Liancourt Rocks

Dokdo

Map showing the location of Dokdo Map showing the location of Dokdo
Korean Name
Hangul	독도
Hanja	獨島
Revised Romanization	Dokdo
McCune-Reischauer	Tokto
Japanese Name
Hepburn romanization	Takeshima
Kanji	竹島
Map of Dokdo.

Dokdo are islets in the Sea of Japan (East Sea) currently controlled by South Korea, but claimed by Japan (where they are known as Takeshima). The islets are less commonly known as the "Liancourt Rocks" in English. The Korean Central News Agency of North Korea refers to Dokdo as Tok Islet in its English-language articles, and supports control of the islands by "the Korean nation".[1]

South Korea classifies the islets as a part of Ulleung County, North Gyeongsang Province, while Japan classifies them as part of Okinoshima Town, Oki District, Shimane Prefecture.

Geography

Dokdo is composed mainly of two islets, 150 meters apart ^[2] (Seodo and Dongdo in Korean, Nishi-jima and Higashi-jima in Japanese; both literally meaning western island and eastern island, respectively). The western islet is the larger of the two islets. Altogether, there are about 90 islets and reefs,^[3] volcanic rocks formed in the Cenozoic era.^[4] A total of 37 of these islets are recognized as permanent land.^[5]

The total area of the islets is about 187,450 square meters, with their highest point at 169 meters in the western islet. The western islet is about 88,640 square meters in area; the eastern islet about 73,300 square meters.^[6] Dokdo is located at about 131°52′ East longitude and about 37°14′ North latitude.^[7] The western islet is located at 37°14′31″N 131°51′55″E and the eastern islet is located at 37°14′27″N 131°52′10″E.

The islets are 217 km from mainland Korea and 250 km from mainland Japan.^[8] The nearest Korean territory (Ulleung-do) is 87 km away; and the nearest Japanese territory (Oki Islands) is 157 km away.^[9] In fair weather, Dokdo can be seen from Ulleung-do.^[10][11]

The western islet consists of a single peak and features many caves along the coastline. The cliffs of the eastern islet are about 10 to 20 meters high. There are two caves giving access to the sea, as well as a crater. ^[12]

Economy

Although the islets themselves are barely habitable, the Exclusive Economic Zone surrounding them has rich fishing grounds and possible reserves of natural gas.^[13] As of 2006, no gas has been found.^[14] A wide variety of fish as well as seaweed, kelp, sea slugs, and clams are located around Dokdo.^[15] Major fishery catches in the area are squid, Alaskan pollack, codfish, and octopus.^[16][17] There are 102 species of seaweed, although many of these have no economic value.^[18]

Until the 1940s, fur seals were observed on Dokdo.

There are around 37 South Korean police, Ministry of Maritime Affairs & Fisheries personnel, a married Korean couple (whose occupation is fishing), and three lighthouse keepers living on Dokdo. In the past, several fishermen have lived on the islets.^[19]

Tourism

Prior to 2003, special permits for tourists, who wanted to land on the islets rather than just circling them, were issued by the South Korean Ministry of Tourism.^[20] This was because of their status as a nature reserve. Since then, there have been 1,507 tourists in 2004 and 1,597 tourists in 2005 who have visited Dokdo.^[21] Visitors generally come by boat from Ulleung-do.^[22]

In 2005, the first wedding ceremony was held on Dokdo. The couple chose the location to protest against Japanese claims over the islets. ^[23]

Climate

Due to its location, Dokdo's weather can be rough. At times, ships are unable to dock because of strong northwestern winds in winter. ^[24][25] The climate is warm and humid, and heavily influenced by warm sea currents. Precipitation is high throughout the year (annual average - 1324mm), with occasional snowfall.^[26] Fog is a common sight. In the summer, southernly winds dominate.^[27] The water around the islets is about 10 degrees Celsius in spring, when the water is coolest. It warms to about 25 degrees Celsius in August.^[28]

