata Prefecture to secure the site's UNESCO World Cultural Heritage status. South Korea had strongly criticized Japan for not acknowledging its past regarding the wartime use of Korean labour under harsh conditions. Multiple officials from Japan and South Korea have said that Seoul is now satisfied that Tokyo is taking appropriate steps to explain the site's history. When meeting with the World Heritage Committee to decide on the registration, officials said that the Japanese government plans to show that these workers played a significant role in the mine's operations.

In June, UNESCO notified Japan of the "referral" recommendation--the second-highest recommendation for a World Heritage candidate after "inscription"--for the mine complex. UNESCO called on Japan to remove areas that were largely developed during the Meiji Era (1868-1912) and onward from the proposed Sado Island Gold Mines site, which was one of the world's leading gold production centers in the 17th century. Additionally, it requested that explanations and exhibits covering the mines' entire history, including the Meiji Era and onward, be provided. During World War II, thousands of laborers from the Korean Peninsula, then under Japanese rule, were mobilized to work in the mines on Sado Island. The South Korean government insists it was a site of "forced labor." Gaining the understanding of South Korea, a member country of the committee, was a significant challenge, as the committee conventionally makes registration decisions by unanimous agreement. Following UNESCO's recommendation in June, the governments of Japan and South Korea began behind-the-scenes negotiations, taking into account the potential for a backlash in their respective public opinion.

Japan to ‘cite’ role of Korean labor at historic Sado gold mine | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

South Korea says listing Japan's Sado mine as World Heritage site likely

South Korea's Foreign Ministry says that the registration of a gold and silver mine complex on Japan's Sado Island as a UNESCO World Heritage site seems likely, as it believes the two countries are reaching a consensus over the site being listed despite its links to wartime forced Korean labor.

english.kyodonews.net

 

[Lothor]

Hmm. Japan made a similar promise that it didn't keep for Gunkanjima. Compare these two articles from 2015 (Japan's promise) and 2018 (Japan's broken promise). I hope that, with a less stridently nationalistic government in power, Japan will do better this time.

Japan sites get world heritage status after forced labour acknowledgement

Use of Korean forced labourers at some of the 23 Meiji period sites Japan says contributed to its transformation from feudalism to modern economy will be acknowledged

www.theguardian.com

Gunkanjima / Battleship Island, Nagasaki: World Heritage Historical Site or Urban Ruins Tourist Attraction? - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

[…]

apjjf.org

 

[salyavin]

Great example Lothor! Not only the forced labor acknowledgement issue but this was interesting:
"In contrast, Hashima is being left to rot, as if conservation of buildings would ruin the image that draws tourists to the site. This failure to conduct conservation to preserve the structures on the site ignores the "Integrity" section of the World Heritage Committee approval document"
Been a while since I looked at it but when I was last buzzing it in a cesna it looked like it was going to crap and sure enough they were supposed to maintain it to some degree. What kind of world heritage site is that?

 

[thomas]

Just in:

UNESCO adds Japan's Sado mine site to World Cultural Heritage list - The Mainichi

BREAKING NEWS: UNESCO adds Japan's Sado mine site to World Cultural Heritage list (Kyodo)

mainichi.jp

 

[thomas]

Here is a bit more info on the decision:

The decision brings the total number of World Heritage sites in Japan to 26, of which 21 are designated as cultural and five as natural. Although the world's mines were mechanized during the 16th to 19th centuries, the gold mines of Sado island in Niigata Prefecture developed a system of producing pure gold through traditional methods at the time. In the 17th century, it became one of the largest gold producers in the world. The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), an advisory body to UNESCO, which conducted a preliminary review, recommended an "information inquiry" to request supplementary explanations regarding the site. The committee approved Japan's response and decided to register the site. After negotiations between Japan and South Korea over the issue of "forced labor" during the war, the two countries agreed to install an exhibit at a facility on Sado Island that explains the harsh working conditions of those brought over from the Korean Peninsula and elsewhere.

Sado gold mine site registered as World Cultural Heritage site | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis

佐渡島(さど)の金山 - 新潟県ホームページ

www.sado-goldmine.jp

The Sado Gold Mine and Japan’s ‘History War’ Versus the Memory of Korean Forced Laborers - Asia-Pacific Journal: Japan Focus

[…]

apjjf.org

Official link:

Sado Gold Mine

The Sado gold mine is a generic term for gold and silver mines located on the island of Sado in Niigata Prefecture.

jref.com

 

[thomas]

After Japan held a memorial ceremony, the Sado Island Gold Mines are back in the news. This summer, they were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site after the country moved past years of disputes with South Korea and reluctantly acknowledged the dark side of its history.

AP shed some light on why Japan blurs this WWII atrocity.

