Republic of Korea in Yeokcheon - Chapter 83



Only Krnovel

#83. A man who helps even heaven.

Aside from the fact that South Korea began to rapidly advance in power generation technology, trials for war criminals also began in earnest.

The International Military Tribunal for the Far East was already established in October 1945, earlier than the original history. It is often referred to as the Tokyo Tribunal and is often thought to be established only in Tokyo, but in reality, it was established in the colonial areas of each Allied country, such as Singapore and Manila, as well as in China and Korea. A total of 50 courts were established.

Among war criminals, Type A war criminals (Crimes Against Peace), who planned and led the war, were tried in Tokyo, and those who violated the laws of war such as the Geneva Convention and the customary laws of war and committed massacre of civilians were prosecuted. The trial of Type B war criminals (Conventional War Crimes) and Type C war criminals (Inhumane Crimes. Crimes Against Humanity) are those who tortured or killed civilians and prisoners under orders and instructions from superiors. Each Allied country was tried by a court established in its own country.

Accordingly, the Republic of Korea also established a war crimes court at the Yongsan Ministry of Defense building and brought to trial war criminals caught in the Korean Peninsula and Manchuria.

In addition, the judges of the Tokyo court were composed of 11 judges dispatched from each of the Allied countries. In Korea, at the request of the Supreme Command of the Allied Powers, Chief Judge Choong-han Lee of the High Court, who had worked as a judge at Hyundai and studied at Harvard Law School, and was fluent in English, was appointed. dispatched.

What is noteworthy here is that, unlike the original history, judges from the Soviet Union and the Indian Empire were excluded. This was natural since the Soviet Union was expelled from the Allied Powers, but judges from the Indian Empire were excluded purely at the strong request of the government of the Republic of Korea.

This was because the government of the Republic of Korea knew in advance what kind of person the person dispatched from India was.

“Radhabinod Pal, this person should be excluded.”

Since the Republic of Korea was recognized for its contribution to the Pacific War at least on par with Britain, Lee Chung-han, who was working on forming a court in Tokyo before judges dispatched from other countries, put the brakes on it.

“yes? You mean the Indian representative?”

“Yes, it is. “It must be removed.”

“May I know why?”

“Hmm, I’m curious too. Although India’s position is a bit ambiguous, it is difficult to exclude it from dispatching judges.”

Chief Judge John Patrick Higgins from the United States and Chief Justice William Flood Webbe from Australia asked questions with perplexed expressions.

“Radavinod Pal, this man is an ardent follower of Chandra Bose.”

“yes? Is that really true?”

“That’s right. “Maybe that’s why he is also an ardent pro-Japanese fan.”

“Huh! “Is that possible?”

Chandra Bose.

The enemy of the enemy is a great man who joined the Axis powers out of a sense of comradeship, and it is no exaggeration to say that Hideki Tojo is a comrade in spirit.

Of course, in India, he is revered as an independence hero.

Perhaps that’s why his ardent follower, Radavinod Pal, originally represented India in history and became one of the 11 judges in the Tokyo court, attracting maddening aggro.

This is because they went beyond simply defending Japan and slandered Japan by insisting that the war crimes trial itself was wrong in the first place.

So in Japan, he was naturally revered as a hero, and even a memorial monument was erected at Yasukuni Shrine.

This is why Judge Lee Choong-han, who knows the facts, is actively trying to exclude it.

“It is obvious that if this person is appointed as a judge, he will become a huge headache. Let’s rule it out. “There’s no need to include an Indian judge in the assortment, right?”

“I believe what Judge Lee said. “I think it would be best to rule it out.”

“Hey, this is…”

Judge Webb looked a little embarrassed.

Although he is from Australia, he is a representative of the UK, and he was concerned about the repercussions of excluding India.

However, if Lee Chung-han’s words were true, it was obvious that the normal progress of the trial would be disrupted, so there was nothing that could be done.

“All right. “Please do so.”

“thank you.”

The court formed in that way was able to conduct a smooth trial because there were no judges who were particularly aggressive.

And, March 26, 1946.

The Tokyo courtroom, which uses what was once the main auditorium of the Japanese Military Academy, was a special day because of a Japanese military general who stood out in particular.

