스즈키 다케오(鈴木武雄)의 식민지조선근대화론

Abstract

Takeo Suzuki (鈴木武雄) is the scholar who was deeply engaged in the economic policy of the Japanese Government General of Korea, while teaching economics as a professor of the Faculty of Law and Literature at Kyeongseong Imperial University from 1935. After World War II, when he went back to Japan, he leadingly took part in writing the Part of Korea out of the Parts of Korea, Manchuria and Taiwan in the Project of Historic Investigation on Japanese Overseas Activities, which was secretly conducted by Japanese Ministry of Finance (大蔵省) in 1946. Takeo Suzuki wrote, "Characteristics and Achievements of the Rule over Korea," in the project. In his writing, he glorified Japan's ruling policy of colonial Korea, and insisted Korea could be modernized by Japanese rule. Therefore, his writing can be regarded as the beginning of Colonial Modernization Theory after 1945. This paper analyzed and criticized his writing. Takeo Suzuki asserted, "Japan's possession of Korea did not go beyond imperialistic, especially, militaristic ruling scope in essence, however, Japan showed an ideal type of ruling, unlike many Western countries' colonial policies." He said Japan did not regard Korea as a colony, and did not treat Korean people as colonial people those days. He insisted that the assimilation policy (policy to assimilate Koreans to Japanese), the mainland extension policy (Korea is the extension of Japan) and the policy of "Korea and Japan are One" by the Japanese government or the Japanese Government General of Korea showed Japan's position. For example, he acknowledged Japan's building of rice production-centered industrial structure or mobilization of human and material resources during the war showed that Japan's industrial policy towards Korea was for Japan basically. He, however, stressed Korean industrial economy made a remarkable development, incomparable to the past during Japan's colonial period of Korea. In this context, he insisted Japan's ruling policy over Korea cannot be simply regarded as imperialistic colonial policy. Takeo Suzuki claimed Japan tried to treat Korea in the position of treating Japan and Korea equally. Although, there were many problems in Japan's ruling over Korea, he insisted Korea's modernization was conducted through Japan's rule over Korea. He especially emphasized Koreans' economic and cultural levels sharply improved during Japan's colonial rule over Korea. His claim, however, is actually to conceal, distort and mislead historic facts. The reason is that Japanese imperialistic ruling policy over Korea had such characteristics as exploiting human and material resources in Korea and treating Koreans in a discriminatory way. Takeo Suzuki's Modernization Theory of Colonial Korea can be rated as the logic to glorify and rationalize Japanese colonial ruling policy.