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The Indigenous Ainu of Japan and the “Northern Territories” Dispute

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The Indigenous Ainu of Japan and the “Northern Territories” Dispute The Indigenous Ainu of Japan and the “Northern Territories” Dispute by Scott Harrison A thesis presented to the University of Waterloo in fulfillment of the thesis requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in History Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, 2007 © Scott Harrison 2007 Author’s Declaration I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. ii Abstract This thesis re-examines the territorial dispute between Japan and Russia, the so-called “Northern Territories” issue, through a reinterpretation of the role of the indigenous Ainu of Japan. An exploration of Ainu history and historiography reveals that the long- standing emphasis on Wajin-based legitimacy of rule and annexation of northern areas was replaced by historical amnesia concerning the role and status of the Ainu. Discussion focuses on an interpretation of Ainu understandings of local, regional/national and international historical events. This approach underscores the importance of de-nationalising History by integrating the important perspectives of Indigeneity. It asserts, further, that the understanding of these events and processes require a broader disciplinary prism than that provided by the study of history. The preponderance of nation-based studies, and not only in the field of History, has seriously inhibited the analysis of historical phenomena involving Indigenous peoples, in this case the Ainu. The study of the Northern Territories issue offers, then, both a new perspective on the history of this important dispute and an illustration of the importance of broadening traditional academic studies in disciplines such as History, Anthropology, Ecology, Political Science, International Relations and Law to incorporate Indigenous perspectives and experience. iii Acknowledgements We look into the past and inevitably write something about ourselves.1 Although I began to learn of Ainu issues in 2000, this project is rooted in a study I commenced four years ago on Ainu-Wajin relations. Keira Mitsunori, a representative from the Foundation for Research and Promotion of Ainu Culture, introduced me to Ainu issues in a seminar at Hokkaido University of Education Sapporo (HUES), Japan. The Ainu instructor of an Ainu culture and history course I later took at HUES provided more detailed information on their contemporary issues. For this project, I am deeply indebted to the Kawamura Kaneto Ainu Memorial and the Hokkaido Utari Association for providing support and resources concerning Ainu perspectives. My Canadian citizenship, having Japanese as a second language, and currently residing outside of Japan have influenced my own views as well as how people have perceived and responded to me while performing research on this topic. Thanks to the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada for funding through a Canadian Graduate Scholarship. A University of Waterloo President’s Graduate Scholarship also provided invaluable funding after finishing my course work. The Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) in Waterloo generously supported my studies with a Balsillie Fellowship. I am also grateful for a University of Waterloo’s Graduate Scholarship and the Hugh MacKinnon Graduate Scholarship. My supervisor, Kimie Hara, has been inspiring for looking at the Northern Territories issue through various lenses, introduced me to comparative studies with Nordic conflict resolution, and provided constructive feedback on this thesis. In addition, Blaine Chiasson, Ken Coates, Whitney Lackenbauer and James Walker provided feedback and recommendations for improving this thesis. Geoffrey Jukes commented on an earlier draft of Chapter Four for which I am appreciative. Ted Harms at the Inter- Library Loan assisted in obtaining many resources on my behalf. The owner of the Sapporo-do book store in Japan, Ishihara Makoto, provided me with invaluable information on current research in Japanese and contemporary issues concerning the Ainu and recommended numerous resources. I am grateful to Kodama Yoko at the Northern Studies Resource Collection for her assistance. I would like to thank those Japanese, Russian and other resident friends who provided me with places to stay, and supported me while performing research in Japan. Thank you also to Mark Watson, Chris Frey, Jean Becker, Scotty Moore, and Ben Fitzhugh. Finally, I am would like to sincerely thank my family, especially Saki Murotani, for their underlying support. Any errors within are my own. 1 E.P. Thompson, “The politics of Theory,” in People’s History and Socialist Theory, ed. Raphael Samuel (London, 1981), 407; quoted in Bain Attwood, The Making of the Aborigines (Sydney: Allen & Unwin, 1989), 143. iv Table of Contents Author’s Declaration........................................................................................................... ii Abstract..............................................................................................................................iii Acknowledgements............................................................................................................ iv List of Figures................................................................................................................... vii List of Tables ...................................................................................................................viii Abbreviations..................................................................................................................... ix INTRODUCTION .............................................................................................................. 1 CHAPTER 1: The Northern Territories/Southern Kurils/Ainu Moshir Problem............. 10 Literature on the Northern Territories / Ainu Authors and the Northern Territories / Changing the Focus of Study / Consequences of Ainu Non- Inclusion / Reasons for Non-Inclusion of the Ainu in the Literature CHAPTER 2: Rethinking Indigenous Peoples in the Japanese Colonial Empire ........... 25 Approaches of Literature / Slow to Recognise Colonial Encounters, Trends Moving Against State-Centered, Nationalistic History and the Silencing Effect of the Frontier Thesis / Making Connections among Japanese Colonies CHAPTER 3: Historical Overview of Ainu -Wajin Relations ......................................... 40 Ainu Cultural Formation and Life-Ways / The Kunashiri-Menashi Battle of 1789 / Bakufu Control of Ezochi / Meiji Japan and the Ainu CHAPTER 4: The Ainu at the Time of the Åland Islands Settlement ............................. 56 The Åland Islands Settlement / Connecting Åland to Japan / The Ainu and Russo-Japanese Treaties / Nitobe Inazo, the Colonial Agency and the Sapporo Agricultural College / The League of Nations, Minority Rights, Indigenous Rights and Japan / New Initiatives for Solving the “Northern Territories” Dispute: Inspiration from the Åland Experience CHAPTER 5: The Japanese Government’s and Supporting Academic Views on the Northern Territories .......................................................................................................... 71 The End of World War II to 1981 / The Northern Territories Day, 7 February / National Trends in the Japanese Government and Its “Activists” v CHAPTER 6: Post-War Internationalisation of the Ainu and Ainu Indigenous Diplomacy ........................................................................................................................................... 85 The UN, Human Rights and Indigenous Diplomacy since World War II / The Hokkaido Utari Association / The Utari Association and the United Nations / Other Ainu Organisations and Issues CONCLUSION: Expanding Frameworks: Solutions that Consider the Ainu................ 117 Appendixes ..................................................................................................................... 123 Bibliography ................................................................................................................... 136 vi List of Figures Figure 1: Ainu Territories ................................................................................................... x Figure 2: The Bussol Strait ............................................................................................... 24 Figure 3: The Kuril Islands............................................................................................... 24 Figure 4: “Exchange” The Japan Punch 1875.................................................................. 70 Figure 5: Maps from Japan's Northern Territories ..................................................... 83-84 Figure 6: Kodama Sakuzaemon...................................................................................... 116 vii List of Tables Table 1: Ainu in the Press................................................................................................. 55 viii Abbreviations CCPR Covenant on Civil and Political Rights CERD Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Racial Discrimination CPA Cultural Promotion Act (1997) ECOSOC Economic and Social Council FRPAC Foundation for Research and Promotion of Ainu Culture HFAPA Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Act (1899) HUES Hokkaido University of Education Sapporo LDP Liberal Democratic Party PFII Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues UDHR Universal Declaration of Human Rights WGIP Working
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