Ecology

Like Ulleung-do, islets of Dokdo are volcanic rocks, with only a thin layer of soil and moss. Ulleung-do and Dokdo are so similar that their radio-isotopes cannot be differentiated.^[29] About 80 species of plants, over 22 species of birds, and 37 species of insects have been recorded on Dokdo, in addition to the local maritime life.^[30] Some organisms found on Dokdo though, such as a number of cormophytes, cannot be found on Ulleung-do.^[31]

Since the early 1970s, over 11,000 trees and some types of flowers have been planted along with the indigenous flora and fauna.^[32] (Trees are required under international law for the islets to be recognized as natural islands rather than reefs.^[33][34])

Dokdo was declared as "Natural Monument #336" by South Korea in the 1990s. While home to some birds, the islets mostly provide temporary refuge for birds migrating elsewhere. They serve as a home to fork-tailed petrel, streaked shearwater, and black-tailed gulls. The population of breeding birds counted on the rocks, however, has been declining in recent years.^[35]

In 1999, the islets were designated a special environmental protected area by the South Korean government.^[36] Dokdo predates any other Korean volcanic islands, including Ulleung-do.^[37]

Strategic location

Dokdo is of importance not only for economic reasons, but also for military reasons. It has occasionally served as a military base, most notably during the Russo-Japanese War. The South Korean government has built a radar station on the islets, enabling it to track foreign naval forces. The 37 military police are on Dokdo to serve as guards and are armed with guns.^[38]

History

Korea and Japan have a long, complex history of cultural exchange, war, and political rivalry (see: Korean-Japanese disputes). Dokdo is the last disputed territory between Korea and Japan following World War II. South Korea currently controls the islets and claims it as Korean territory from records that date back to 500 A.D. Japan claims the islets from records dating to the 1600s.

The Three Kingdoms period

In 1145, Samguk Sagi (History of Three Kingdoms of Korea) records that the state of Usan (Usan-guk) was conquered and "re-integrated" into Silla in 512. Samguk Sagi describe the Usan state as consisting of Ulleung island.

Joseon and Edo period

In 1432, geographical records from Sejong Sillok (the chronicle of King Sejong) mentions Usan-do,^[39] but interpretation of the context is disputed. Korean scholars interpret the text as: "Usan-do and Mulung-do (Ulleung-do), located in the sea east of the [Uljin] Prefecture, are close enough to each other that in clear weather the two islands come into view [of each other]", and consider it as evidence that Usan-do refers to Dokdo.^[40] Japanese scholars interpret the latter part as "come into view [from mainland Korea]." They argue that Usan-do refers to Juk-do, which they say was the Korean government's interpretation in Ahn's dispute (see below). Juk-do is 4 km east of Ulleung-do, visible only in clear weather.

In Paldo Chongdo (a complete map of the Eight Korean Provinces, 1530), Usan-do is marked as Korean territory, but drawn to the west of Ulleung-do, instead of east.

After the Seven-Year War (1592-1598) between Joseon Korea and Toyotomi Japan, Joseon barely maintained control over Ulleung-do and Dokdo.

Takeshima Tokai Yuraiki Bassho Hikae, written by Ōya Kyuemon, records that in 1618 the Tokugawa Shogunate granted the Ōya and Murakawa families fishing rights, and in 1661, feudal tenure, of "Takeshima", which then referred to Ulleung-do. On the way to Ulleung-do, Japanese fishermen sometimes used the islets, then called in Japanese "Matsushima" (松島), as an intermediate port of call. From the Korean point of view, the grants were invalid because the islets were Korean territory.[41]

The earliest record for Japan's claim on Dokdo comes from Japanese records that Dokdo was their territory since 1618. [[42]]

Ahn Yong-bok incident

In 1693, Korean fisherman Ahn Yong-bok attempted to drive off Ōya fishermen from Ulleung-do, but was captured and taken to Japan. According to Korean records, Ahn protested to Japan's provincial governor, who confirmed in writing that the two islands are Korean. On his way back to Korea, Ahn was then held by the governor of Tsushima Island, but the Tokugawa Shogunate ordered Ahn's release. According to Japanese records, the provincial governor reported the incident to the Tokugawa Shogunate, which warned Korea to tighten the control of Korean "transgressors".

