Recognition and Representation of the Korean Provisional Government in Japanese Academia and High School History Textbooks

In the first half of the twentieth century, during the Japanese colonial period, the Japanese general government in Korea and the Japanese central government did not recognize the Korean Provisional Government, dismissed it as an illegal organization(“shadow government”) and continuously suppressed its activities. As a result, the perception, description and evaluation of the Korean Provisional Government in some Japanese academic research and history textbooks remained very weak and scarce. In addition, many inaccurate and negative accounts have been found. Apart from the works of Sassa Mitsuaki(佐佐充昭), there are few contemporary works by Japanese scholars on the Provisional Government. Among Japanese history textbooks (on Japanese history and world history), those published by Shikkyo Publishing House stand out for giving a brief but relatively accurate account of the Provisional Government. Therefore, it is necessary to raise awareness of the Korean Provisional Government among Japanese scholars, promote comprehensive research and develop better ways to portray the Korean Provisional Government in Japanese textbook narratives. In this context, it is necessary to seek systematic solutions in the short, medium and long term. First, it will be necessary to strengthen and revitalize exchanges with international scholars and educators (especially Japanese scholars), including the promotion of more active joint research and joint publications. Second, it is necessary to promote research on the Provisional Government by Korean and foreign scholars and to internationalize, popularize and promote the results of such work. Third, more efforts should be made to improve the presentation of the activities of the Provisional Government in Japanese academic books, introductory books, humanities books and history textbooks. Fourth, Korean academic, educational and civil society organizations should promote more active and rigorous research and education on the subject. Fifthly, it is necessary to conduct free and honest research on the realities, achievements, successes and limitations of the Korean Provisional Government and the Korean Liberation Army. It will be important to promote discourse and storytelling and to create diverse content that can be consumed in everyday life. Finally, we must be careful not to ideologize under the influence of a particular political ideology or a teleological view of history in the way we perceive, evaluate and describe the Korean Provisional Government. In particular, it is necessary to reject ideologically biased perspectives from the Republic of Korea (South Korea), North Korea, Yanbian, China, Chinese and Japanese academia, Western academia and so on.