Notes: It is July 1943. Imperial Japan, including Japan-colonized Korea, has been mobilized in total war against the United States and Britain for over a year and a half, and the strains of war are starting to show. Food shortages are starting to show up, Korean workers are going hungry, and hungry workers cannot work as hard. Here, Japanese company bosses from across different industries are gathered together exchanging ideas about how to ‘train’ their Korean workers to work even harder. The company boss of RIKEN Research Institute, which still exists today, boasts that he punishes workers who space out from heat exhaustion by making them run, and also pushes his workers to work until they collapse from exhaustion. 

The last comment at the end of the article about two Korean workers developing ‘teething fever’ is made as a joke infantilizing Koreans as babies. Unfortunately, these kinds of jokes are still circulated around in Japan today. Recently, Hideaki Kase, director of the Alliance for Truth about Comfort Women, and a major supporter of denialist causes, made a comment calling Koreans ‘cute’ like children. The infantilization of Koreans has a dark history of being used to justify the oppression of Koreans, including the abuses of colonialism and Imperialism in the Korean peninsula. 

Source: https://archive.org/details/kjnp-1943-07-14/page/n3/mode/1up

(Translation)

Gyeongseong Ilbo (Keijo Nippo) July 14, 1943

Responding to the demands of the nation in wartime

Willing to die on the production line

The spirit of fierce warriors who increase production

Seongdong-gu Industry Roundtable

First Roundtable Discussion

Mr. Yoshida: Invention and discovery can be true or false. For them to be true, one must start from “divinity”. There are so-called mathematical inventions as well as philosophical inventions, and only when “divinity” is added to an invention can great effects be expected.

From my own point of view, it is difficult to accept a materialistic view such as Darwin’s theory of evolution. We should not start with the sun. Rather, we should look at what existed before the sun. Therein lies a mysterious and unfathomable world, and a divine age is discovered in which the universe was formed from the power source (electrons) of yin and yang. I believe that, without the “mind of God”, there would be no modern age, and discoveries and inventions in advanced modern chemical warfare would not be possible.

In short, I would like to say that, in order to make inventions and discoveries in decisive battles, you must raise your spirit to a high level. “Polish your spirit instead of figuring things out” – this is my creed, and I believe that one’s own inspiration will spring up there, and inventions and discoveries will then be possible.

Chief Fukuda: I think your very profound words are enlightening in many places. Now, let’s talk about training methods. How about you, Mr. Moriya?

Mr. Moriya (Idemitsu Kosan Company, Ltd.): I would say that all our workers are involved. At first, they were not very enthusiastic about the training, and they said they couldn’t help but go hungry during training when they eat just rationed rice (laughter). But gradually they got used to it. We told them to follow the example of Greater Japan Riken Research Institute next door, which is conducting intense training. Nowadays, they are training voluntarily, and it has been quite effective.

Mr. Shirakawa (Japan Anthracite Coal & Steel Co., Ltd.): Starting June 1st, we have organized units in a military style, and each unit leader (plant manager) and others below them assume their duties to perform morning assembly and recite our mission statement aloud every morning. Instructions are also given to underlings at this time, and it has been effective.

In addition to providing lunch and rubber-soled work socks, company housing and dormitories are also provided for the employees. The workday is ten hours, but a 20% bonus is given for two hours of overtime.

We give awards to those who do little good deeds, such as covering up important wartime supplies to prevent them from getting wet when it rains, and we also give awards to excellent technicians and workers.

The other day, we sent ten of our employees to a training center for mid-career workers hosted by Gyeonggi Province, and the employees were very impressed, saying “We never knew such a good place even existed. For the first time, we touched on what the Japanese spirit was, and we were just excited”. 

Mr. Mobara (Korea Pharmaceutical Co.): We have about 70 male and female employees. There is nothing unusual about our methods, but we take extra precautions by holding morning meetings to give encouragement and conducting daily mental training at every opportunity.

