User:Qwyrxian/SI dispute reorg

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The purpose of this page is to begin re-organizing the Senkaku Islands dispute page, to 1) get rid off all uncited info and 2) ideally, organize the information by topic, rather than by POV.

The dispute[edit]

The dispute over ownership of the islands arose during the beginning of the 1970s, as the United States was planning to turn over control of the Ryukyu Islands to Japan. The United States had held control of the Ryukyu and Bonin Islands as a result of Article 3 of the San Francisco Peace Treaty. The United States handed over control of the Senkaku Islands along with the Ryukyu and Bonin Islands in 1972. However, between 1970 and 1972, both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China (Taiwan) had begun asserting that the islands were, in fact, a part of Chinese territory since at least the 16th century.[1][2][3] They contend that the United States could not have reverted control of the Senkaku Islands to Japan, because those islands were explicitly covered by the portion of the San Fracisco Peace Treaty which nullified the earlier Treaty of Shimonoseki.[4] Japan, on the other hand, argues that the islands have been a part of Japanese territory since 1895, prior to which they were terra nullius.[5]

Historical background[edit]

13th through 19th century[edit]

PRC and ROC hold that the islands have been known to China at least since 1372,[3] had been repeatedly referred to as part of Chinese territory since 1534,[3] and later controlled by the Qing Dynasty along with Taiwan.[6]The earliest written record of Diaoyutai dates back to 1403 in a Chinese book Voyage with the Tail Wind (zh:順風相送),[7] which recorded the names of the islands that voyagers had passed on a trip from Fujian to the Ryukyu Kingdom.[4] By 1534, all the major islets of the island group were identified and named in the book Record of the Imperial Envoy's Visit to Ryukyu (使琉球錄).[8] and were the Ming Dynasty (the 16th century) 's sea-defense frontier.[8] In that book, one of the islands, Chihweiyu, marked the boundary of the Ryukyu Islands. This is viewed by the ROC and PRC as meaning that these islands did not belong to the Ryukyu Islands.[3] Further, they state that the first reference to these islands in Japanese government documents did not occur until 1884.[3]

Japan holds that prior to the Japanese declaring ownership of the islands in 1895, the islands were unoccupied and under the control of no government. The first formal mention of the islands in Japanese government documents occurred in 1885, when the Japanese Governor of Okinawa Prefecture, Nishimura Sutezo, petitioned the Meiji government to take formal control of the Senkaku Islands.[4] However, Inoue Kaoru, the Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs, commented that the islands lay near to the border area with the Qing empire and that they had been given Chinese names. He also cited an article in a Chinese newspaper that had previously claimed that Japan was occupying islands off China's coast. Inoue was concerned that if Japan proceeded to erect a landmark stating its claim to the islands, it would make the Qing empire suspicious. Following Inoue's advice, Yamagata Aritomo, the Minister of the Interior turned down the request to incorporate the islands, insisting that this matter should not be "revealed to the news media".[4] Following that time, Japan conducted surveys of the islands, and in 1895, decided that there they showed no trace of having been under the control of other countries. As such, Japan declared the islands terra nullius, and then proceeded, on 14 Janauary 1895, to incorporate them under the administration of Okinawa.[5] China, however, argues that the earlier letter from the Minister of the Interior is an indication that Japan had not considered the islands terra nullius in 1885.[9][6][8]

First and Second Sino-Japanese Wars[edit]

From 1894 to 1895, Meiji Japan and Qing Dynasty China fought the First Sino-Japanese War. The war ended with the signing of the Treaty of Shimonoseki. This treaty stipulated that, among other things, China would cede to Japan "the island of Formosa together with all islands appertaining or belonging to said island of Formosa (Taiwan)".[10][11] Although the Treaty did not specifically name every ceded island, the ROC and PRC argue that Japan did not include the Senkaku islands as part of Okinawa Prefecture prior to 1894, and that the eventual inclusion occurred only as a consequence of China's cession of Taiwan and the Pescadores to Japan after the Sino-Japanese War.[3]

