韩升洙:留心东亚历史细节

作者: 2014-01-13 16:35

首尔 中国、韩国和日本外交官最近纷纷走上联合国大会的讲台,重申各自国家在东亚海域诸座小岛的领土主张。但他们......

 首尔——

  中国、韩国和日本外交官最近纷纷走上联合国大会的讲台,重申各自国家在东亚海域诸座小岛的领土主张。但他们平静的陈述方式掩盖了各国之间日趋紧张的局势,在过去几个月中,围绕着这些岛屿的紧张局势几乎失控。

  中国和日本的争论中心是钓鱼岛列岛,日本称之为尖阁列岛。9月,日本政府宣布从日本私人所有者手中收购钓鱼岛列岛的三个岛屿,这在中国掀起了反日示威潮。不久,数百艘中国渔船驶近钓鱼岛宣示中国主权。近来,越来越多的中国海事巡逻船只也加入了这些渔船的行列,定期在钓鱼岛附近水域巡航,有时与日本巡逻舰只发生冲突。

  事态呈现出继续升级的趋势,中日双方需要迅速消弭冲突,恢复原状。事实上,在目前中国正在经历政权过渡的情况下,如此形势显得愈加动荡了。

  与此同时,韩国和日本也陷入了独岛(日本称为竹岛)之争。8月初,李明博成为第一位访问该列岛的韩国总统,日本政府的反应则是将该主权问题上诉到了联合国国际法庭。

  但国际法庭无权在没有获得双方国家的同意下做出纠纷仲裁,而韩国拒绝了日本的建议,坚持李明博访问独岛属于权限内行为,因为独岛毫无疑问是韩国领土。事实上,韩国政府否认两国在独岛问题上有任何争议。

  在评估独岛问题上,历史是关键。与韩国的其他地区一样,独岛在20世纪初被日本吞并,而在二战结束、韩国赢得独立后回归韩国。因此,尽管外人也许认为这几个荒凉的小岛并不重要,但对韩国人来说,日本在独岛问题上的立场不啻于挑战其国家的独立性、否认其在自身领土上行使主权的权利。

  结果,几十年来,独岛一直是两国关系的绊脚石。2005年,日本某地方政府提出的所谓“竹岛日”引发了韩国民众大游行。但日本从未回避过独岛问题,政治要人每年都会参加“竹岛日”庆典。

  此外,日本有在历史教科书中扭曲事实的习惯——比如否认侵略期间强迫被侵略者成为“慰安妇”——这样的做法激怒了韩国和包括中国在内的其他亚洲国家,也让日本失去了这些国家的信任。

  独岛位于朝鲜半岛和日本本土之间,距离双方均为115海里左右。但就距离最近的岛屿来说,独岛距离韩国(郁陵岛)比日本(冲岛)近得多。

  纵观历史文献就会发现,日本在独岛问题上的立场发生过重大转变。比如,在17世纪末,朝鲜和日本之间因日本渔民登上郁陵岛而爆发冲突,鸟取藩(日本封建家族之一)向日本中央政府报告说,郁陵岛和独岛并非日本领土。

  类似地,1870年日本外务省的报告《朝鲜外交关系详情秘密调查》中显示,外务省认为独岛属于朝鲜领土。事实上,该报告的主题之一是“竹岛和松岛是如何为朝鲜王朝所有的”。

  此外,在1877年的政令中,太政官(1868—1885年间日本最高决策机构)否认了任何关于独岛的主权主张。但在1905年,日本采取措施将独岛纳为日本领土,以作为日俄战争的战略军事基地。

  1951年的旧金山和平条约(该条约标志着第二次世界大战太平洋战事的结束)最终文本没有提到独岛。但早先的版本将独岛列岛视为韩国领土。起草最终版本的美国之所以删去这一条,是为了同时与韩国和日本建立战略合作伙伴关系,这对美国有利。

  但是,1943年开罗宣言确定了战后盟国对日本领土疆界的基本立场,其规定,日本必须归还所有通过暴力占领的领土。根据宣言,日本无条件将独岛归还韩国——以及韩国继续行使独岛主权——是毫无争议的。

  在一个互相联系日趋紧密的世界,重大挑战只有通过地区和全球合作才能解决。但是,为了建立有意义的合作框架,东亚国家之间持续的不信任必须消除。地区领导人必须停止相互指责,必须承担起过去侵略行为的责任。诚实地面对历史是东亚地区持续和平和繁荣的关键。

  韩升洙是前韩国总理,2008—2009年间任56届联合国大会主席。

 

Han Seung-soo:Heeding History in East Asia  


By Han Seung-soo

SEOUL - Chinese, South Korean, and Japanese diplomats recently took to the podium of the United Nations General Assembly to reassert their countries' positions on the territorial issues surrounding several small islands in the seas of East Asia. But the composed manner in which they delivered their remarks belied their countries' long-simmering tensions over the islands, which have come to a near boil in the last few months.

