Was Japanese Colonialism Different from Western Colonialism - Essay Example

? “Japanese colonialism was fundamentally different from western colonialism.” Do you agree? I. Introduction The act or exercise of dominating individuals or groups over a territory may constitute colonialism, but not all forms of colonialism are the same. While colonialism shares the same component of a specific nation exercising power or control over another sovereign country (Horvath, 1972), different colonizing countries, depending upon their circumstances, may have different motivation, purpose, and timeline from other colonizing countries. Such, it cannot be generalized that all colonial nations follow the same form of colonialism that bears the same geopolitical meaning and practice across regions and continents. This fundamental difference in colonialism can be best illustrated in the case of Japan when contrasted with its colonialist counterpart in the western part of the world where its colonialist differences were identified in this paper. The most plausible cause that can be identified for this difference was that Japan jumped in the colonialist foray later than its western counterpart that it had an implication why colonialism in the East, particularly Japan, fundamentally differed from its counterpart in the West. It can be surmised that while the west has already a deep experience of colonizing, the idea of colonialism was only impinged into the consciousness of Japan in the 1870’s with the Meiji Restoration (Myers and Peattie, 1984) which has an implication on how it exercised its power and prerogative over its colonized countries. Japan’s exposure in colonialist effort was short while its western counterparts had already a long history of colonizing exploits that stretched as far back as 900 A.D. with the crusades. This wide gap in terms of colonizing experience has an implication on Japan’s motivation, purpose and method of colonizing that fundamentally differed from the West which will be elaborated in this paper. This difference in timeline of arriving in the colonial scene shall be used as a framework to discuss why Japan’s colonialist tendency was fundamentally different compared to that of the west. This approach will reveal the difference of their motivation for expansion and treatment of their “subjects” that will underpin fundamental differences of their colonialist practices. II. The Fundamental Difference of Japanese Colonialism from Western Colonialism A. Timeline and motivation for being a colonial power The western colonizers have a very long and deep experience in colonizing. While Japan as a country was still struggling among itself in 900 A.D., Europe has already embarked on a crusade to reclaim the Holy Land from the Turks and Saracens in the Middle East. Needless to say, the West already has already a deep experience with colonizing while Japan only learned the idea of colonialism in the 1870’s. It is also important to note that before the Meiji Restoration in the 1870’s, it came from a 200 year isolationist policy of the Tokugawa Shogunate and as such, was economically and military inferior compared to the west. In addition, Japan began with the same disadvantages just like its neighboring Asian countries. Also, just like any other non-European states, it was forced to sign unequal treaties that chafed the ire of its nationalists as an infringement of its national sovereignty. Moreso, when Commodore Matthew Perry of the United States came to Japan in 1853 with its fleet that forced Japan to open itself to trade and end its self-imposed isolation (Myers and Peattie, 1984:78). This made Japan realize how backward they were and prompted them to embark on a nationalist endeavor to strengthen itself and become a respected country. This sentiment was recorded by a memorandum of saga samurai, Eto Shimpei in 1856 that “what was required . . ., was a long-range plan to utilize the talents, not merely of all Japanese, but of talent wherever it might be found in tools, in arms, in medicine, in land development, in astronomy, and so on, should be utilized for the development of national wealth and strength”. This sentiment later served as a platform of Japanese expansionist policy towards Formosa, Korea and later Taiwan. The impetus which propelled Japan to become a colonial state is starkly different from its European counterpart. Aside from religious fervor, the west colonial power’s primary reason for colonialism was more driven by “scientific intellectual curiosity, by the frustrations and daring of merchant adventurers, and by the naked greed of established elite classes” whereas Japan only rose as a colonial power out of its determination to abrogate unequal and arbitrary treatise and to become a respected country. B. Japan did not assume the “white man’s” burden During the early colonial years, western colonizers were predominantly Caucasian and carried with them an air of racial and cultural superiority over their subjugated subjects. This air of racial and cultural superiority gave the colonizers the impression that it is their obligation to lord over the whole world to provide economic and cultural development over underdeveloped countries. It also made the western colonizers to believe that it is a noble enterprise to colonize “savages” in the underdeveloped countries because they are doing them a favor of improving their socio-cultural well-being. This is viewed in the light of the western colonizers condescension and scorn for their colonized countries as backward and inferior. Japan did not share the racial bigotry of their western counterparts when it colonialised other countries. When Japan formally acquired its first colony after the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95) by