Mr. Watanabe (Korea Shoes Co.): As you know, we have a lot of buildings and no vacant land, so training has been very difficult. We have been using others’ vacant lots for military unit training and wooden sword exercises. Everyone is passionate and always thinking about introducing shinai (bamboo swords) and teaching kendo soon, and the 100 employees are very enthusiastic about it.

Mr. Koyama (Korea Petroleum Co.): Because of our location, fire is very dangerous, and working in such a place is a kind of training in itself, so our daily lives are quite tense.

Mr. Yoshida (Greater Japan Riken Research Institute): Manners and training are included in our company policy, and we strictly enforce polite bowing, even if it causes discomfort. It is totally inappropriate for employees at work to stare at visitors’ faces. If a worker is lazy, he is punished by being made to run at full speed.

When people run, all distracted thoughts disappear (laughter). Therefore, whenever I feel that the heat is getting to them and they are feeling a little spaced out, I immediately make them run (laughter). Whenever we assemble, we practice fire drills. At our company, training is part of our job. We shouldn’t think that work and training are separate.

We have our staff go to work at 7:00 in the morning, but we make sure they arrive at the office ten minutes before 7:00. Then we do ten minutes of intense naval exercises to strengthen our bodies. Of course, at noon, they train for 30 minutes as well, which seems to have become quite popular.

Those who are foolish or lukewarm are told, “You must work until you collapse. Do not fall short compared to the soldiers on the front lines. You must work hard until you collapse just like the soldiers for whom you take absolute responsibility, vowing that you won’t let them die in vain”. Thanks to this, they seem to have become more aware of the current situation.

The workers would grumble that there is not enough food, and when I asked why, they told me that they ate up a ten-day supply of food in just three days (laughter). I strictly reprimanded them that this was not OK. We serve miso soup for lunch, which is effective in replenishing calories, but miso is in somewhat short supply these days.

We also strictly enforce bathing. We set up a bathhouse in the factory and encourage them to bathe. If a person gets sick to his stomach, we immediately send him to see a doctor. Our policy is for a worker to see a doctor as soon as possible so that he can be cured quickly.

Recently, we sent about 10 people on a field trip to Japan proper, and it was very effective in helping them acquire the Japanese spirit. For example, on the way to the Ise Grand Shrine, a member of the group was talking to an old farmer and asking him how he was cultivating his fields. It was a nice scene.

When I later asked them about their impressions of their visit, they all said in a curious tone of voice, “There was not a single person in Japan proper who was playing around”. This was the most eye-opening thing for them. After studying and returning home, two of them developed severe ‘teething fever’ (laughter). To be continued…

(Transcription)

京城日報　1943年7月14日

戦時下国家要請に応う

喜んで生産陣に斃れん

烈々、この増産戦士の気魄

城東産業座談会

第一回座談会

吉田氏：発明発見には真作と偽作とがあり、真作たらしめるには『神性』から出発しなければならぬ。いわば数学的発明と哲学的発明とがあり、発明に『神性』が加えられてこそ、初めて素晴らしい効果が期待出来るでしょう。

私自身の考え方からすると、ダーウィンの進化論など唯物的な観方は承服出来難い。いきなり太陽から始まるのでなく、太陽以前はどうであったか。そこに神秘不可思議な世界があり、陰陽の電源子（エレクトロン）から宇宙が成り立つ神代が発見される。その”神の心”を切離しては現代は無く、高度化された近代化学戦に於ける発明発見は覚束ないと信じます。

要するに決戦下に於いての発明発見には霊魂を高度に昂めよーと申し上げたい『物を考え出すより魂を練れ』。これが私の信条であって、そこには自らづと霊感が湧き、発明発見も可能なりと信じています。

福田署長：仲々含蓄のあるお言葉に啓発される處が多いと思います。では、錬成の方法に就いてお話を伺いましょう。盛谷さんの方は如何でしょう。

盛谷氏（出光興産）：労務者が全部と云っていいでしょう。三十名ばかりで月数回教練を実施していますが、最初は気乗りせず配給米で教練では腹が減って仕方ありませんという（笑声）。段々慣れて来たが、お隣の理化学研究所では猛烈な訓練をやっている。あれを見習えというわけです。昨今は自発的にやり、相当効果を挙げています。