In 1694, Korea warned Japan to stay away from Ulleung-do, and Japan prohibited Japanese vessels from going to Ulleung-do.[43] In 1696, Ahn sailed to Ulleung-do and Dokdo again, disguised as a naval officer, and expelled the Japanese. Arriving in Japan, Ahn had the Tokugawa Shogunate reconfirm in writing that Ulleung-do was a Korean possession.[44] [45]

But as for Dokdo, it is doubtful whether the Tokugawa Shogunate regarded the islets as Korean possessions because they were not referred to in the treaty. The South Korean government insists that the area of "Ulleung-do" included Dokdo. The Japanese government insists that the Shogunate did not prohibited Japanese from sailing to Dokdo because Japanese fishers continued to fish using the islets. This was even after the prohibition on sailing to Ulleung-do.[46]

Regardless, some have commented that any remaining historical documents are so ambiguous that it is not easy to interpret what islands they are referring to.

Maps and records

• Chosen Hachido-no Zu (1758) depicts Ulleung-do and Dokdo as one big island within Korean territory, according to Korean scholars. Some Japanese scholars believe the map only shows Ulleung-do as a territory of Usan-guk (state).
• Sangoku Tsuran Yochi Rotei Zensu (1785) depicts as Korean territory a small island located next to Ulleung-do. Korean scholars believe this to depict Dokdo, but Japanese scholars believe it corresponds to Juk-do.
• Dae Dong Yeo Ji Do (1861), an incomplete map of Korea, includes Dokdo, according to Korean scholars.[47]
• Historical Geography of Great Japan (大日本地名辞書, 1900) records that when the local government of Shimane prefecture asked the Japanese Meiji government whether Dokdo would be merged into Shimane, the government in 1877 responded that Japan had no relation with the islets.[48]

In 1849, a French whaler from Le Havre by the name of Le Liancourt, named the islets "Rochers de Liancourt" in 1849.^[49] In 1854, the Russians called them the "Manalai and Olivutsa Rocks" upon their first sighting and, in 1855, the English started calling them the "Hornet Rocks".^[50]

The inconsistent use of the names "Takeshima" and "Matsushima" in Japanese documents leaves room for dispute. Most Japanese documents and maps after 1905 use the name Takeshima or place the islets in Korean territory outright under the title Dokdo, while pre-1905 documents tend to use Takeshima, Matsushima, or entirely exclude the islets.

In 1877, the Japanese Dajokan (Council of State) issued the following ruling, (translated into English):

In response to the compilation of the cadastre for Takeshima and another island in the Sea of Japan as per Home Office Inquiry. Knowing that our country has nothing to do with them as the result of the communication between our old government and that country involved after the entry into the island by the Koreans in the fifth year of the Genroku, and having examined the view stated in the inquiry, the following draft instruction has been made for deliberation and sanction. Draft Introduction- In reference to Takeshima and another island, it is to be understood that our country has nothing to do with them.

On October 25, 1900, the Korean Empire issued Ordinance 41, incorporating the islands of Ulleung-do, Juk-do (竹島), and Seok-do (石島) into Ulleung County. [51] Korean government regards this "Seok-do" as the island now they call Dok-do because 石島(Seok-do) is pronounced "Dok-do" in the Gyeongsang and Jeolla dialects [52][53]. Japan, however, claims that Korea is too short of evidence that makes "Seok-do" "Dokdo" and some researchers claim it to be a different island now called Kwaneum-do(관음도) and that Korean government did not regard Dokdo as its territory at the time. [54]