The treaty, however, was nullified after Japan lost the Second world war in 1945 by the Treaty of San Francisco, which was signed between Japan and part of the Allied Powers in 1951. According to the Treaty of San Francisco, which The Potsdam Declaration stated that "Japanese sovereignty shall be limited to the islands of Honshū, Hokkaidō, Kyūshū, Shikoku and such minor islands as we determine", and "we" referred to the victors of WWII who met at Potsdam, the USA, UK and Republic of China. Japan accepted the terms of the Declaration when it surrendered.[8][12][13]

There is a disagreement between the Japanese, PRC (China) and ROC (Taiwan) governments as to whether the Senkaku Islands are implied to be part of the "islands appertaining or belonging to said island of Formosa" in the Treaty of Shimonoseki.[4] The Japanese government argues that the disputed islands were terra nullius when Japan claimed them in the 1890s, while China and Taiwan dispute this based on the letter from Yamagata Aritomo's declining the request to incorporate the islands in 1885.[9]

Post World War II[edit]

Article 3 of the Treaty of San Francisco placed the Bonin Islands and the Ryukyu Islands, under U.S. trusteeship. In 1969 U.S.-Japan negotiations authorized the transfer of authority over the Ryūkyūs to Japan to be implemented in 1972. In 1972, the United States reverted control of the Ryūkyūs to Japan.[14][15] Japan argues that the Senkaku Islands were included in the Both the People's Republic of China and the Republic of China, argue that this agreement to return control, but both ROC and PRC reject this claim.

Cartographical evidence[edit]

A 1785 Japanese map, the Sangoku Tsūran Zusetsu (三国通覧図説) by Hayashi Shihei adopted the Chinese kanji (釣魚臺 Diaoyutai) to annotate the Senkaku Islands, which were painted in the same color as China.[4][16][17]
The Washington Times claims that this is a classified PRC government map from 1969 and that it lists the "Senkaku islands" as Japanese territory.[18]

Both sides argue that historical maps provide evidence supporting their claims of ownership.

China asserts that the fact that earliest known maps of the islands are Chinese is evidence that the islands belong to China.[3] Furthermore, they hold that since a map compiled by a Japanese cartographer in the 18th century indicated the islands belonged to China, that Japan at that time recognized Chinese ownership of the islands.[6][8]

Conversely, Japan points to several maps published by China in the post-war period as being evidence that China considered Japan to be the owner of the islands prior to the 1970s. For example, A world atlas published in November 1958, by the Map Publishing Company of Beijing, treats the Senkaku Islands as a Japanese territory.[19] A state-prescribed textbook published in 1970 in Taiwan treated the islands as Japanese territories.[20][21] Additionally, a World Atlas published in October 1965 by the National Defense Research Academy and the China Geological Research Institute of Taiwan records the Diaoyu Islands with Japanese names: Gyochojima (Diaoyu Islands), Taishojima (Chiwei Island), and Senkaku Gunto.[22] In the late 1970s, the government of ROC began to recall these books, but it was too late.[22] Finally, the Washington Times claimed that they obtained a classified map made by the PRC's map authority in 1969 apparently listing the "Senkaku Islands" as Japanese territory.[18]

Chinese statements prior to 1970[edit]

A letter from the Republic of China (中華民國) consul to Nagasaki written on May 20, 1921. The letter referred to "Senkaku Islands, Yaeyama District, Okinawa Prefecture, the Empire of Japan".[23]
An article published by the Renmin Ribao in 1953. It listed "Senkaku Islands" as part of the (then) U.S.-occupied Ryuku Islands (Okinawa).[24]

Japan holds that China's claims of ownership of the Senkaku Islands arose only after a submarine oil field was discovered near these islands.[25][26] Japan points to a number of statements by the Chinese government and organizations close to it in support of this claim.

