“The March 1st movement was a major turning point in Korean history.” (Michael J. Seth).

Discuss

From the 19th century onwards, the advent of foreign forces in Korea had
dramatically affected its society, polity and economy leading to major
upheavals resulting in the end of the traditional Choson Dynasty by 1910
through Japan’s occupation which it achieved with a series of policies and
treaties mainly following the Russo – Japanese war (1905) making Korea
practically a Japanese Province as it gave control of its administration and
foreign affairs. 2yrs later, Ito Hirobumi, the resident general in Korea, signed a
full-fledged treaty with the Prime Minister, Yi Wan-Yong which allowed him to
assume judicial sovereignty as well. Eventually, by August 22, 1910 Japan
completely annexed Korea. Scholars like PETER DUUS, RAMON H. MYERS and
MICHAEL E. ROBINSON point out through coercion and tight control of public
life in the first 9yrs of Japan’s rule (‘dark period’) and throughout the first
decade, military rule (Budan seiji) was established, culminating in major
upheavals of 1919 that forced Japan to modify its control policies ushering the
era of Cultural rule (bunka seiji). We will be discussing the major movement
that caused this change that is the March 1st uprising.

Firstly, let us look at the origin and course of the uprising. The Immediate
cause of the movement was the inspiration from WOODROW WILSON’S
famous declaration- ‘FOURTEEN POINTS’ at the Paris Peace conference on 8
January , 1918 which stated the principle of humanism , self determination of
people and international cooperation as the basis of the new era of peace ,
though it was meant for remaking of political boundaries in Europe , it lifted
spirits of colonized people around the world as Asians struggling under colonial
rule felt they had found a world power that will guarantee them political self
determination , especially the Korean nationalists in exile ( of Shanghai ,
Russian far east and Unites states ) quickly seized upon his principles as major
power interest in the plight of oppressed nations throughout the world .The
first exile group to respond was the Korean National Association (Taehan
Kungminhoe) in Hawaii (led by Syngman Rhee) whose members met in San
Francisco to design a petition to be sent to the ongoing Paris Conference ,
Rhee along with Chong Han-gyong went to Washington DC to get passports for
the same , however as the latter had accepted Japan’s annexation of Korea , it
did not grant them for the fear of angering the Japanese government . Another
effort was made by the members of ‘Korean Young men’s association’ in
Shanghai (during summer of 1919) to dispatch Kim Kyu-sik to Paris to lobby for
Korean independence, but the issue was not tabled. The scenario in Korea
became more synchronized to the outside efforts by Korean nationalists after
the death of Emperor Kojong (on 22 Jan, 1919), most Koreans started blaming
the Japanese for poisoning him as he didn’t sign an oath opposing
independence. Soon the nation began to despair any hope of escaping the
Japanese grip and many felt that they will have to accept their miserable fate
with the planned funeral of the emperor on March 3. However, the Korean
students in Tokyo Japan began meeting in secret from December 1918 calling
themselves as the ‘Korean Youth Independence Corps’ and drafted a
‘Declaration of Independence’ (written by Yi Kwang-Su) on Februrary8, 1919
whose copies were sent to Japanee Cabinet members, members of the diet
and Korean Governor General as well as to various newspapers and
periodicals, students also held a meeting the same day and soon took to
violence but the police dispersed everyone. Inflamed by events in Japan and
inspired by the Tokyo declaration , leaders of the Christian Community in
Korea– ‘Chondogyo’ (Religion of the Heavenly way) and Buddhist churches
began to plan a national movement for Independence, especially Song Byong
Hui of the chondogyo and Han yong-un of Buddhist Churches contacted
younger nationalists to take forward the Tokyo students lead. These
organizations also provided financial aid and leadership to the movement in
home. Finally they consulted some older traditional members to form a
declaration of Independence leading to the drafting of ‘Proclamation of
Korean Independence‘ (written by historian CHOE NAMSON and the poet
MANHAE) 1500 copies were distributed around the capital city of Seoul .

