SDHF Newsletter No.251 Gunkanjima (Battlehsip Insland) No.4

Gunkanjima (Battleship Island): A World Heritage Site Soiled by Korea
–Another distortion of history, akin to the “comfort women”
By Matsuki Kunitoshi
Series No.4: Part 2: Chapter 6

September 12, 2019

The alleged abuse of Korean workers in the movie Gunkanjima was played up to the hilt. The testimonies of Koreans in published materials such as Listen to Gunkanjima and Chikuho Gunkanjima assert that, under extremely poor living conditions, Koreans were forced to engage in dangerous and hard labor that defies description and suffered from continuous Japanese racism and lynching. How true, though, are these Koreans assertions?
Part II will clearly and concretely detail life in Hashima (Gunkanjima) at that time, based on testimonies of former Hashima residents, based on the findings of experts and on information this author obtained during an on-the-scene investigation conducted in November 2017.
Chapter 6 will present the following facts that oppose the claims made within Gunkanjima.

*Scribbling, such as “Mom, I miss you so much,” was set-up. It was the creation of a female recording staff member. (She later admitted this.)
*The law did not force children to engage in hard labor.
*Korean workers were exempt from dangerous work. Dangerous work was done by skilled and experienced Japanese workers. If an accident occurs, then many, both Japanese and Koreans, will suffer.
*No labor was performed with a pickax. Remarkable technical innovations in mining occurred and new mining machines powered by high pressured air put an end to the era of pickaxes.
*Working hours were the same among Japanese and Korean workers.
*No physical violence was committed against Koreans by Japanese. Korean workers were under supervision of Koreans.
*The policy of the Central Cooperative Society: “Physical punishment is very proof of a leader’s inefficiency” (So written in the guideline.)
*The rate of mortality was the same among Japanese and Korean workers.

These facts have been verified by concrete materials.

URL:　 https://www.sdh-fact.com/book-article/1400/
PDF:　 https://www.sdh-fact.com/CL/Gunkanjima3.pdf

Questions are welcome.

MOTEKI Hiromichi, Acting Chairman
for KASE Hideaki, Chairman
Society for the Dissemination of Historical Fact