First of all, he stood out from the start.

In fact, the U.S. military, which was leading the war crimes trials, suffered so much damage in the Pacific theater that it could not have a positive view of Japanese war criminals.

Accordingly, all military awards and rank insignia were removed from the uniforms of Japanese military generals, and it was common for Japanese military generals, who felt ashamed, to attend trials deliberately dressed in civilian clothes.

However, since this general wore a military uniform with decorations and rank insignia, his dignity was bound to be exceptional.

It must have been a show of favor from the Allied Powers.

Because he is none other than General Renya Mudaguchi.

In modern Korea, he is an independence activist, and if you search Japanese for 牟田口廉也 on Google, 牟田口廉也 スパイ (Mudaguchi Renya Spy) appears as a related search term.

When Mudaguchi appeared on trial, annoyances erupted from the side where the Japanese generals were present.

“I understand everything else… Why is that bastard sitting there? “Did you come to receive the Medal of Honor?”

“…”

Mudaguchi was a person that no one in the Allies wanted to be punished.

However, the reason he was included as a Type A war criminal was during the time when Mudaguchi was the commander of the regiment of the Gina Expeditionary Force. This was because he was the person who caused the Nogu Bridge Incident, which started the Japanese-Japanese War.

Anyway, a trial is a trial.

When the prosecution began to announce Mudaguchi’s past actions, the court immediately burst into laughter.

“Puhuhuh!”

“Puuup!”

“Kkkkkk!”

Each of his actions was so absurd that anyone would have thought he was a spy for the Allied Powers, which led to ridicule, while the expressions on the faces of the Japanese military generals and high-ranking officials who were present also hardened with shame.

Eventually, when the announcement of the actions was over, Judge Lee Chung-han smiled and opened his mouth.

“No matter how much I hear about this, General Mudaguchi seems like an ally, so is there any need to continue? At least I don’t think he’s a Type A war criminal?”

“I agree. General Mudaguchi skips the hearing.”

The presiding judge and other judges agreed, and Mudaguchi was dismissed without charges without even receiving a hearing.

Of course, there were suspicions that he was involved in the Alexandra Hospital incident and the Singapore Chinese massacre that occurred while he was commander of the 18th Division, but these were matters that would be treated as Type B and C war criminals in Singapore’s courts.

And Judge Lee Chung-han knew the ending.

This downright lucky man would be released for lack of evidence when his friend was murdered at Alexandra Hospital and Major Cyril Wide, the only person willing to prosecute him, died in a plane crash.

I could only say that he was a man who literally helped even heaven.

“Okay, well, I’ll be in prison for two years, so that’s enough. “At least he didn’t directly order the massacre anyway…”

Judge Lee Chung-han forgave Mudaguchi, who was sitting with a shameless expression while muttering to himself.

At the same time, a war crimes trial was underway at the so-called ‘Seoul Court’ installed at the Yongsan Ministry of Defense building in South Korea.

The first to stand trial were previous governors, including Kuniaki Koiso, who was governor during the restoration of the Korean Peninsula.

By this time, there were only three governors alive: Kuniaki Koiso, Kazushige Ugaki, the 6th, and Jiro Minami, the 7th, who was the most vicious and was considered the same as Terauchi.

The government of the Republic of Korea arrested Jiro Minami and Kazushige Ugaki in Japan and transported them to Seoul for trial.

The first to go to trial was Kazushige Ugaki, the 6th Governor-General.

Although he may have been faithful to his duties as the colonial governor, he had many meritorious achievements, such as his efforts in the development of colonial Joseon, to the point where he was called the ‘Governor of Joseon.’

In modern Korea, most of the claims of colonial modernization from crazy people should be seen as based on the accomplishments of this nobleman during his tenure.

In addition, his official period of office was from 1931 to 1936, which was still a good time for cultural rule, so he did not act too viciously, so there were not many cases that could be called war crimes.

He also maintained a fairly good relationship with Yeo Woon-hyung.

Moreover, crucially, he was a person who opposed everything from the Sino-Japanese War to the Pacific War, so it was difficult to punish him in any way.

In the end, like the original history, it ended with expulsion from public office.