During the Russo-Japanese War and increasing Japanese influence over Korea, Takeshima was proclaimed a part of Shimane prefecture in Japan under the doctrine of terra nullius (although this presumption is no longer mentioned in the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs following the the release of Korean Imperial Ordinance 41) on January 28, 1905. The Koreans were not notified of the annexation until March 23, 1906, when Korea had already become a Japanese protectorate under the Protectorate Treaty of 1905 and thus had no power to protest the Japanese government's actions.[55] [56] The South Korean government claims this incorporation is invalid because it was done covertly. Japan, on the other hand, claims it was not done secretly and was reported in newspapers and that it does not violate any international laws. [57]Notably, however, the Japanese did not notify the United States or Great Britain of its annexation of Dokdo as it did with other islands in the Pacific.

After World War II

Upon Japan's defeat in World War II and occupation by the Allies, the SCAP Instruction #677 of January 29, 1946 excluded Dokdo from Japan's administrative authority:[58]

For the purpose of this directive, Japan is defined to include the four main islands of Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu and Shikoku) and the approximately 1,000 smaller adjacent islands, including the Tsushima Islands and the Ryukyu (Nansei) Islands north of 30° North Latitude (excluding Kuchinoshima Island); and excluding

(a) Utsuryo (Ullung) Island, Liancourt Rocks (Take Island), and Kuelpart (saishu or Cheju) Island,

(b) the Ryukyu (nansei) Islands south of 30° North Latitude (including Kuchinoshima Island), the Izu, Kanpo, Bonin (Ogasawara) and Volcano (Kazan or Iwo) Island Groups, and all other outlying Pacific Islands including the Daito (Ohigashi or Gagari) Islands Group, and Parace Vela (Okino-tori), Kercus (Kinami-tori) and Canges (Nakano-tori) Islands, and

(c) the Kurile (Chishima) Islands, the Habomai (Hapomazo) Islands Group (including Suisho, Yuri, Aki-yuri, Shibotsu and Taraku Islands) and Shikotan Island.

However, a most important point, SCAP Instruction #677 has also written to it as follows;

Article6:Nothing in this directive shall be construed as an indication of Allied policy relating to the ultimate determination of the minor islands referred to in Article 8 of the Potsdam Declaration.

That is SCAP Instruction #677 is not what announced the final determination of the Allies about the territory in Japan. Moreover, a similar description is seen in Article 5 of SCAP Instruction #1033 that became the origin of the MacArthur(Douglas MacArthur) line.

The instruction stated that it was not an "ultimate determination the minor islands referred to in Article 8 of the Potsdam Declaration." All islands mentioned in (a), other than Dokdo, were returned to South Korea. Those mentioned in (b) were eventually returned to Japan. Those mentioned in (c), for the most part, remain in Russian control (though disputed by Japan).

Several private memoranda recorded in the Foreign Relations of the United States between 1949 and 1951 appear to side with Japan's view and are occasionally described as "proof" of American support. One example is a memorandum from the United States Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, declining to decide the issue in favor of Japan:

As regards the island of Dokdo, otherwise known as Takeshima or Liancourt Rocks, this normally uninhabited rock formation was according to our information never treated as part of Korea and, since about 1905, has been under the jurisdiction of the Oki Islands Branch Office of Shimane Prefecture of Japan. The island does not appear ever before to have been claimed by Korea. [59]

According to the Rusk documents by the then United States Secretary of State, Dean Rusk, showing the official stance of the U.S. government on the attribution of Liancourt Rocks that the occupation of the Liancourt Rocks by South Korea, could not be admitted at all.[60]

Many territories under Japanese possession during the war were given up by the Treaty of Peace with Japan (Treaty of San Francisco) signed in 1951,and the problem was that the ilets was given up or not in the Treaty.:

Article 2: (a) Japan, recognizing the independence of Korea, renounces all right, title and claim to Korea, including the islands of Quelpart [Jeju-do], Port Hamilton [Geomun-do], and Dagelet [Ulleung-do].