The earliest evidence Japan points to is a letter purportedly sent to Japanese fishermen by the Chinese Consul Feng Mien (冯冕/馮冕) in Nagasaki on behalf of the Republic of China (中華民國) in response to the rescue of a Chinese were rescued from a shipwreck in 1920. In the letter, written on May 20, 1921, reference was made to "Senkaku Islands, Yaeyama District, Okinawa Prefecture, the Empire of Japan". The letter is on exhibition at Yaeyama museum.[23]

For post-war evidence, Japan points to an article written in The People's Daily, a daily newspaper which is the organ of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC). This article described the Senkaku Islands as being a part of the Ryukyu Islands (Japanese territory).[24][27][28][29][30][31][32]

Additionally, during a private visit 9 years after stepping down from office, former President of Republic of China, Lee Teng-hui, once said that the Senkaku Islands are part of Okinawa.[33]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Durdin, Tillman. "Peking Claims Disputed Oil-Rich Isles," New York Times. December 6, 1970.
  2. ^ 中華民國外交部關於琉球群島與釣魚台列嶼問題的聲明, 1971-6-11
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Lee, p. 10., p. 10, at Google Books
  4. ^ a b c d e f Unryu Suganuma (2000). Sovereign Rights and Territorial Space in Sino-Japanese Relations. University of Hawaii Press. pp. 89–97. ISBN 0824824938.
  5. ^ a b The Basic View on the Sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan
  6. ^ a b c On the sovereignty of Diaoyu Islands (论钓鱼岛主权的归属), Fujian Education Department
  7. ^ Title: Liang zhong hai dao zhen jing / [Xiang Da jiao zhu].Imprint: Beijing : Zhonghua shu ju : Xin hua shu dian Beijing fa xing suo fa xing, 2000 reprint edition. Contents: Shun feng xiang song--Zhi nan zheng fa. (順風相送--指南正法). ISBN: ISBN 7-101-02025-9. pp96 and pp253. The full text is available on wikisource.
  8. ^ a b c d e "China's Diaoyu Islands Sovereignty is Undeniable", People's Daily, 25-05-2003. Retrieved 24-02-2007.
  9. ^ a b Japan's action off Diaoyu raises concern, China Daily, Sept 10, 2010
  10. ^ [Article II{b}], Treaty of Shimonoseki
  11. ^ The New York Times, Aug 5, 1895
  12. ^ Japan Focus - Koji Taira
  13. ^ Potsdam Declaration(full text), East Asian Studies Documents, UCLA Asia institute
  14. ^ Agreement between Japan and the United States of America Concerning the Ryukyu Islands and the Daito Islands, June 17, 1971 [1]
  15. ^ Durdins, Tillman. "Okinawa Islands Returned by U.S. to Japanese Rule; Agnew, in Tokyo, Declares 'Last Major Issue' of the Pacific War Is Resolved U.S. Returns Okinawa to Japanese Rule," New York Times. May 15, 1972.
  16. ^ Title: Sangoku tsūran zusetsu.三國通覧圖說. Sŏul : Kyŏngin Munhwasa, 1982.Hayashi, Shihei, 1738-1793.Reprint.Preface by Katsuragawa Hoshū dated Tenmei kinotouma [sic]; introd. by Hayashi Shihei, the author, dated Tenmei 5 [1785].
  17. ^ [2] 三国通覧図説 (Sangoku Tsuran Zusetsu), 林子平(Hayashi Shihei)
  18. ^ a b "China-Japan tensions". The Washington Times. Retrieved 2010-09-18.
  19. ^ Lee, p. 11., p. 11, at Google Books
  20. ^ Lee, p. 11., p. 11, at Google Books; excerpt: "Further support for Japan's claim is the fact that in the World Atlas, Volume 1, East Asia Nations, 1st edition, published in October 1965, by the National Defense Research Academy and the China Geological Research Institute of Taiwan, and in the People's Middle School Text-book.
  21. ^ 「国民中学地理教科書・第四冊(Geography textbook for national junior high schools)」January, 1970
  22. ^ a b Suganuma, Unryu (2001). Sovereign Rights and Territorial Space in Sino-Japanese Relations: Irredentism and the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. University of Hawaii Press. p. 126. ISBN 0824824938. Furthermore, the first volume of Shijie Dituji (The World Atlas), published by the Taiwan Defense Ministry and the Institute of Physical Geology in 1965, records the Diaoyu Islands with Japanese names: Gyochojima (Diaoyu Islands), Taishojima (Chiwei Island), and Senkaku Gunto. In addition, a high school textbook in Taiwan uses Japanese name to identify Diaoyu Islands. In the late 1970s, the government of ROC began to recall these books, but it was too little too late -- the damage was already done.
