The Kōmin Hōkōkai (皇民奉公会, Imperial Subjects for Patriotic Services) was an organization founded on April 19, 1941, for the Japanization, or Kōminka, movement in Taiwan during the Japanese rule. The association was aimed at all island residents[1] and its purpose was to carry out the “Kōminka movement” under the slogans "Taiwanese and Japanese as One Family" and "Mainland Japan and Taiwan as One Family" in response to the urgent international situation.[2] Its nature was similar to that of the Association for the Support of Imperial Rule in Japan (大政翼贊會).[3] At the same time, there was a sub-organization of IRAA called League of Mobilization [ja][4] in Korea, which was a Japanese colony like Taiwan.
In January 1941, the Government-General of Taiwan decided on the name of the organization and appointed military, official, and civilian representatives to serve as the Preparatory Committee for Kōmin Hōkōka. The founding ceremony was held at the Governor General's Office on April 19 of that year.[5]
After World War II, the Taiwan Provincial Administrative Executive Office(also known as the Chief Executive's Office) was established. The office was led by Chen Yi (陳儀), who was responsible for taking over the administrative organizations and promoting reconstruction. The Chief Executive's Office considered any involvement with the Kōmin Hōkōka to be illegal. Those who held public office were dismissed if this past involvement was revealed. After the end of the February 28 Incident in 1947, Chen Yi repeatedly pointed out that members of the Kōmin Hōkōkai were instigators behind the scenes. He cataloged and monitored individuals associated with the association, resulting in the exclusion of a large number of local talents in Taiwan from the public sector.[6]
Scholar Hsu Hsueh-chi (許雪姬) speculated that the organization ended on June 17, 1945, leaving only the organization of the Volunteer Fighting Corps (later reorganized as the Volunteer Fighting Combat Teams).[7]
Categories of Kōmin Hōkōkai work
The work of the Kōmin Hōkōkai is multi-faceted and can be broadly categorized into three types:
From top to bottom, strengthening the transmission of official information and leadership, such as issuing official publications and sending supervisors to various places for advocacy.[8]
Strengthening the promotion of donations needed for devotion, labor (including conscription), materials, and funds.
Establish new norms for the workplace in wartime to improve efficiency.[9]
There were two ways of propaganda by Kōmin Hōkōkai to convey the various norms of the time of war:
The publication of the journal 《新建設》 (lit. "New Construction") was centered on the assimilation policy, and the propaganda effect was strengthened by widely requesting readers to contribute.[10]
Instructors moved to several places to carry out physical promotional activities.
^Hsu, Hsueh-Chi (1999). "皇民奉公會的研究——以林獻堂的參與為例" [The Kominhokokai in Taiwan during the Second World War: A Case Study of Lin Hsien-tang's Involvement]. 近代史研究所集刊(Bulletin of the institute of modern history a cademia sicina) (31): 171.
^Sung, Chia-Lun (2016). 內埔老街生活變遷之研究(1895~2015) [A study on the life changes of Neipu old street (1895~2015)]. National Pingtung University of Science and Technology. p. 33.
^Hsu, Hsueh-Chi (1999). "皇民奉公會的研究——以林獻堂的參與為例" [The Kominhokokai in Taiwan during the Second World War: A Case Study of Lin Hsien-tang's Involvement]. 近代史研究所集刊(Bulletin of the institute of modern history a cademia sicina) (31): 177–180.
^Ishikawa, Kyoko (2004). 周金波＜志願兵＞析論 [An Analysis of Chou Chin-po's 'Volunteer Soldier]. National Tsing Hua University. p. 23.
^Chen, Tsui-Lien (2016). "臺灣戰後初期的「歷史清算」（1945-1947）" [The 'Historical Reckoning' in the Early Post-War Period in Taiwan (1945-1947)]. 臺大歷史學報(Historical Inquiry) (58): 195–248.
^Hsu, Hsueh-Chi (1999). "皇民奉公會的研究——以林獻堂的參與為例" [The Kominhokokai in Taiwan during the Second World War: A Case Study of Lin Hsien-tang's Involvement]. 近代史研究所集刊(Bulletin of the institute of modern history a cademia sicina) (31): 181–183.
^Ku, Hui-Hua (2011). 日治後期臺灣皇民化運動中的圖像宣傳與戰時動員（1937-1945）—以漫畫和海報為中心 [Image Propaganda and Wartime Mobilization in the Later Period of Japanese occupation Rule in Taiwan (1937-1945) - Focusing on Comics and Posters]. National Taiwan Normal University. pp. 53–55.
^Hsu, Hsueh-Chi. "皇民奉公會的研究——以林獻堂的參與為例" [The Kominhokokai in Taiwan during the Second World War: A Case Study of Lin Hsien-tang's Involvement]. 近代史研究所集刊(Bulletin of the institute of modern history a cademia sicina) (31): 180–181.
^"《新建設二》". 國立臺灣歷史博物館典藏網. 2021-02-25. Archived from the original on 2023-06-20. Retrieved 2023-06-20.
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