Japan argues that Dokdo is not named because the parties accepted its claim over the islets,and it was prooved by Rusk documents. Korea has responded that Article 2 is stated to be non-exclusive, silent on other Korean islets like Mara-do, and that the silence means SCAPIN 677's exclusion of Dokdo from Japanese territory remains in effect. However, SCAPIN is an instruction of occupation forces based on International Law of war, and not the treaty between subjects. [61]

In 1951, the U.S. Air Force requested and received permission from South Korea to use the islets for military exercises.[62] However, CIA documents from 1951 show that the Bureau of U.S. was opposed to Japan's claim, supporting the South Korean position at the time of the San Francisco Peace Treaty. On the other hand, FORUM, the bulletin of the United States Pacific Fleet headquarters, represented the islets as Japanese territory. In addition, The Times adopted the term "Takeshima" in its map. Britanica World Map is neutral on the matter.[63]

Armed confrontations and arrests of Japanese fishermen by Korean Government

South Korean President Syngman Rhee's (Peace Line) declaration of January 18, 1952, included Dokdo as a Korean territory. On January 12, 1953, South Korea ordered its army to enforce its claim on the islets, and on April 20, 1953 South Korean volunteer coastguardsmen set up camp.

Japan had fished in the waters adjacent to the Korean Peninsula since before World War II. Thus, Rhee said, "The main purpose of the declaration is, to avoid conflicts over fishing activities." . After the declaration, from 1952 until 1965, five fishermen were shot to death,3,929 Japanese fishermen and 328 fishing boats were detained in South Korea. They were released in 1965, under exchange condition that Japan release 472 prisoners from South and North Korea. The Treaty on Basic Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea was concluded.

On June 27, 1953, two Japanese Coast Guard vessels briefly landed and erected a territorial post on the islets. Several armed skirmishes followed, leading to the sinking of a Japanese ship by Korean mortar fire on July 12, 1953. Similar incidents occurred on April 21, 1954 and August 24, 1954.

In September 1954, Japan protested and suggested arbitration action at the International Court of Justice, but the offer was fiercely rejected by South Korea. [64] After the incidents, in 1954, South Korea built a lighthouse and a helicopter landing pad on the islets, which it has regularly administered ever since.^[65]

The issue of sovereignty over Dokdo was omitted from the 1965 Basic Relations Treaty.[66]

Current situation

The dispute occasionally resurfaces, such as when South Korea built a wharf on the islets in 1996 and declared them a Natural Monument in 2002, spurred by a controversial Japanese textbook that called South Korea's control of the islets "illegal" that same year. Most Koreans regard Japan's claims to the islets as a sign of Japan's unrepentant expansionism. Most Japanese are not aware of their existence.

In June 2005, a South Korean official guideline demanded that Dokdo be neither be referred to in its individual elements or as a whole as ‘islands’, ‘islet(s)’ or ‘rock(s)’, but in the singular form ‘island’ “to reflect the island character of Dokdo as well as Dongdo [and] Seodo” (“독도 및 [독도를 구성하는] 동도·서도가 ‘섬’임을 나타내기 위해…”).[67]

In the same year, Japan's Shimane prefecture designated February 22 Takeshima Day, to commemorate the centennial anniversary of Japan's claim to the islets and boost public interest in Japan about the dispute. In response, Korea's Masan municipality passed the Daemado Day bill, commemorating General Yi Jong Mu's conquest of the Tsushima Island in 1419.