27 out of the 33 nationalists (including 15 Chondogyo, 9 Methodists, 7

Presbyterians, and 2 Buddhists) who formed the core of the movement
decided to meet at Pagoda Park on March 1st (instead of march 3 to avoid
suspicion which was less than a kilometre down from the seat of the Japanese
governor-general) so they convened instead at Taehwagwan Restaurant from
the fear of inciting a riot. By noon, however, people started gathering at the
Pagoda Park, and the Korean flag was raised in the midst of all this a student,
Chung Jae-yong, read the declaration aloud, then shouted "Mansei!" (ten
thousand years) to which The crowd responded, "Mansei," repeatedly, and
became quite violent. They split into groups- One group marched south
towards Deoksu-gung Palace, another north to the Japanese colonial capital,
and the other to the American and French Embassies to read the declaration
again. The police tried to block them and violence broke out, the Koreans were
all unarmed but were beaten and many were arrested. They dispersed before
nightfall for fear that the police would kill any they found still on the streets.
Meanwhile at the restaurant, the leaders signed the document, sent a copy to
the Japanese Governor General, and telephoned the police to report what they
had done. Though they were arrested, protests continued throughout the
country and by the next day had spread into new areas (mainly in Cholla Puk-
do, Kyongsang Nam do Hamkyong Nam do. In the cities, the Koreans were
mostly non-violent but in the countryside, however, farmers took up the
protest in more violent ways. Demonstrations continued throughout most of
the month causing a nationwide movement in the streets with people shouting
“long live an independent korea / taehan tongnip manse”.

The participation of millions of Koreans in these demonstrations caught the

Japanese government by complete surprise, though mainly due to the
carelessness of the police and brilliant leadership of the movement another
reason was Japanese thinking of Koreans as not capable for such a concerted
action. However, the Japanese response was brutal and by May military
reinforcements were summoned to stop the rioting leading to arrests, beating
and village burnings, this led to more Korean reprisals resulting in bloody
clashes between the crowds and the police. Before the Japanese finally
suppressed the uprising 12 months later, approximately two million Koreans
had participated in more than 1,500 demonstrations. The nationalists also
made use of a prolific underground press. Students and teachers also lent their
support as Japanese statistics mentioned that among 133,557 students in
Korea, 11,133 became involved in the protests. Most schools closed for the
better part of March due to strikes. Although Japanese officials declared that
only 553 people were killed and about 12,000 arrested over the month of
demonstrations that followed, Korean sources argue more than 7,500
demonstrators were killed and some 16,000 wounded, and about 47,000
others were arrested. Over 700 houses and about 50 churches were also
destroyed, which shows that a truly pan-nationalistic movement occurred
throughout the country despite its failure.

To understand how a movement started by nationalist exiles and religious

leaders ended with a majority Korean participation , it is important to look at
the composition of the movement whose clear picture is mentioned by
historian Kim Yong-Mo – although most of the national representatives were
middle class people and petty bourgeoisie who engaged in trade and
commerce some famous examples include Lee Sung hun (who dealt with brass
wares in napchon), Shin Sok ku and Pyongan Puk-do who engaged in
commerce and trade. Even Son byong hee had a close relation with the
merchants but the participants mainly comprised of farmers who accounted
for 54% or majority part , they were also the most convicted thus forming the
backbone of the movement . Mostly they were poor tenants who were led by
local community leaders and rural intellectuals (petty bourgeoisie). Influenced
by modern education, the independence declaration contained words like
democracy, Equality, Modernization, Capital and anti-imperialism showing how
it was actually led by intellectuals and leaders from the lower middle class.

Though they had different motives and operated in different areas like the
merchants participated mainly due to the sluggish commercial finance with the
advent of Japanese colonial rule and the farmers due to tenancy disputes, all of
it consolidated into the nationalist struggle.

