[Desk Column] To Become a True World Heritage, Japan's Industrial Heritage Must...

The photo shows one of the four information boards installed after Gunhamdo was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage site, explaining the facilities of Gunhamdo. It was confirmed that this information board does not mention "forced labor" at all. [Photo by Professor Seo Kyung-deok, provided to Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Senior Reporter Jinsoo Lee] The 44th UNESCO World Heritage Committee (WHC), held online from Fuzhou, Fujian Province, China on the 16th, will conclude on the 31st. The WHC is an international organization that decides on World Heritage listings.

In July 2015, Japan registered 23 Meiji-era industrial heritage sites, including Hashima (also known as Gunkanjima) coal mine, as World Cultural Heritage sites, and promised the international community to take measures to present the "whole history," such as forced labor. The "whole history" means that the perspective should be balanced, not only from Japan's viewpoint but also including the victims' perspectives, such as Korean forced laborers.

However, Japan's progress reports submitted to UNESCO in 2017 and 2019, as well as the Industrial Heritage Information Center established in Tokyo, 1,200 km away instead of Hashima in 2020, did not fulfill the promise. Although UNESCO recommended "continuous dialogue between the parties concerned," the Japanese government did not engage in consultations with the Korean government.

Eventually, on the 22nd at the WHC, UNESCO adopted a resolution urging Japan to faithfully implement follow-up measures such as understanding the forced labor of Koreans and others promised when applying for World Heritage registration. It "strongly regrets" that the parties concerned have not faithfully implemented the relevant decisions. Furthermore, it stipulated that an updated progress report must be submitted by December 1, 2022, for review at the 46th WHC in 2023.

This is significant in that the international community explicitly confirmed Japan's failure to fulfill its promise and strongly urged faithful implementation. Moreover, by explicitly stating the content of the promise made by the Japanese representative at that time in the main text of the resolution for the first time, it blocked any possibility of double-dealing. Although Japanese officials participated during the adoption of the resolution, they did not refute it. In fact, they probably could not refute it because they had not fulfilled the promise.

Since then, there has been no reflection or mention of correction from the Japanese government. This is understandable because the Japanese government denies the forced mobilization of Koreans itself. Acknowledging it could affect not only the World Heritage issue but also lawsuits by forced mobilization victims.

World Cultural Heritage is easily influenced by national intentions, ethnic consciousness, and historical perceptions. However, excluding these is necessary to become a true World Heritage. At the Zollverein Coal Mine in northwestern Germany, it is openly acknowledged that Nazi Germany forcibly mobilized Jews and prisoners of war for labor during World War II. Clearly revealing what happened in the past is an expression of the recognition that apologies should be made where appropriate and compensation should be given where due. That is why the Zollverein Coal Mine can be preserved as a World Heritage site.

The Industrial Heritage Information Center in Tokyo contains no content honoring the victims of forced labor. It is filled only with promotion of the Meiji Industrial Revolution. It is filled solely with the right-wing desire to erase the painful history of Korean forced mobilization and reproduce "Japan's glory."

On the 27th, an essay by a freelance travel writer was published on the online edition of the Asahi Shimbun. After finishing a Hashima tour, he wrote: "I felt the energy of an era rushing toward modernization and the spirited energy of the island people living there."

A historically unbalanced perception will only drive Japan into isolation.