白川氏（日本無煙炭製鉄）：私共では六月一日から軍隊式に部隊を編成して部隊長（工場長）以下夫々分担して毎朝朝礼を行い、綱領を斉唱します。指示事項なども、この際示達して効果を挙げています。

厚生施設の中に昼食の給与や、地下足袋の配給の他、社宅や合宿の整備にも気を配り、十時間勤務ですが、居残り二時間に対し二割の手当を出します。

一寸した善行、例えば雨が降って命ぜられなくても物をかぶせて、その大事な戦時物資の濡れることを防ぐ等の善行者或いは優良技術者、工員には表彰することにしています。

先日京畿道主催の中堅労務者訓練所に私共からも十名ばかり入所させましたが、『あんな良い所とは知りませんでした。日本精神というものに就いて、初めて触れて只々耀くばかりです』と工員達は非常な感激振りです。

茂原氏（朝鮮売薬）：私共には男女七十名程の従業員が居り、別に変わった方法としてありませんが、朝会の励行と日常の精神訓練には凡ゆる機会を通じて充分意を注いでいます。

渡辺氏（朝鮮製靴）：御存知の様に、建物が敷地いっぱいで空地がないもんですから錬成の苦心は一通りでありません。それでも方々の空地を利用して部隊教練、木剣体操をさせていますが、皆が熱心で近く竹刀を導入して剣道も教えたいと念頭しており、百名の工員も大張切りという按配です。

小山氏（朝鮮石油）：場所柄火気が非常に危険で、そんな所で仕事すること自体が一つの錬成で相当緊張した日常を送ります。

吉田氏（大日本理化学研究所）：礼儀と訓練は社是に包含されており、きざのようでも敬礼は厳格に励行させています。仕事中に見学者でも来るとジロジロ顔を見るのなど全くいけませんな。時に怠け者などありますと、罰に駈け足をさせます。

人間走っていると一切の雑念はケシ飛んで了うものです（笑声）。ですから暑さに負けて少しボンヤリしたなと思うと、すぐ駈け足をさせます（笑声）。集合の際は常に防火訓練の行動です。私共では訓練も立派に仕事の中にはいるんです。仕事と訓練とは別だという考え方がいけないんですね。

朝は七時出勤なんですが必ず十分前に到着せよと実行させています。それから十分間猛烈な海軍体操で身体を鍛えます。勿論正午にも三十分間同様猛訓練でこれは相当評判になっているようです。

愚図愚図したり生温かいことを言っている者等には『君達倒れるまでやれ。前線の将兵に負けてはならぬ。そのかわり工場で倒れた以上犬死はさせぬ、絶対の責任をもつから兵士と同様倒れるまで頑張るんだぞ』と励まします。近頃はお蔭で大分時局を認識して来たようです。

御飯が足らぬとこぼすから、わけを聞いて見ると十日分を三日位で食う（笑声）。こんな事ではダメだと厳しく戒めます。昼に味噌汁を給与しますが、これはカロリー補給に効果がありますが、昨今はやや味噌が不足しています。

それから入浴は厳重にさせています。工場内に浴場を設けて励行させる。腹でもこわした時は直ぐ医者に診せます。早く診せて早く治す方針です。

先般内地見学に十名程やり、日本精神体得に非常な効果を挙げました。例えば伊勢参宮の途中、一人の隊員が内地人の年老いた農夫に懸命に話かけて田畑の耕作振りに就いて聞いているのです。いい風景でしたね。

隊員に後で内地見学の感想を聞いてみると一様に『内地では只の一人も遊んでいる者がありませんね』と不思議相に言うのです。之が一番眼に着いたらしいですね。勉強が過ぎて帰ってから二名程高度の智恵熱を出しましたよ（笑声）（つづく）。