Before looking at the consequences of the movement, it is important to

analyze its causes – as TIMOTHY S. LEE points out at least among historians in
South Korea and United States a consensus emerges on the major factors that
went into the making of the movement – 1) Koreans’ persistent desire for
independence , fuelled by their historical memory and imagination as one
nation during Choson dynasty 2) The overly repressive nature Japan’s 10 year
rule in Korea of systematic terror and torture as well as racial discrimination
which even made the historian FRANK P. BALDWIN JR. To write in 1969,”The
political, social and education disqualification imposed on Koreans from 1910
to 1918 resemble the plight of American Negro living a precarious, subservient
existence in America”. These two factors were fundamental to the March 1 st
movement with the latter being the long term causes/domestic factors –
1) As the scholar KYUNG MOON HWANG explains, between the 9yrs, the
royal family and most prominent political elites became, at least on a
surface level, submissive to the foreign rule. While the imperial family
continued to live in its hollow palace, high-level positions in the colonial
government were quickly filled with Japanese-friendly Koreans. This
political transition was accompanied by significant social change with the
nationwide land survey (1910-1918), which became the foundation for
a newly imposed tax system. According to one writer the land of Korea
was divided into four classes: private, royal, municipal and Buddhist
temple lands. The Japanese Government confiscated the land belonging
to the royal family, the temples and the municipalities, on the ground
that these lands belonged to the State which was then sold or leased to
Japanese farmers, never to Koreans. The Japanese Government also
gave sanction to the Oriental Colonization Company, whose object was
to settle Japanese immigrants in Korea. It would pay the passage of the
immigrant and secure him a piece of land, with the understanding that
he will pay back when he is able while 1/3rd of the land was already in
the hands of Japanese. One method of forcing the Koreans from their
farms was for the Japanese to purchase an upper tract of irrigated
 territory and then shutting off the water from the lower district to make
the Koreans sell at a mere nominal price. Still another grievance was that
the people were denied the free use of their money as the wealthy
Koreans had Japanese stewards who have complete control of their
business affairs. But perhaps the most serious complaint was that the
Japanese denied Koreans any voice in government and restricted
government positions. Though this charge was refuted by PROFESSOR
LADD who stated that of thirteen provinces in the country the
governors, district magistrates and high officials in the courts of justice
were Koreans. Other writers denied such claims like Henry Chung said
that in order to be sincere and true Japan must either "give the Koreans
complete independence, autonomy, or a voice in making and
administering their own laws and in selecting the executive and judiciary
of the country."
2) YONG HA SIN also pointed out that to diminish associational life in
Korea, Japan gradually banned all varieties of local associations,
beginning in 1905. Only two institutional systems existed on a national
level - schools and religious organizations, including Buddhist,
Chondokyo, Confucian and Christian organizations ( who eventually led
the movement )
3) In the realm of education, as modernization was mainly undertaken by
the Japanese, It has been seen that Korea was given a modern public
school system but as but Korean language was not taught in the schools.
Furthermore the teaching was such as to crush out the knowledge and
memory of the history and institutions of Korea and in its place to in still
a national patriotism for Japan (mainly utilitarian education). The charge
made was that the Japanese students in Korea are given superior
advantage in the schools, and are offered more advanced courses than
the native students are allowed to take. Finally, the Korean student was
not allowed to go abroad to study, except to Japan. Thus the people
naturally felt that they were discriminated against. Count Terauchi, in
his official report, states that the "Greatest stress in the new educational
system was laid on common and industrial education, and it was
arranged that higher education should gradually be given while great
care was taken, at the same time, that the new system should agree
with the need of the times and popular conditions." While this was
intended as good, it seemed unwise to make it impossible for the Korean
student to avail himself of equal advantages with the Japanese both in
the educational courses he may take and in going to foreign countries
for study.
So although the Japanese did provide knowledge, commerce, agriculture,
industry and healthy conditions, overall the natives weren’t happy as MICHAEL
E ROBINSON says their policies had sealed a lid over political and cultural
expression while turning up the heat under the pot, ultimately the Korean
pressure cooker exploded in the March 1919 movement. Though KENNETH
M.WELLS argues in contrast of long term causes that ‘the March First
Movement rises up like a monolith, it is yet a monolith with no ranges leading
up to it or away from it’. To be sure, it might not have occurred if certain
nationalists had not nurtured hope that the West—or America—might ally
itself to Korea's cause; or if Korea's Protestant leaders had not discerned God's
hand in Woodrow Wilson's championing of national self-determination or if
the religious leaders had not maintained their opportunistic observations of
recent global developments and so on

