Burnt by the Sun. The Koreans of the Russian Far East - Jon K. Chang

48 Chapter 3

in Jiandao, the Korean area of Manchuria). In the first months of 1920,

he returned to Blagoveshchensk, Rus sia. In May 1920, he was accepted as a

member of the CP and in fact was elected Korean section leader of the ex-

ecutive committee for the Komosomol. Kim would continue to rise in the

CP ranks, obtaining the post of Secretary of the Poset Raion VKP (Com-

munist Party) sometime after the inception of Poset as a Korean national

district in 1926–1927. In the first chapter, certain events of Afanasii Kim’s

life were highlighted in order to represent the aspirations, strug gles, and

successes during korenizatsiia. In the next section, we will evaluate Japa nese

co- rule during Entente, their social policies and ideologies vis- à- vis the

Bolsheviks.

LACKING “TO TA L EMPIRE” AND RUMORS OF ESPIONAGE

Japan, though militarily adept, lacked the ability for “total empire” building.
Japa nese intervention had the support of many sectors of the Japa nese pop-
ulation and funding from nationalist groups and corporations. Japan even
started a Russian- language newspaper, Vladivo- Nippo, during the Interven-
tion (beginning on April  11, 1920), which was almost exclusively a state
propaganda piece that relentlessly extolled the friendship between the Rus-
sian and Japa nese people. For example: “ There is not a trace left of the for-
mer hatred of the peasants towards the Japa nese in the region. Throughout
all of Nikolsk- Ussuriisk and Olga districts the population lives in friendship
with the Japa nese. On 17 August 1920 in Shkotovo, the Japa nese comman-
dant arranged a concert, followed by dancing. Rus sians were also invited to
this party and a good number showed up.”^70 Yet, there was very little attempt
to carry out the Pan- Asianist rhe toric of harmony, social equality, mutual
economic support, and nation building for natives and local elites. The In-
tervention was a five- year period when the Japa nese could have promoted
and carried out Pan- Asianist social policies. Instead, they brutalized every-
one under their administrative control (Rus sians, Chinese, Koreans, and
Siberian natives). Koreans were already at odds with the Japa nese for their
colonization of Korea. But this experience (Intervention) drove many Koreans
to take up arms or socialism in hopes of overthrowing the Japa nese Empire.
In regard to the fifth- columnist threat, there was actually very little motiva-
tion for Soviet Koreans to align themselves with the Japa nese.
The one exception was Japa nese support for Buriat autonomy and
the creation of the Buriat- Mongol Republic at Chita. However, this was
due to IJA (Imperial Japa nese Army) support for Ataman Semyonov, a half-
Cossack, half- Buriat ataman (a leader of in de pen dent Cossack armies) who
executed anyone who challenged his authority, friend or foe. The IJA seemed