At the center of one heated dispute, between China and Japan, are the Senkaku Islands, which the Chinese call the Diaoyu Islands. In September, Japan's government announced its purchase of three of the islands from their private Japanese owner, inciting protests across China. Soon after, hundreds of Chinese fishing vessels approached the islands to assert China's sovereignty. These vessels have lately been joined by an increasing number of Chinese surveillance forces, which periodically enter the waters surrounding the islands, sometimes leading to direct confrontation with Japanese patrol ships.

With the situation threatening to escalate further, both sides need to contain the conflict quickly and restore the status quo. Indeed, the situation is all the more volatile in view of the political transition now underway in China.

Meanwhile, the Republic of Korea and Japan are engaged in a territorial standoff over the islets of Dokdo (called Takeshima in Japanese). In early August, Lee Myung-bak became the first South Korean president to visit the islets; Japan's government responded by proposing to take the sovereignty issue to the International Court of Justice.

But the ICJ cannot exercise jurisdiction in the dispute without both countries' consent, and South Korea has rejected Japan's proposal, maintaining that Lee was within his authority to visit the islets, given that Dokdo is unquestionably South Korean territory. Indeed, South Korea's government denies that there is any dispute over the islands.

Historical context is crucial to assessing the Dokdo issue. Like the rest of Korea, Dokdo was annexed by Japan in the early twentieth century, and restored to Korean control after World War II, when Korea regained its independence. Thus, while outsiders might view the desolate islands as insignificant, for Koreans, Japan's position on Dokdo is tantamount to a challenge to their country's independence and a denial of its right to exercise sovereignty over its own territory.

As a result, Dokdo has been a thorn in relations between the two countries for decades. In 2005, the creation of a so-called "Takeshima Day" by a local government in Japan triggered a public uproar in South Korea. But Japan has not shied away from the issue, with prominent political figures joining Takeshima Day celebrations each year.

Furthermore, Japan's habit of distorting facts in its history books - for example, denying that its former colonial subjects were forced into sexual slavery - has fueled distrust and anger in South Korea and elsewhere in East Asia, including China.

Dokdo is situated midway between the Korean peninsula and Japan's main island, roughly 115 nautical miles from each. But the islets are much closer to the nearest Korean island, Ulleungdo, than to Japan's Okishima.

A survey of historical documents shows a distinct shift in Japan's position on Dokdo. For example, in the late seventeenth century, when conflict between Korea and Japan erupted over the passage of Japanese fishermen to Ulleungdo, Tottori-han (one of Japan's feudal clans) told Japan's central government that Ulleungdo and Dokdo did not fall within Japanese territory.

Likewise, a report in 1870 by Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, "A Confidential Inquiry into the Particulars of Korea's Foreign Relations," shows that the ministry recognized Dokdo as Korean territory. Indeed, the report includes the subject title "How Takeshima and Matsushima Came to Belong to Joseon" (later renamed Korea).

Moreover, the Dajokan, Japan's highest decision-making body in 1868-1885, denied any claims of sovereignty over Dokdo through its Order of 1877. Yet, in 1905, Japan took measures to incorporate Dokdo in order to use it as a strategic military site for its war with Russia.

The final text of the 1951 San Francisco Peace Treaty, which ended WWII in the Pacific, makes no mention of Dokdo. But earlier versions identified the islets as Korean territory. The reference in the final version, drafted by the United States, was removed in light of US interests in building strategic partnerships with both South Korea and Japan.

However, the 1943 Cairo Declaration, which stipulated the Allied Powers' basic position on Japan's territorial boundaries after WWII, stated that Japan would be expelled from all territories that it had annexed through violence. In this context, the unconditional return of Dokdo to Korea - and Korea's continued sovereignty over Dokdo - is indisputable.

In an increasingly interconnected world, significant challenges can be addressed only through regional and global partnerships. But, in order to build a meaningful framework for cooperation, enduring distrust among East Asian countries must be dispelled. Regional leaders must not get caught up in finger-pointing or avoid taking responsibility for past transgressions. An honest evaluation of history is crucial to establishing lasting peace and prosperity in East Asia.

Han Seung-soo was Prime Minister of the Republic of Korea, 2008-2009, and President of the 56th Session of the UN General Assembly. 

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