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안중근의사기념관

Birth and Growth

Anti-Japanese Enlightenment Movement

In July 1907, Emperor Gojong, attempt to alert the international 
community of Japan’s attempts to clolnize Korea, secretly dispatched
three emissaries to the Second Hague Conference on World Peace.
When the Japanese imperialists learned of this, Japan’s first 
Resident-General Hirobumi ito, forced Emperor Gojong to abdicate the 
throne and forced the ratification of the Japan-Korea Annexation 
Treaty of 1907(a.k.a. Jeongmi joyak)
The treaty allowed a large number of Japanese officials to accelerate the scheme to fully colonize Korea by disarming and disbanding the Korean armed 
forces and letting forests, mines, and railroads be turned over to Japanese management. Japan also offered loans of high interest rates to Korea by force 
under the context of consolidating economic cooperation.
In an effort to crack down on the anti-Japanese enlightenment movement, Japan proclaimed the Newspaper Law on July 27, 1907 to strengthen the 
censorship of the press and the publication and restrict the freedom of assembly and association.Having heard that Emperor Gojong was forcefully 
dethroned and the Korean army was disbanded, Ahn discussed countermeasures with his colleagues. Ahn called for the “independence war strategy” 
under which they mobilize a righteous army as part of the effective schemes to promote the anti-Japanese enlightenment movement and prepare for an 
independence war. The major tactics of the strategy are as follows:
Japanese imperialists will engage in war against any of thre nations of Russia, Qing China, and the United States within five years in the 
process of its expansion overseas.
The war will be a heavy burden for Japan, but could be an oportunity for Korea.
If and when Korea is not fuly prepared for the consequences, it is invitable that Korea again will be under the grip of another evil superpower.
The Korean people should recover its sovereignty and consolidate the autonomous independence by always marking efforts to raise a 
righteous army in order not to lose a big opportunity.
Even it Korea loses the independence wqr it raises after marking use of the opportunity and meets a worst scenario, the nation then
wil be able to have its independence guaranteed by appealing for the public consensus of the world.
Ahn’s “independence war strategy” containing these ideas was not carried out, given the circumstances of 1907 when the righteous army cannot guarantee the victory 
of the war due to the absolute shortage of the latest weapons and the lack of their military training.As a result, Ahn gave up his plan to inaugurate the anti-Japanese 
enlightenment movement and instead took asylum in Vladivostok at age 29 in order to create a new righteous army.