Ceremony held in Tokyo to commemorate Koreans massacred in wake of 1923 Japan quake

TOKYO -- A memorial ceremony was held in Tokyo on Sept. 1 to commemorate the Korean victims who were massacred following baseless discriminatory rumors in the wake of the Great Kanto Earthquake, which struck the capital region on the same day in 1923.

An executive committee comprising groups including the Niccho Kyokai (Japan-Korea association) held the ceremony in front of a memorial monument at Tokyo Metropolitan Yokoamicho Park in the capital's Sumida Ward. One of the organizers said, "It is the duty of us who are alive today to pass down this tragic historical fact to future generations. We will continue to hold the ceremony next year and beyond."

In the turmoil following the 1923 earthquake, many Koreans were slaughtered by locals and others who believed false rumors, including one blaming Koreans for poisoning wells. A report by the Japanese government's Central Disaster Management Council recognizes that between 1% to several percent of some 105,000 people who died or went missing after the quake were Koreans killed in the massacre.

While Tokyo governors have historically sent commemorative messages to the ceremony, current Gov. Yuriko Koike has not done so for six years in a row since 2017. Attendees raised their voices in protest, with one saying, "I can't tolerate her attitude for not facing up to history."

Kim Do-im, 85, a second-generation "Zainichi" Korean resident in Tokyo's Ota Ward, told the Mainichi Shimbun that her uncle had gone missing after he went to Tokyo following the tremblor. She said, "We still see hate speeches against Koreans in Japan. I hope the two neighboring countries respect each other and move forward."

(Japanese original by Mei Nammo and Satoshi Tokairin, Tokyo City News Department, and Yoshiya Goto, Photo Group)