According to Japanese traditions, being
humble and modest is regarded as a virtue, and praising themselves or talking
about their own achievements is something they are not familiar with and even
feel uncomfortable about. Recently, however, the Japanese people and government
have come to the realization the hard way that this virtue is not fully
understood by some in the international community which now demands the
Japanese government produce and disseminate factual informative videos.
The video titled “Nation Building in the Post War Era: Japan as a Reliable Partner”
has upset some Koreans who deny the extensive support Japan gave in their
economic development during the post war period.
For example, if you read the Wikipedia
article "Miracleon the Han River" which reflects Korean understanding of the
subject, there is no mention at all of the contribution made by Japan to South
Korea's post war economic achievements.
On the contrary, the Japanese government
spent over $ 600 billion on building infrastructure on the Korean Peninsula
during the annexation era (more than they invested in Japan at the time ) and
since 1965 they have also provided substantial financial and technical aid
support. Some of the contributions are
as follows:
*In 1965, the "Treaty on Basic
Relations between Japan and the Republic of Korea" was signed and Japan
provided $300 million in grants, $200 million in loan aid up to the end of 1975
(approx.1.6 times of South Korea's national budget, equivalent to $3.6 trillion
in today's value). However, the total
sum of financial support provided between 1965 and 2001, amounted to a staggering 3.8 times what was
originally agreed to in the agreement above.
*In 1997 when South Korea was caught up in
the Asian Currency Crisis, Japan provided $10 billion of financial support
through an international support framework and in additional gave a further
$8.35 billion.
*$20 billion in 2006 as an emergency relief
fund when the Korean Won became overvalued.
*¥30 billion loan for the construction
of the World Cup Football Stadium in 2002.
(Approx. $ 107 billion of these loans have
until this day, still not been repaid to Japan.)
Please watch the video here;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Fo6Zz_w0WE
Related videos:
Japan And Korea In Post-War Era; Economic
Aid, ODA, Technology Licensing, Compensation and Apologies