Over 900 Korean citizens list the islets as their residence, while over 2,000 Japanese do the same. However, only two people, a married Korean couple, are actual permanent residents.[68] Korean telecom service providers have also installed stations on Dokdo to cover the islets in the South Korean wireless telephone network.. There is also regular ferry service from Ulleung-do.[69]

In 2004 South Korea issued a set of stamps depicting the wildlife of Dokdo under that name, implying an ownership claim. The Japanese government formally protested this action as a violation of the spirit of the Universal Postal Union charter. [70] Picture Similar stamp series had been printed in 2002 and even 1954. The stamp dispute was allegedly linked to a series of denial of service attacks and other Internet campaigns between Koreans and Japanese. [71]

2006 Japanese maritime survey

In April 2006, Japan dispatched two ships to Dokdo to conduct a maritime survey near the islets, without formally notifying South Korea. In response, the South Korean government dispatched eighteen patrol ships to the islets, warning the Japanese government not to go through with its plans.[72] South Korean foreign minister Ban Ki-Moon emphasized that Seoul was "preparing counter-measures for all scenarios", leading some in the media to speculate that the South Korean military may try to capture the Japanese ships.[73]

South Korea maintained that the proposed maritime survey would encroach on its EEZ surrounding the islets, and that such a move must be accompanied by advance notice according to international law.[74] For its part, Japan denied any attempt to enter the EEZ, stating that all activities would take place inside its own waters.[75] Because of the competing claims to the islets, both South Korea and Japan have claimed the area in which the hydrological survey would be conducted as part of their EEZ. On April 19, 2006, The Korea Times reported that South Korean officials viewed Japanese actions as an attempt to bring the dispute over the islets to an international court.[76] On April 20, 2006, the Korean government refused to take the matter to the International Court of Justice. [77] The Japanese officials stated that the maritime survey ship would not enter the area near the islets on April 20, as previously planned, but it would still maintain that no diplomatic agreement has been reached between the two governments. [78]

On April 20, 2006, The Chosun Ilbo and The Japan Times both stated that at least one of the main reasons for the maritime survey arose from a naming dispute between South Korea and Japan. Several of the features on the sea floor within South Korea's claimed EEZ carry Japanese names, which in turn led to South Korea's plan to propose Korean names for the features at an international conference in Germany over the naming of submarine features.[79][80]

An agreement to end the dispute was eventually reached during meetings on April 22 and 23 between the South Korean and Japanese vice foreign ministers, in which Japan agreed to suspend the survey, while Korea agreed not to push forward its proposal "until an appropriate time," although the Japanese side interpreted this as the period of the IHO meeting in June.[81]

See also

• Japanese-Korean relations
• Korean-Japanese disputes
• Kuril Islands
• Senkaku Islands
• Okinotori

External links

• South Korean government's perspective on Dokdo via Korea.net
• Cyber Dokdo: a web page by the Gyeongsangbuk province, South Korea
• Takeshima is Japanese territory: a web page by the Shimane Prefectural Government, Japan
• Japan's position on Takeshima by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs
• The Territorial Dispute Over Dokdo, compiled by Mark S. Lovmo
• Tokdo Dispute History by Kalani O'Sullivan
• Tokdo or Takeshima? The International Law of Territorial Acquisition in the Japan-Korea Island Dispute, Sean Fern, Stanford Journal of East Asian Affairs, Volume 5 Number 1 (Winter 2005), pp.78-89 (PDF)
• "Day on the Dokdo Islands", an American's photographs of his trip to the islets.
• "North Korea Denounces Japanese Territorial Claims on Dokdo", Yonhap via Yahoo news
• dodkdonews.net: News updates on the disputed islets

References

• ^ Gyongsangbuk-do (2001). Cyber Dokdo. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ DKB News. UL1.jpg. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ Korea.net (1999–2006). Dokdo: A Profile. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ Korea.net (1999–2006). History of Dokdo. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ Korea.net (1999–2006). Dokdo: Inhabitants and Visitors. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ Truth of Dokdo. Story of Dokdo. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ Truth of Dokdo. Importance of Dokdo. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ 매경인터넷 독도 부부 '1호' 탄생. Retrieved 9 January, 2006.
• ^ Cyber Dokdo Residents of Dokdo. Retrieved 18 January, 2006.
• ^ Tour 2 Korea Dokdo Tour. Retrieved 18 January, 2006.
• Korea Times Dokdo Hosts First Civilians in a Decade. Retrieved 22 February, 2006.