In any case, it was true that many Koreans were oppressed during his tenure, so it was impossible not to impose no punishment, so it was a punishment that was imposed.

The second is Minami Jiro.

This person was the main culprit in causing the Manchurian Incident and was designated as a Type A war criminal by the Allied Headquarters. However, he was repatriated at the strong request of the Korean government and is one of the worst criminals.

The policy of annihilation of the nation, including the change of name, all came from this guy, and in short, it was not even worth reconsidering.

Naturally, he was sentenced to death by hanging.

The next and last governor, Koiso Kuniaki, was similarly sentenced to death by hanging.

Because it was a period, the military conscription, forced conscription, and comfort women all occurred during Lee Ja’s tenure.

After the governors, those who stood trial were those related to Unit 731.

The court did not grant any leniency to those involved in Unit 731, and held not only Shiro Ishii and other unit members responsible, but also the head of the Kwantung Army responsible.

And they requested the Allied General Headquarters to arrest and bring them back to Japan, even if they were former employees.

In this way, more than 2,000 people, both former and current, were arrested and brought to court in connection with Unit 731, and almost all of them were sentenced to death by hanging.

In addition, they also requested GHQ to confiscate all of their property in Japan.

In the midst of all this, there was someone who caught my eye.

It was Lieutenant General Hong Sa-ik of the Japanese Army.

Aside from the royal family, there are several other Koreans who reached the rank of lieutenant general in the Japanese army, but they were promoted to special treatment as soldiers of the Korean Empire.

Therefore, he is the only Korean Army lieutenant general who was promoted through a formal course based on his ability.

In the original history, Hong Sa-ik became the general manager of a prisoner of war camp on the southern front, and when the war was lost, he was held responsible for abusing prisoners and was hanged.

However, will his fate change now that he has been repatriated at the request of the South Korean government?

That couldn’t be possible.

Even if it seems unfair that he was responsible for abusing prisoners, he had suppressed the Korean Volunteer Corps under the Eighth Route Army while serving as a brigade commander in Hebei Province during his time as an army major.

In that battle, many independence fighters, including Yoon Se-ju, were killed.

This is something I can never forgive.

Naturally, the sentence of hanging was handed down.

Clap!

“Come out, I want to meet you.”

When Hong Sa-ik was suddenly asked to visit in the middle of the night, he came out of his cell in confusion.

When he went to the visiting room, he knew right away who was looking for him.

“Big brother, it was you.”

“Yes, let’s fly.”

It was Ji Cheong-cheon, a classmate at the Japanese Military Academy.

“Why did you come looking for a sinner like me? “What if I end up being hated by the government?”

“It’s not such a tight government. “When I asked, he obediently gave me time.”

“Then that’s a relief.”

“I saw the award in a small way. Come on, eat it.”

“Thank you for this.”

The two drank soju in silence for a moment.

“It’s a good drink. “Thank you.”

“I’m sorry.”

“What do you mean?”

“I begged the government to save my life, but they refused. “They said there was nothing they could do because of the battle with the Joseon Volunteer Corps.”

“You did something useless. “Those who are going must go.”

“Why didn’t you keep your promise? “Have you had several opportunities to leave the Japanese military?”

The students who entered the Korean Empire Military Academy, but were transferred to the Japanese Military Academy when the empire collapsed, made a promise at the end of the discussion.

The plan was to learn what to learn and then run away and commit yourself to the independence army, but Hong Sa-ik did not keep his promise.

“Ha, what if I regret it now? I just didn’t know that Japan, which was so strong and seemed like it would last forever, would fall. So, I thought that if we Koreans worked hard, the day would come when we would be treated equally like the Irish in Britain. “It was foolish.”

“I see.”

The two drank soju in silence again.

and.

“I guess I’ll just go.”

“I will remember the alcohol I drank today even in the afterlife. “I enjoyed some luxury along the way.”

As Ji Qingtian was about to leave, he looked back and opened his mouth.

“Don’t worry family. I will take care of you. Just like you did…”

“Hehehe! Thank you so much. Thanks to you, I can leave with peace of mind.”

“Well, farewell, my friend.”

“Come slowly later, friend.”

Just like that, Hong Sa-ik disappeared into the dew at the execution ground.