However those who point out the domestic factors argue that the national
capacity had continuously increased or expanded through modernization
programs under the colonial regime and thus waited for a “chance in the
international arena,” finally blooming through the opportunity provided by the
outbreak and conclusion of World War I. This theory argues that the
proclamation of the self-determination of peoples in itself lacked the power to
ignite such large-scale demonstrations for independence by a weak colonized
people. If the idea of self-determination had such force, it should have caused
the same action in all of the about 30 people groups of the world that sent a
national delegation to the Paris Peace Conference although some scholars like
Ku Daeyeol point out the significance of International circumstances that
followed world war 1 causing many nationalistic independence movements
and he also explains how US in indirect ways did support Korea following
W.Wilson’s speech , though it later withdrew its support , both domestic and
international scene should be considered for March 1st uprising .

Assessing the consequence of the movement, while it did lead to a flowering

of national and nationalist culture, it did not result in Korea’s independence, its
primary goal. And the moderation of colonial rule eventually gave way to
brutal repression of Korean identity. The movement’s significance however
extends to a month after the protests broke out, through resistance groups
established, in Shanghai, how the Korean Provisional Government (April 1919)
of the newly declared Republic of Korea was formed including budding
Communists, armed fighters from Siberia and Manchuria, expatriates from the
United States and activists from within the peninsula. On April 10, 1919, they
issued a founding proclamation and draft constitution, which pointed to the
March 1 demonstrations and, like the February declaration, promised that the
new state would join the League of Nations. Although his unity proved short-
lived as The independence movement split into two opposing ideological
camps, a division that eventually became institutionalized into the separate
states that we know today as North and South Korea.

The world, however, was informed of the Korean dissatisfaction with Japanese
rule, which wounded Tokyo deeply by exposing the the irony in a good-
colonizer facade which triggered major changes in Japanese imperial policy
towards Korea. Japanese Governor-General Hasegawa Yoshimichi accepted
responsibility for the loss of control and was replaced by Saito Makoto. Some
aspects of Japanese rule considered most odious to Koreans were relaxed
under a new "Cultural Policy." Which as BRUCE CUMINGS points out
inaugurated a period of “gradualist” resistance to colonialism, in which
Koreans took advantage of relaxed restrictions on their freedom of speech and
assembly to organize a variety of nationalist, socialist, and communist groups,
some openly and some clandestinely.

What can be concluded is that it was definitely a major turning point in Korean
history though some regard it as the birth of modern Korean nationalism and
others as not the beginning of Korean nationalism but its transformation from
a small movement of isolated and scattered intellectuals and of tiny exile
groups abroad to a mass movement that cut across class lines as an impressive
number of women, peasants, and non-elite urban and small-town residents
participated in it. Overall what can be said is that it was a classic event
succeeding in uniting diverse sections under a single and coordinated spirit of
nationalism like never seen before in the country inspiring future movements.
BIBLIOGRAPHY –

1) Korea ( 20th century odyssey ) by MICHAEL E. ROBINSON

2) Korea’s place in the Sun: A Modern History by BRUCE CUMINGS
3) The Morphology of resistance : Korean Resistance Networks 1895-1945 by EUN KYONG
SHIN
4) http://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/March_First_Movement
5) A Political Factor in the Rise of Protestantism in Korea: Protestantism and the 1919 March First
Movement by TIMOTHY S LEE
6) The March 1st movement with special reference to its external implications and rise of
united states by KU DAEYEOL
7) Background to the March First Movement: Koreans in Japan, 1905—1919 by Kenneth
m wells
8) The Samil Independence Movement viewed from socio historical context by KIM
YONG –MO