Japan held a memorial ceremony on Sunday near the Sado Island Gold Mines. This summer, the country listed the mines as a UNESCO World Heritage site after the country moved past years of historical disputes with South Korea and reluctantly acknowledged the mines' dark history. However, it has not offered an apology. At these mines, hundreds of Koreans were forced to labour under abusive and brutal conditions during World War II, historians say. Japanese officials at Sunday's ceremony time paid tribute for the first to "all workers" including Korean laborers who died at the mines, without acknowledging they were forced laborers — part of what critics call a persistent policy of whitewashing Japan's history of sexual and labor exploitation before and during the war. The ceremony, supposed to mend wounds further, renewed tensions between the two sides. South Korea boycotted Sunday's memorial service, citing unspecified disagreements with Tokyo over the event. "As a resident, I must say (their absence) is very disappointing after all the preparations we made," said Sado Mayor Ryugo Watanabe. "I wish we could have held the memorial with South Korean attendees."

Japan holds first memorial for 'all workers' at Sado gold mines but blurs WWII atrocity. Why?

Japan hs held a memorial ceremony near the Sado Island Gold Mines, listed in July as a UNESCO World Heritage site after the country moved past years of disputes with South Korea and reluctantly acknowledged the dark side of their history.

apnews.com

South Korean officials and families of the Korean labourers scheduled to participate in the event did not attend, as the country's Foreign Ministry stated Saturday that it was difficult for the two nations to reach a consensus on the event. This was also due to the presence of Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Ikuina Akiko, a former member of the Abeha group who decided to personally visit the Yasukuni Shrine last year.

Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Ikuina Akiko shunned by South Korea's delegation​

Japan holds Sado mine laborers' commemoration, South Korea abstains - The Mainichi

NIIGATA (Kyodo) -- An event to commemorate Japanese and Korean laborers who worked at the gold and silver mine complex on Japan's Sado Island during W

mainichi.jp

 

[Lothor]

After Japan held a memorial ceremony, the Sado Island Gold Mines are back in the news. This summer, they were listed as a UNESCO World Heritage site after the country moved past years of disputes with South Korea and reluctantly acknowledged the dark side of its history.

AP shed some light on why Japan blurs this WWII atrocity.

Japan holds first memorial for 'all workers' at Sado gold mines but blurs WWII atrocity. Why?

Japan hs held a memorial ceremony near the Sado Island Gold Mines, listed in July as a UNESCO World Heritage site after the country moved past years of disputes with South Korea and reluctantly acknowledged the dark side of their history.

apnews.com

South Korean officials and families of the Korean labourers scheduled to participate in the event did not attend, as the country's Foreign Ministry stated Saturday that it was difficult for the two nations to reach a consensus on the event. This was also due to the presence of Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Ikuina Akiko, a former member of the Abeha group who decided to personally visit the Yasukuni Shrine last year.

View attachment 121628
Parliamentary Vice Foreign Minister Ikuina Akiko shunned by South Korea's delegation​

Japan holds Sado mine laborers' commemoration, South Korea abstains - The Mainichi

NIIGATA (Kyodo) -- An event to commemorate Japanese and Korean laborers who worked at the gold and silver mine complex on Japan's Sado Island during W

mainichi.jp

This is depressing. It's all to easy to imagine the meetings behind closed doors, in which officials discuss how little acknowledgement they can get away with that will be acceptable to UNESCO and other interested parties.

 

[thomas]

UNESCO's World Heritage Committee has asked Japan to further improve signage at the Sado Island Gold Mines so it better reflects the site's full history, including the Korean labourers who worked there during the Second World War. An exhibition featuring records of workers from the Korean Peninsula opened in July 2024 after the mines were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Whether the site should explicitly use the term "forced labour" remains a point of dispute between Japan and South Korea. The committee's latest resolution avoids the wording, but a South Korean Foreign Ministry source said Seoul's position had been reflected to some extent. When UNESCO granted World Heritage status to the mines in 2024, it also recommended that Japan provide a fuller account of the site's history. Senior officials from Japan and South Korea met twice this year to discuss how Tokyo might respond. Among the changes, new information boards have been installed at the former sites of dormitories and communal kitchens used by Korean labourers. The committee's latest recommendation noted that Japan had taken some steps to improve the presentation of the site's history.

The recommendation also called on Japan to continue close discussions with South Korea over how the gold mines' full history should be presented. Both governments have indicated they intend to keep talking. However, finding common ground is expected to remain difficult given Japan's reluctance and South Korea's long-standing insistence on a fuller account of the site's wartime history.

UNESCO asks for improved info on Korean labor at Sado mines | The Asahi Shimbun: Breaking News, Japan News and Analysis