Koreans Becoming a Soviet People 87Soviet Koreans had repeatedly requested an autonomous region since
the Second All- Korean Congress in June 1918.^35 Territorial autonomy for
minority nationalities had been promised as a foundation block of Soviet
nationalities policies. From 1922 to 1924, the Far Eastern Department of the
Comintern made several requests for Korean autonomy and a Korean au-
tonomous region. This was influenced in part by the granting of a Moldavian
ASSR.^36 The discussions over how to achieve autonomy led to a high level of
friction within the Korean Department (otdel) of the Primore Party Provin-
cial Committee. Korean bureaucrats denounced one another to the Oriental
Section of the Comintern.^37 In May 1924, Moscow formally rejected a re-
quest to establish a Korean autonomous oblast.^38 Regardless, if the Moldavi-
ans received an ASSR (when they constituted 29.7 percent of a total popula-
tion of 572,339) in 1925, why couldn’t the Koreans as well (Koreans totaled
22.4 percent of a total 680,011 in the Vladivostok okrug)? An autonomous
region such as this, whether under the nomenclature of a “Korean territory”
or simply a “Far Eastern ASSR” for Koreans and Chinese (who made up
10–14 percent of the total okrug population) could have been used as Soviet
socialist piedmonts in East Asia for the Comintern.^39 In 1927, Poset was
named a Korean Autonomous Raion, but the Koreans had asked for an au-
tonomous oblast.^40 In 1929, another census was conducted with almost simi-
lar numbers and percentages. This census found that the Vladivostok okrug
had a total population of 621,305 (1929). Koreans made up 24.22 percent
(total pop. 150,895), while Chinese made up 10.76 percent (total pop. 66,850).
There were also an estimated 171 Korean village soviets containing 5–9 vil-
lages each.^41 The total urban population was 181,161, of which 8.3 percent
(12,528) were Koreans and 13.6 percent (24,544) Chinese. Among Chinese
and Koreans, there also remained a small percentage of Chinese and Koreans
living in taiga or remote regions who remained unaccounted for.^42
The question remains, “Why were the Koreans limited to territorial
autonomy consisting of just one national raion?” If one examines Map 2, it
shows that the Poset, Suifun, and Suchan districts held majority Korean
populations. The Grodekov, Khankai, Pokrov, and Shkotovo districts also
had large Korean populations, where in one or two cases Koreans could
have been the largest single nationality.^43 All seven districts were contiguous.
This gave credence to their request for a Korean autonomous oblast (AO).^44
By 1929, Koreans, through the vari ous indigenization campaigns, had
shown that they were a loyal and constructible Soviet people.^45 Yet Soviet
internal policy and documents worked against Korean autonomy. A 1929
Rabkrin (Central Control Committee) report stated the view that Koreans
and Korean immigration were part of a Japa nese po liti cal subterfuge to