the Treaty of Shimonoseki, Formosa was treated without racial condescension as Japan “followed generally the same procedures which had been and were being used in promoting the modernization of the homeland” (Kublin, 1959:77). Japan did not have the pretension of the white man to “civilize” its colony other than serving the interest of the mother country (Kublin, 1959). In this aspect, Japan was essentially different compared to its western colonizing counterpart as it did not rationalize its expansionist tendency as a moral obligation other than to serve the interest of its mother country. C. Forced assimilation Japan may be no different from its western counterparts in assuming that its way of life is superior to its colonial subjects. But unlike its western counterpart, who encouraged its subjects to adopt and assume its own culture and way of life, Japan did not encourage its colonial subjects to adapt to “the culture and ways of the metropolitan country; for Japan with its traditions of social and cultural conformity this policy was evidently inconceivable” (Kublin, 1959). Instead, Japan implemented the forced assimilation such as the enforcement of State Shinto nationalism and asserted brotherhood among Koreans to facilitate assimilation. Japan also deliberately replaced the educational institution of Korea to make it Japanese eradicate the native culture. While Japan pursued forced assimilation, there was a contradiction to its policy because it did not share its cultural and social tradition to Korea. Instead, it campaigned to obliterate and remove Korea’s 2,000 year old culture which became traumatic to its subject more than its draconian rule and merciless economic exploitation (Myers and Peattie, 1984). This policy of forced assimilation is fundamentally different with the western colonizers as the latter did not attempt to eliminate its colony’s sense of national identity but only sought to improve it by influencing them with its own culture and “better way of life”. The Japanese idea of improving the cultural and social context of its subject is by methodologically eliminating the existing culture of its subject and replacing it with its own such as the case of Korea. The Japanese was only acquainted with colonization, which is distinct from colonialism, whose sole experience at Hokkaido in 1873-1883 provided them with a “practical experience in creating a settlement colony which is different with the British colonisation of Australia and New Zealand wherein wherein a government settles its own lands with its own peoples” (Myers and Peattie, 1984:80). D. Japan’s colonialist expansionary policy was government driven Unlike the West or Europe who was under the influence of Roman Catholic Church during its early days whose motivation was to “Christianize” the pagans or reclaim the Holy Land from the infidels, Japan’s motivation towards colonialism was driven primarily by the government’s desire to rise in power as quickly as possible. This was primarily motivated by the desire to abrogate unfair treatise and apprehension over western aggression. Especially when the United States sent a fleet of ships in 1853 under the command of Commodore Matthew Perry to Japan in order to end the nation's self-imposed isolation and open itself to trade. That incident induced the Japanese government spearheaded by the Meiji Restoration to pursue a policy of national progression when they realized how backward they were coming from a 200 year isolationist policy of the Tokogawa regime (Kublin, 1959. This was essentially different from the west as their motivation to colonize was a singular and raw desire to rise in power unlike in the west whose motivation varies from “scientific intellectual curiosity, by the frustrations and daring of merchant adventurers, by the naked greed of established elite classes, by evangelical and missionary fervor, to the quest of emigrants for the political and economic opportunities closed to them at home” (Kublin, 1959). III. Conclusion Japan’s attitude towards its colonial subjects fundamentally differed from its counterpart in the west can be inferred by the fact that it came from a 200 year isolationist policy of the Tokugawa Shogunate. It can said that when it decided to embark on a rapid economic expansion which served as its platform of its colonialist exploits, it still carried that isolationist mindset that is why it is quite intolerant when it practiced its hegemony among its colonial subjects. This is best illustrated with its treatment with Korea where it methodologically attempted to replaced and eliminate the existing 2000 years Korean culture. It also showed brutality when it occupied the Philippines and Japan was mercilessly exploitative when it occupied Formosa. Still, considering where it came from before Commodore Matthew Perry of the United States came to Japan in 1853 where its fleet forced Japan to open itself to trade to end its self-imposed isolation, it was able to embark on a colonialist conquest in a very short period of time. It only fundamentally differed with the treatment of its colonial subjects compared to its counterpart in the west due to its isolationist mindset that manifested in the treatment of its colonial subjects. REFERENCES: Kublin, Hyman (1959). The Evolution of Japanese Colonialism. Comparative Studies in Society and History. Cambridge University Press. Vol. 2, No. 1, pp. 67-84. Myers, Ramon H. and Peattie, Mark R. (1984). The Japanese Colonial Empire, 1895-1945. Princeton University Press, United Kingdom. Horvath, Ronald J. (1972). A Definition of Colonialism. The University of Chicago Press on behalf of Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research. Current Anthropology. Vol. 13, No. 1 (Feb., 1972), pp. 45-57 Read More