  23. ^ a b "「尖閣は日本の領土」　遭難救助の中国政府感謝状に明記". Ryūkyū Shimpō. 2005-06-15.
  24. ^ a b Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, Q&A, Senkaku Islands, Q4/A4.3. "In addition, an article in the People's Daily dated 8 January 1953, under the title of "Battle of people in the Ryukyu Islands against the U.S. occupation", made clear that the Ryukyu Islands consist of 7 groups of islands including the Senkaku Islands."; retrieved 29 Jan 2011.
  25. ^ "Senkaku/Diaoyutai Islands". Globalsecurity.org.
  26. ^ "The Basic View on the Sovereignty over the Senkaku Islands". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan.
  27. ^ Representative Office of Japan to PNA, Newsletter #2, November 2010; see Item 3; "... an article in the People’s Daily dated January 8, 1953, under the title of “Battle of people in the Ryukyu Islands against the U.S. occupation”, made clear that the Ryukyu Islands consist of 7 groups of islands including the Senkaku Islands"; accord Embassy of Japan in Israel, Newsletter #2, October 2010 see Item 4.
  28. ^ Suganuma, Unryu (2001). Sovereign Rights and Territorial Space in Sino-Japanese Relations: Irredentism and the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. University of Hawaii Press. p. 127. ISBN 0824824938. To make matters worse, when on January 8, 1953, Renmin Ribao [People's Daily], the official propaganda organ for the Communist Party, criticized the occupation of Rukyu Islands(or Okinawa Prefecture) by the United States, it stated that "the Ryukyu Islands are located northeast of our Taiwan Islands...including Senkaku Shoto. According to this statement, the PRC recognized that the Diaoyu (J:Senkaku) Islands were a part of Liuqiu Islands (or Okinawa Prefecture). In other words, the Diaoyu Islands belonged neither to Taiwan nor to mainland China, but to Japan.
  29. ^ Shaw, Han-yi (1999). The Diaoyutai/Senkaku Islands dispute: its history and an analysis of the ownership claims of the P.R.C., R.O.C., and Japan, Issue 3. University of Maryland. p. 34. ISBN 0925153672. With respect to the PRC, a front page news report that appeared on the October 3, 1996 edition of the Sankei Shimbun, reported that the PRC government evidently recognized the disputed islands as Japanese territory as revealed in a government sponsored publication. This particular publication is identified as the January 8, 1953 edition of The Peoples' Daily, China's official party newspaper, in which an article entitled " The People of the Ryukyu Islands Struggle Against American occupation" noted the Senkaku Islands as one of the subgroups of islands that constituted the Ryukyu Islands.
  30. ^ "Why Japan claims the Senkaku Islands". Asahi shimbun. 2010-09-25.; "In his book "Gendai Chugoku Nenpyo" (Timeline on modern China), Masashi Ando referred to a People's Daily article dated Jan. 8, 1953, which makes reference to the "Senkaku Islands in Okinawa".
  31. ^ Ando, Masashi (2010). (in Japanese). Iwanami shoten. p. 88. ISBN 978-4-00-022778-0. 「人民日報」が米軍軍政下の沖縄の尖閣諸島(当時の中国の呼び方のまま. 現在中国は「釣魚島」という)で日本人民の米軍の軍事演習に反対する闘争が行われていると報道. 「琉球諸島はわが国台湾の東北および日本九州島の西南の間の海上に散在し、尖閣諸島、先島諸島、大東諸島、沖縄諸島、大島諸島、吐噶喇諸島、大隅諸島など7つの島嶼からなっている」と紹介(新華月報：1953-7) {{cite book}}: Missing or empty |title= (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help); read Google Chinese-English translation
  32. ^ "Maehara: People's Daily described Senkaku Islands as Japan's in 1953". The Japan Times. Sept. 29, 2010. The People's Daily described the Ryukyu Islands as "dispersed between the northeastern part of our country's Taiwan and the southwestern part of Japan's Kyushu Island" and as including the Senkaku Islands as well as the Sakishima Islands, Maehara said. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  33. ^ "Lee Teng-hui arrives in Japan". Taipei Times. 2009-09.05. Retrieved 2009-09-22. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
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